31 Books You Should’ve Read in 2020

While we can all agree that this year has been all sorts of horrible, it is important to remember that even the darkest of clouds have a silver lining – or linings, in this case! We’ve put together a list of some of the best books of 2020 that, we think, have made the year that much more bearable. If you missed out on any of the brilliance in this eclectic selection, now is your chance to catch up! Which one will you pick up first?

For Adults

The Age of Pandemics (1817-1920): How They Shaped India and the World by Chinmay Tumbe

 The Age of Pandemics by Chinmay Tumbe chronicles the many facets of the cholera, plague and influenza pandemics, which claimed over 70 million lives between 1817 and 1920, with India being the epicentre in all these episodes.

Get your copy here!

Didn’t See That Coming by Rachel Hollis

With her signature humor, heartfelt honesty and true-life stories, in Didn’t See that Coming, Rachel Hollis shares how to embrace the difficult moments in life for the learning experiences they are, and that a life well-lived is one of purpose and focused on the essentials.

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The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi

Vivid and compelling in its portrait of one woman’s struggle for fulfilment in a society pivoting between the traditional and the modern, The Henna Artist opens a door into a world that is at once lush and fascinating, stark and cruel.

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Why Not Me? By Anubhav Agrawal

In Why Not Me? Anubhav looks back on his roller-coaster ride of being crazy in love to heartbroken, expressing in words what countless others have felt. His message? A broken heart can make you a stronger person.

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India’s China Challenge by Ananth Krishnan

India’s China Challenge tells the story of a complex political relationship, and how China – and its leading opinion-makers – view India. It looks at the economic dimensions and cultural connect, and the internal political and social transformations in China that continue to shape both the country’s future and its relations with India.

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The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel

The long-awaited sequel to Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies, the stunning conclusion to Hilary Mantel’s Man Booker Prize-winning Wolf Hall trilogy. With The Mirror and the Light, she traces the final years of Thomas Cromwell, the boy from nowhere who climbs to the heights of power.

Get your copy here!

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

An era-defining novel about the relationship between a fifteen-year-old girl and her teacher. Nuanced, uncomfortable, bold and powerful, My Dark Vanessa goes straight to the heart of some of the most complex issues our age.

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Body and Blood by Benyamin, translated by Swarup B.R.

Following the lives of men and women caught in a web of criminally orchestrated accidents and medically induced comas, Benyamin’s latest novel Body and Blood is by turns introspective and thrilling – a meditation on faith and God that also holds up a mirror to the power and corruption of organized religion.

Get your copy here!

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

Another murder. Another mystery. The brand new thriller from the #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of The Hunting Party. On a remote island, guests gather for the wedding of the year – the marriage of Jules Keegan and Will Slater. The wedding cake has barely been cut when one of the guests is found dead. Find out what it’s like to be trapped on an island with a murderer!

Get your copy here!

 

The Buddhist on Death Row by David Sheff

From foster care at age five, Jarvis Jay Masters progressed quickly to juvenile detention, and ultimately San Quentin. While in prison, he was set up for the murder of a guard – a conviction which landed him on death row, where he’s been since 1990. David Sheff describes Masters’s gradual but profound transformation from a man dedicated to hurting others to protecting them.

Get your copy here!

Stories of Hope by Heather Morris

In Stories of Hope, Heather Morris takes us on an inspirational journey through some of the defining experiences of her life, including her profound friendship with Lale Sokolov, the tattooist at Auschwitz-Birkenau.

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India’s Founding Moment by Madhav Khosla

Madhav Khosla explores the means India’s founders used to foster a democratic ethos. The events and ideas of India’s Founding Moment offer a natural reference point for these nations where democracy and constitutionalism have arrived simultaneously, and they remind us of the promise and challenge of self-rule today.

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The Emperor Who Never Was by Supriya Gandhi

The definitive biography of the eldest son of Emperor Shah Jahan, whose death at the hands of his younger brother Aurangzeb changed the course of South Asian history. Gandhi’s nuanced writing gives us a more complex and revealing portrait of this Mughal prince than we have ever had.

Get your copy here!

Winning Now, Winning Later by David M. Cote

Presenting a comprehensive solution to a perennial problem that is prevalent now more than ever, Winning Now, Winning Later is a go-to guide for leaders everywhere. Read this extract to learn how you too can leave an enduring legacy of success.

Get your copy here!

Capital and Ideology by Thomas Piketty and Arthur Goldhammer

Capital and Ideology is destined to be one of the indispensable books of our time, a work that will not only help us understand the world, but that will change it. Piketty challenges us to revolutionize how we think about politics, ideology, and history.

Get your copy here!

