CoolGrove

Category: Books

  • Northeast India in the Vertical Gorge of Tsangpo: climate change and the crisis of Brahmaputra

    by Arati B. Baruah

    For the benefit of Assamese readers outside India, Coolgrove Press is publishing (2021) Dr. Arati Baruah’s book titled Koilashor Pora Tsangpor Thio Gorat Utter-pub Bharat: Jalabayusalani, Brahmaputrarsankat (with the English title: Northeast India in the Vertical Gorge of Tsangpo: climate change and the crisis of Brahmaputra). It was first published in India with favorable reviews in Assam in 2020. An English version of the above work by the author is being prepared at Coolgrove, provisionally titled, Save the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra, Protect the Vertical Pole and Freeze Global Warming.

    As the titles suggest, when it comes to international border crossing rivers, complex factors not limited to environmental, topographical and geological, affect the people who live in those river valleys.

    However, when man-made disasters break upstream, problems cascades downstream where the people often pay the heavier price, though not always, in the long term. Treaties governed by international law need to be in place to enforce accountability for the responsible parties for such tragedies. Transcending national self-interest, the prevention of such disasters in mutual recognition of the loss of traditional lands and lives lost on both sides of the border need to be considered urgently. Such scenarios exist all over the world and require a closer look at the intentions and genuineness of the negotiating parties. Shifting the national aims from mindless and greedy exploitation of nature to mutual, good neighborly co-management of the ecosystems of such river valleys can instead support peace and prosperity on both sides of the river. Topographical geopolitics, historical perceptions and the good faith of the parties become crucial factors in the dynamics of negotiations. But governments come and governments go yet the lives, hopes and dreams of the people of valleys on both sides remain determined by the existence and absence of such guardrails.

    Referring to Tibet as the ‘Vertical Pole’, the author reminds us that Tibet, also known as the ‘Roof of the World’, is actually and spectacularly, the source of all the great rivers of Asia. Let us not forget that both the Ganges and the Brahmaputra as well as other smaller rivers flowing south into India begin in Tibet, fed by glacial melt cascading down the numerous creases of the Himalayas. In the interest of identifying the long view for both sides the border and the world by example, the works offer readers a localized and heartfelt perspective regarding the consequences of the topography and the geology of the long mountainous border region between India and Tibet-China, with an urgent appeal for both countries and the entire world, to pay closer attention to these issues and to take action to avoid catastrophes in the making.

    Buy your copy of Northeast India in the Vertical Gorge of Tsangpo on:

    Amazon

  • Let Them Eat Rubbish

    by Kevin Bartelme

    Kevin Bartelme, the author of five humorous novels, turns to the form of the classic short story in LET THEM EAT RUBBISH. The contrast between his wildly imaginative images, and the familiar structures of the literary short story—of De Maupassant, O. Henry, O’Hara—creates a crackling tension that ripples through the fifteen stories. His language, too, follows the classic structures and punctuation of “good English” so you always know exactly what he is saying—explicitly, at least. The clarity of his writing, and its strong narrative flow, lets the reader experience his creativity in a way that wouldn’t be possible if his prose was as offbeat and unexpected as his imagination.All the stories take place, at least in part, in pre-pandemic New York City—on its streets and in its bars, offices, apartments and shops. Love, wealth, ambition, sex, drinking, old age and immortality are themes that writers have explored for four thousand years, and Bartelme joins them in his vivid, 21st-century way. Rather than Odysseus struggling to free himself from the goddess Calypso, JOHN AND ELSA gives us a strangely convincing romance between a devil and an angel in a Manhattan club who have a hard time getting together, but find it even more difficult to break up. In VALLEY OF THE DOLTS, the high-tech screen called Solipsist, which lets a Las Vegas hooker grow a new body part, is oddly reminiscent of the reflection that dazzled Narcissus. And in PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST—and several other stories—the reader embarks on the same quest for immortality that captivated Gilgamesh.With vivid language and surprisingly twisty plots, Bartelme brings his characters and their emotions to life even as the title of this book, LET THEM EAT RUBBISH, loudly advertises one of his main concerns: there’s a lot he doesn’t like about the modern, consumerist, high-tech world. In the humorous, often memorable struggles of his characters, he shows us exactly why.

    Buy your copy of Let Them Eat Rubbish on:

    Amazon

  • Death of Radha and Other Poems

    by Nikariha Mishra

    “We observe a generous spirit that finds
    inspiration everywhere, at all those places
    which the heart recalls as its own. —Bibhu Padhi, poet

    “Death of Radha is a complex book that deserves our attention in a world of simplistic, black and white answers, and Niharika Mishra is a master of the English language who makes these poems take flight.” . . . She refuses to give us simple answers, as in the poem, “Born Out Of Books” wherein she presents her own form of feminism. It is not that men do not know how to love women, but rather that there are people in general who don’t know “about love”, Mishra writes. Men have taken, she says, what they have wanted from women, and have foolishly called it life. This, declares Mishra, is the truth found in men’s books. But women know that love is a search, and not a state of being.”
    —Rolando Pérez (from the preface)



