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Good Reading : March 2005
Contents
Tell Me No Lies: Investigative Journalism and its Triumphs Edited by John Pilger Tell Me No Lies is a 600-page collection of some of the best investigative journal- ism from some of the world’s most dedicated and perceptive journalists, men and women who have put themselves at risk to bring truth to a public blinded by official lies, corpo- rate malfeasance, governmental machinations, and bureaucratic betrayal. But, being limited to examples of investigative jour- nalism that support Pilger’s per- sonal philosophies, it tells only half the truth. Pilger has long fulminated in print and on television on behalf of oppressed peoples all over the world. So it is natural to expect his choice to include Wilfred Burchett’s essay on the horrors of Hiroshima, Robert Fisk’s depiction of the war against Iraq and Edward Said’s denunciation of the West’s ‘malicious generalisations’ about slam – all fine examples of inves- igative journalism. But Pilger’s choices are all left-wing diatribes against right-wing authority. Where are articles railing against ter- rorist organisations and freedom fighters’ who kill in the name of their cause, or exposing organisations which purport to represent the down- trodden yet divert funds to nefarious causes? Pilger claims to have ‘included journalism that bears witness and investigates ideas.’Yet the witnesses are one-eyed and the ideas are all arrows aimed at the icons of the conservative establish- ment. This is not a com- plaint against the jour nalists themselves, who have done sterling work in exposing lies and brutalities. But by pre- senting only one side of the story, Pilger diminishes that which deserves our eter nal thanks. ★★★★ Jonathan Cape $35.00 Reviewed by Alan Gold Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found Suketu Mehta Suketu Mehta left Bombay at the age of 14 and returned as an adult with his family in tow, deter- mined to reclaim the city of his childhood. Like many returning migrants, Mehta finds his city has transformed without him, and the gracious Bombay he remembers is not to be found in the crowded metropolis that is today’s Mumbai. For Mehta, reclaiming Bombay means tracing new nar ratives in the bewildering chaos of a city of 19 million people crammed onto seven islands on the western edge of India. He immerses himself in Bombay through ts denizens: leaders of violent Hindu and Muslim street gangs, a captivating bar dancer, a hard- boiled policeman, a prodigal son, and he powerbrokers of he Bollywood film industry. Their stories are told in Mehta’s precise and beauti- ful prose, and take the reader through the slums and the glittering high-rises of the city. A more engaging personal memoir of Bombay would be hard to find; this magnifi- cent book reveals the absolute enigma that the city is, at once brash, beautiful, violent, poignant and tragic. ★★★★ Review $39.95 Reviewed by Jennifer Namgyal word of mouth general non-fiction www.allenandunwin.com www.allenandunwin.com/readinggroups.asp Subscribe now to receive a FREE book! WITNESSING HISTORY One woman's fight for freedom and Falun Gong Jennifer Zeng, translated by Sue Wiles In May 2000, the Chinese government sentenced Jennifer Zeng to re-education through forced labour. Jennifer's only crime was her belief in the three tenets of Falun Gong – truthfulness, compassion and forbearance. Tortured and brainwashed during detainment, she saw many of her compatriots die. In this powerful and moving book, Jennifer Zeng provides a fascinating insight into life in modern-day China and bears witness to an important period of history that is still unfolding. Allen & Unwin $29.95 ADORED Tilly Bagshawe To the outside world Siena McMahon has a fairytale life. Born into a great Hollywood dynasty, she is blessed with beauty, brains and wealth. But her family’s fault lines are about to be blown apart – in the most sensational style. Deliciously escapist, unashamedly glamorous and wickedly sexy, Adored sweeps across three generations of Hollywood’s brightest stars. Orion $29.95 SHARON AND MY MOTHER-IN-LAW Ramallah Diaries Suad Amiry Perhaps one day I may forgive you for putting us under curfew for forty days, but I will never forgive you for being obliged to have my mother-in-law with us for what seemed more like forty years. Wickedly funny and refreshingly different from any other writings on the Palestinian- Israeli conflict, Sharon and My Mother-In- Law is Suad Amiry’s moving and irreverent memoir about the absurdity (and agony) of life in the Occupied Territories. Granta $24.95 SLEEPING ARRANGEMENTS Laura Shaine Cunningham A beautiful story that I will cherish for years to come – Harper Lee Brought up by her two eccentric uncles with the human jungle of the Bronx in the 1950s as her playground and a very knowing little girl as her playmate, Lily Shaine learns the secrets of life, sex, death and love in this wry, funny and deeply affectionate portrait of the most unlikely of happy families. Bloomsbury $24.95
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