Seventy and to hell with it

The irrepressible Shobhaa De is back with a book that celebrates her seventieth year, which coincides with the seventieth anniversary of Indias independence. In it, she looks back at the terrain of her life, at relationships-hers and those she has observed over the years, at ever-present fears and grief. Shobhaa Des writing exudes an empathy that has turned several of her books into life-manuals for generations of Indians. Her keen wit spears and spares none, least of all herself. Her delicious irreverence makes this book a delight to read. It is the lessons in loving and living woven into the writing-intensely personal and deeply felt-that form the wise heart of Seventy.