    Niharika Mishra is an Indian poet who originally hails from the picturesque hilly town of Dhenkanal, Odisha, that has been an undeniable source of inspiration for her. Sprouting from this serene atmosphere, her love for poetry reached its height with legendary Odia poet Ramakanta Ratha’s Sri Radha and gradually moved towards Kamala Das, A. K. Ramanujan, Shiv K Kumar, Jayanta Mohapatra and Prof Bibhu Padhi who are eminent names in Indo-English poetry. Death of Radha and other Poems is her first collection of English poetry and as with most of her poems, they bear witness to her prominent longing to understand small details, nature and people around her. Currently, she teaches English language and literature in the capital city of Bhubaneswar in Odisha, India and keeps writing, drawing inspiration from the immediate surroundings.We observe a generous spirit that findsinspiration everywhere, at all those places which the heart recalls as its own. —Bibhu Padhi

    Buy your copy of Death of Radha on:

    Amazon

  • Plunky – JuJu Jazz Funk & Oneness

    by James “Plunky” Branch

    Plunky: Juju Jazz Funk & Oneness – A Musical Memoir, is an overnight success story, 50 years in the making. It documents James Plunky Branch’s career in music and arts activism, and delivers his memoir as a straight forward recollection of anecdotes, journals, and photographs. An early proponent of Afro-jazz and funk, Plunky, with his group Oneness of Juju with their deep rare grooves and progressive political themes, generated international critical acclaim.
    Plunky: Juju Jazz Funk & Oneness is all about decades of transitions, completed circles, and momentous meetings. It is not a standard sex, drugs and rock & roll exposé; rather it is an insider’s look behind the scenes of the independent Black jazz and soul music business and Plunky’s philosophies and methodologies that allowed him to persevere and come out on top.
    While he is primarily a saxophonist, performer and producer, it is his business acumen, his communication skills and his commitment to progressivism that sets Plunky apart. Musicians everywhere can be heartened by Plunky’s shared lessons of balancing the achievement of local stardom with persistently striving for wider, international acclaim.
    This is the memoir of an urban underground artist, straight outta RVA, NYC, SF, London, Paris and Accra. In it we learn Plunky is homegrown, ghetto fabulous, self-actualized and deeper than you’d otherwise ever know. Plunky’s autobiography is a thought-provoking account of various phases of his life as a black musician from the 1960s forward. He has said “I’m not a superstar, but I do play one on local stages.”
    Plunky’s long, successful career is a testament to the power of persistence. Reading his story reminds us all to never quit. Plunky dedicates his book is to those artists, both legendary and unsung, who have inspired him and to the readers he hopes his story will, in turn, encourage.

    Buy your copy of Plunky – JuJu Jazz Funk & Oneness on:

    Amazon

  • Beat Scrapbook

    by Gerald Nicosia

    Gerald Nicosia is the author of Memory Babe: A Critical Biography of Jack Kerouac, widely regarded as the definitive work on the father of the Beat Generation. Beat Scrapbook proves again, as Lionel Rolfe wrote in the Huffington Post, that “he also is a real poet, very much in the San Francisco tradition of Ferlinghetti, Patchen, Rexroth and Ginsberg.”Beat Scrapbook is a remarkable celebration of life and a haunting elegy for family, friends and fellow poets. In a truly Beat extension of the great tradition of poetic remembrance, Gerald Nicosia homages the people he has loved and admired in his life. These poems take the reader through loss and grief to a hard-fought reconciliation with mortality, honoring friendship and passionate affection, moving from melancholy to the conferring of blessings, with poignant grace notes. Mourning and rapture merge in these fine portraits of lives lived creatively and on the edge. This is a profoundly moving and validating work. It is nothing less than a poetry of life and love over death.” —Ian MacFadyenThe power and force of the Beat movement in American letters and culture, the primary figures, the significant works and the far-ranging influence, have been examined and extolled by many, but in the end there is only Nicosia standing above the rest. As a historian of the heart he is unsurpassed. And now he gives us Beat Scrapbook, this beautiful poetic addendum to it all where he lets his heart speak in one eulogy after another to the many great souls he has known in this journey. What an outpouring of love and recognition!” —R.B. Morris “Empathy for others, especially those with troubled lives—in short, love—seems to be the force that through the red veins drives Nicosia’s poetry flowers. They’re peopled like the poems of no other writer I’m familiar with these days. Real, specific people. It’s like I can reach out and touch them, because he has reached out and touched me.”— Chuck Brickley“If you want a rolling, rollicking history of poetry, poets, and life from the ‘60’s till now, take a trip through Gerald Nicosia’s Beat Scrapbook. Through his eyes we get an appreciation for the bubbling creativity that was everywhere if you knew where to look, as he surely did.”— Joanna McClure

    Buy your copy of Beat Scrapbook on:

