THE LISTICLE

New books which should be on your reading list

- Amit Dixit

REMEMBERING A HERO

THE LION OF NAUSHERA By Ziya Us Salam and Anand Mishra BLOOMSBURY; *399; 152 pages

This slim but information-packed volume gives due credit to Brigadier Mohammed Usman, commander of the 50th Parachute Brigade, who repelled Pakistani incursions in Jammu & Kashmir during the Indo-Pak War of 1947-48, especially in the strategic locations of Naushera and Jhangar. Under his command, Indian troops inflicted enormous casualties on the Pakistanis in Naushera—earning him the title ‘Lion of Naushera’—and recaptured Jhangar. But the joy of victory was tinged with bitterness when Usman was martyred in Pakistani shelling. Hats off to the writers—seasoned journalists both—who’ve done a stellar job, given that the source material was scant and the brigadier’s immediate family had passed away.

Courting Tradition