Tales from grandma?s kitchen

The Hour of the Goddess: Memories of Women, Food and Ritual in Bengal (Penguin, Rs 195) by Chitrita Banerji talks about that critical element in a Bengali?s world ? food. Although Banerji devotes a few pages to intricate descriptions of delicacies such as narkel aloor chachhari, khashir rezala, ilish paturi and the inimitable sandesh, it would be puerile to describe her as a food writer. The book is at once a personal and a social commentary that offers wonderful insights into the complex ties between food and gender, ritual and art in Bengal. There are some fascinating anecdotes too ? the history of the bonti, the dietary strictures imposed on Bengali widows (not many would know that the poor women were forbidden from eating puishak), and how the Portuguese had a hand in Bengal?s discovery of chhana. Gastronomy and social commentary can be a tricky mix, but Banerji blends the two in a seamless bind and takes the reader on a journey into the heart of the Bengali household ? the henshel (kitchen)? that is at once delightful and educative. Some of the recipes would certainly evoke smells and sounds of another time and the pictures are also reminiscent of a world that is now lost forever.

There, where the pepper Grows (HarperCollins, Rs 295) by Bem Le Hunte is supposedly ?a dazzling story that carries the scent of spices?. It is anything but another recipe book though. This is the story of Benjamin, who, along with a group of refugees, flees from his native Poland to escape the brutality of the Nazis after Hitler?s invasion. Benjamin embarks on the journey to settle in Palestine, and somehow manages to get stranded in Calcutta. But what seems like only a brief halt turns into a permanent shelter for him and his fellow travellers.The plot is perhaps a bit too familiar ? the West meeting, and falling in love, with the East, with the mandatory themes of loneliness and peace woven in. The book is not without its moments though. The passages describing a man immersing an idol in the waters of the Hooghly, or the vignettes of Calcutta, its chaos and beauty, seen through the eyes of a foreigner are real and very familiar.

White Tiger (Puffin, Rs 150) by Rohini Chowdhury treads on classic Ruskin Bond territory, but has neither the charm nor the wit that characterize a Bond story. When Dev, Diti and Avi visit their father?s friend who lives in the remote village of Ratnapur, the children encounter among other things a man-eating tigress, ?a ghost tiger? and other intriguing dwellers of the forest. The plot is wafer-thin and the goings-on equally mundane. Watching a Natgeo episode would be a more rewarding experience for the kids but do buy a copy if you are having trouble in putting them to sleep.

Six acres and a third (Penguin, Rs 250) by Fakir Mohan Senapati is a clever little tale about the exploitation of poor villagers in Orissa. Set during the raj, it offers a kaleidoscopic view of the many tenets of rural life ? the crushing poverty, feudal exploitation and the resilience and wit of a repressed people. The hero in Senapati?s novel may be an ordinary villager, a foot soldier or even a horse. But their indictment of the structures of social and political authority has an appeal that cuts across the barriers of space and time. Satya P. Mohanty?s introduction is well-written and informative and the translators should be thanked for bringing Senapati into the world of English readers. Another offering from the vast treasure trove of vernacular literature in India.