    Amazon

  • Bhupen Hazarikar Git Aru Jibon Roth

    by Dr. Dilip Kumar Datta

    ‘Bhupen Hazarikar Git Aru Jibon Roth or song and chariot of Bhupen Hazarika’s Life’ is a painstaking and biographical look at the creative works of the prolific artist. According to this author, Hazarika has left behind lyrics of more than six hundred songs that are a blend of the humanism of Buddha, Marxism, and the best of western thoughts. Bhupen Hazarika composed music for his songs by blending together the ragas of Indian music with the melodies of the west but always setting them on the traditional and folk tunes of Assam, the land of blue hills and red rivers on the foothills of the Himalayas.This book is a complete collection of his songs analyzed and classified by the mathematician and author for whom the art of Assamese lyrics is both a passion and a pursuit. Dr. Bhupen Hazarika (1926-2011), a true jewel of Assam, was a many sided genius—a legendary singer, a lyricist, a composer, a scholar, an artist and above all a genuine humanist who dreamt of establishing a casteless and classless society in Assam, India and everywhere else in the world. He left enough evidence to understand his earnest desires and efforts in his writings, paintings, lyrics, lectures etc. Above all he sang from the depth of his soul in a manner that had so captivated the people that the hills and plains of Assam were empty and desolate as people thronged to Jalukbari to have a last glimpse of their beloved bard after his death on November 5, 2011 in Mumbai. As the sea of people and their earnestness were telecast, people all over the world saw a sight they had perhaps never seen.

    Buy your copy of Bhupen Hazarikar Git Aru Jibon Roth on:

    Amazon

  • The Tin Hat

    by Kevin Bartelme

    In The Tin Hat, his fifth humorous work of fiction with Coolgrove, author Kevin Bartelme brings us another biting satire about our culture’s fast slide into disturbing, uncharted territory. Not new to that critical point of view, our author lends us his literary goggles to witness hosts of science deniers submitting to delusional superstitions in hot, blind pursuit of their measures of success. Through deft application of dramatic devices he allow us a comedic gaze at outrageous behavior in the light of wise hindsight to be found in the best of ancient Greek comedians—writing as they were, in an already mature democracy—no strangers to diversity and valuing truth over correctness. In street parlance, Bartelme tells it like it is. Perhaps the stars will be aligned this fateful summer of 2020 for tired Americans to step back and be entertained by this author’s talent for treating heavy subjects with a light touch.When Professor Ted Gershem and his graduate school abnormal psychology seminar participants investigate conspiracy theorists diverse as flat-earthers and gluten rejectors they encounter a slew of Cassandras who warn them about everything from the Reptilians to the Bilderbergers. Before long they find themselves plunged in bizzare world-views where nothing is what it seems and where dark, unseen forces, battle for control of our minds. In this outrageous gambol through the dark side of New York, the group gets more than what they bargained for as they’re drawn into bizarre, off the wall situations involving eccentrics with exceedingly ‘rich inner lives’ dwelling in nothing but alternate realities propounded by, among other extreme tin hatters, a cabal of Ayn Rand revivalists. We are taken on a painless romp through an America gone soft on science but fallen hard

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    Amazon

  • A Bridge from America to Sadiya

    by Akdas Ali Mir, edited by Dilip Kumar Datta

    This book is a collection of three rare nineteenth century biographies. Two of the biographies are about American missionaries who laid down their lives for the cause of education and spiritual enlightenment of the people of Assam. The third one is the biography of the first native Assamese pastor of the Guwahati Church. Each biography was written by a well-known author who was intimately connected with the life and trials of his or her life. Thus Rev. E. H. Gray, D.D., the author of Mrs. Eliza and Rev. Nathan Brown. Sophie Bronson Titterington, the author of the other two biographies, was a popular writer of the nineteenth century America and daughter of Rev. Miles Bronson.

    Buy your copy of A Bridge from America to Sadiya on:

    Amazon

  • Manhattanville

    by E. K. Margetson

    Eaddon Towers had been through incarnations as a mogul’s mansion, a nursing home and for over sixty years a haven for its long time multicultural tenants. That is, until its choice location and river views gain the attention of real estate speculators. Stymied by the legal protections for those old tenants who stifle the march of market progress by refusing to move, one developer sends their best buyout specialist, Stella, to work her magic in clearing the building. Stella, herself a product of the Eaddon neighborhood and desperate for a vacation from her mercenary occupation, is ready to do anything to accomplish this job, leading her into a moral quandary about the meaning of “do anything.” In return, certain residents also have ideas about what they are willing to do to remain in the only home they’ve ever known. And in the meantime, a younger resident of the Eaddon, Bilal, a young man just trying to be decent, understand himself, and make an honest living, sees Stella through innocent eyes even as his parents see her in less flattering terms. And through it all, one important question: why not just move to the postcard mirage of Aruba?

    Buy your copy of Manhattanville on:

    Amazon

  • Soldiers of Culture and Other Short Stories

    by Rhiddis Chakravorty

    Prepare to discover the unexpected in each of the fifteen short stories of this debut anthology. In English prose with an Indian touch we are treated to intriguing displays of humanity seen in the spark of romance, the flash of insecurity, the pain of ideological obsession as well as in flights of fancy and in pleasing circumstances. They offer a colorful tour of the world through the eyes and ears of the men and women next door, street thugs and prostitutes, politicians and journalists—characters to be found anywhere in the world—embodiments of the good, the bad and the ugly.

    Buy your copy of Soldiers of Culture and Other Short Stories on:

    Amazon