Naoroji: Pioneer of Indian Nationalism by Dinyar Patel

The definitive biography of Dadabhai Naoroji, the nineteenth-century activist who founded the Indian National Congress, was the first British MP of Indian origin. Mahatma Gandhi called Dadabhai Naoroji the “father of the nation,” a title that today is reserved for Gandhi himself. Naoroji is the first comprehensive study of the most significant Indian nationalist leader before Gandhi.

Get your copy here!

Avasthe: A Novel by U.R. Ananthamurthy (tr. Narayan Hegde)

The quintessential Indian novel, Avasthe is a masterpiece whose meanings will continue to resonate and reveal themselves long after it has been read. First published in Kannada in 1978, Avasthe is U.R. Ananthamurthy’s tour de force.

Get your copy here!

Rumi: A New Translation by Farrukh Dhondy

Love, devotion, suffering and longing mysteriously co-exist in the poems of Jalal-ud-din Rumi. Farrukh Dhondy’s translations not only offer a modern idiom to the poems, but also faithfully keep intact their religious context., making this volume a poetry lover’s treasure-trove.

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Shameless by Taslima Nasreen, translated by Arunava Sinha

The explosive sequel to Taslima Nasreen’s LajjaShameless is an uncompromising, heart-breaking look at ordinary people’s lives in our troubled times, told through the perspective of Suranjan and his family.

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The Khalistan Conspiracy: A Former R&AW Officer Unravels the Path to 1984 by GBS Sidhu

The author, a former Special Secretary of India’s external intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), examines a series of interconnected events that led to the rise of the Khalistan movement, Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984 and the anti-Sikh violence unleashed thereafter.

Get your copy here!

Pragmarketism by Arvind Bhandari and Trupti Bhandari

Drawing from successful brands in FMCG, durables, media and other industries, Pragmarketism offers unprecedented insights on succeeding in the world’s most exciting market and how to win over Indian consumers.

Get your copy here!

 

For Children and Young Adults

The Great Realisation by Tomos Roberts

A post-pandemic bedtime tale that has captured the hearts of millions. First performed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, Tomos Roberts’ inspiring poem, with its message of hope and resilience, is a story for all readers, young or old, who dare to dream of a fairer, kinder, more loving world.

Get your copy here!     

Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar

The daughter of a star and a mortal, Sheetal is used to keeping secrets. Pretending to be “normal.” But when an accidental flare of her starfire puts her human father in the hospital, Sheetal needs a full star’s help to heal him. Sheetal’s quest to save her father will take her to a celestial court of shining wonders and dark shadows!

Get your copy here!

Blood & Honey by Shelby Murin

After narrowly escaping death at the hands of the Dames Blanches, Lou, Reid, Coco, and Ansel are on the run from coven, kingdom, and church—fugitives with nowhere to hide. To elude the scores of witches and throngs of chasseurs at their heels they need allies. Strong ones. But protection comes at a price…

Get your copy here!

The Secret Life of Debbie G. by Vibha Batra

The Secret Life of Debbie G. is the story of a sixteen-year-old who becomes an online sensation overnight. Except, it’s her online persona that hits big time. Equal parts poignant and fun, this is a bittersweet coming-of-age story.

Get your copy here!

How to be a Writer by Ruskin Bond

How to be a Writer is peppered with nuggets of practical advice for every person who is aspiring to write and be published, all told in Ruskin Bond’s characteristic understated, tongue-in-cheek, humorous style.

Get your copy here!

The Mystery of the School on Fire by Ravi Subramanian

From the master storyteller and writer of bestselling thrillers, Ravi Subramanian, comes a delightful new series of detective fiction for young children. In this first mystery in the newly-launched SMS Detective Agency series – the SMS gang solves the perplexing case of how and why their school catches fire, not once but twice!

Get your copy here!

Code Name Bananas by David Walliams
Go back in time with no. 1 bestselling author David Walliams for a whizz-bang epic adventure of action, laughter and secret plots – and the extraordinary friendship between a little boy and a huge gorilla that just might save the day…

Deny All Charges by Eoin Colfer

The second book in the blockbusting new series from the bestselling author of Artemis Fowl starts with a bang – literally. Find out what adventures the Fowl twins, Myles and Beckett, go on this time!

Get your copy here!

What We’ll Build by Oliver Jeffers

A rare and enduring story about a parent’s boundless love, life’s endless opportunities, and all we need to build a together future. From celebrated author-illustrator and visual artist Oliver Jeffers comes a gorgeously told father-daughter story and perfect picture book companion to Here We Are.

Get your copy here! 

The Adventures of Parsley the Lion by Michael Bond

Michael Bond’s hilarious books featuring Parsley the Lion, first published nearly fifty years ago, are brought alive for a new generation in this contemporary colour gift edition, gloriously illustrated by the award-winning creator of Blown Away, Rob Biddulph.

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