The Book of Discoveries

by Amit Majmudar

Dive deep into the minds of those who dared to defy convention in Against the Grain, a compelling exploration of wisdom, vulnerability and visionary thinking. Through conversations with luminaries like A.R. Rahman, Uday Kotak, Nandan Nilekani, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Naval Ravikant and many more, this book reveals what it takes to carve your own path, defy norms and truly embrace your uniqueness.

Veteran business journalist Pankaj Mishra skilfully retraces the journeys of these bold outliers, delving into their experiences of hope, disillusionment, victory, defeat, joy and pain with refreshing candour. Drawing from transformative interviews featured on Mishra’s acclaimed and beloved podcast Outliers, this book offers a lucid and captivating narrative that vividly portrays how some of India’s most prominent figures confront the myriad challenges and uncertainties of life.

A must-read for those navigating their own paths to success, this chronicle serves as an inspiring testament to resilience, determination and individuality.

408 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 30, 2024

About the author

Amit Majmudar is the author of The Abundance, Partitions, chosen by Kirkus Reviews as one of the best debut novels of 2011 and by Booklist as one of the year’s ten best works of historical fiction. His poetry has been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and Best American Poetry 2011. A radiologist, he lives in Columbus, Ohio.

Reviews

[Craartology · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Book Of Discoveries of The Mahabharata Trilogy is an impressive successor of The Book of Vows. A brilliant reimagination of the more gruesome and dramatic events of the great epic of Mahabharata.

Amit Majmudar has a knack to keep the reader hooked with his sharp prose. This retelling is crisp, quick-paced, detailed and very modern in form. While the crux remains the same, the reader of today can empathise with the characters, their motives and actions relatively- casually without the usual-excessive philosophical expressions.

Every retelling helps to understand the multiple perspectives of the same situation or event that have been known by and large and this book delivers its intent.

I've enjoyed reading this one and am looking forward to reading the next book in line!

[Triveni Gore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my god I can’t begin to explain how good this book is. And the Gita at the end of this volume? The best interpretation for a modern audience. Majmudar makes the Gita easier to understand and a true love poem from Krishna to his devotee, a true conversation between God disguised as a friend and a devotee disguised as his best friend. Just… incredible. Chef’s kiss. Truly.