Hazart Suleman dian Kahavatan is a beautifully designed book published by Punjabi Khoj Garh. Sulayman (in Arabic) or Solomon (in Hebrew) is one of the great figures of Jewish history. He was the son of king David (Daud in Arabic). Both the father and the son are considered the pinnacle of Jewish glory. It`s interesting to know how the Jewish and Muslim traditions treat them.

`In Hebrew tradition, both David and Solomon are primarily considered kings rather than prophets; they are renowned for their reigns as monarchs of the Israelite kingdom, with David being known as a great warrior and Solomon famous for building the First Temple in Jerusalem,` says Wikipedia. But the Muslim tradition treats the both as revered prophets. It is believed that Sulayman `could talk to birds, animals and djinn. He was a man of wisdom and gifted with a great sense of judgment. Solomon was the fourth monarch to rule the 1(ingdom ofIsrael and Judah.

The Biblical account says that he had a very large harem. After his death, says Britianica; `the dismemberment of the united monarchy was to be brought about by Yahweh (God) because Solomon, he says, `had not walked in my ways, doing what was right in my sight and keeping my statutes and my ordinances, as David his father did.

The bool( under review is about Sulayman`s wisdom. It has 13 segments which deal with the kinds of problems found in human situation.

The aphoristic text reads like blank verse, chiseled and concise. It employs a neat idiom of Punjabi that can be accessible to all strata of Punjab`s society. The book will add to our rich treasure of folk wisdom and Punjabi lore. With its designed pages and colourful margins it can also serve a sort of coffee table book.

Dr. Tahira Kazmi is a medical practitioner, a gynaecologist, to be exact, and a bilingual poet. She writes in Urdu and Punjabi. She has a reputation of a woman who with her no holds barred literary expres-sion can fill the hearts of macho men and traditionalists with dread.

Her collection of poems in Punjabi language titled Jutti (Shoe) has been published by Suchet Kitab Ghar, Lahore. The title is highly evocative as it immediately brings up an age-old saying that epitomises male chauvinism in its crudest form. The worst form of patriarchy in our tradition dubs the woman as a shoe for men that can be replaced at will. The title clearly hints at that.

And this precisely is the myth that the poet decodes and debunks.

Maqsood Saqib in his introduction portrays her tumultuous poetic journey that has rattled many a head. `Apart from men, a segment of women never fails to demonise Dr. Tahira for her poetry. A number of well-known intellectuals want to hear about women`s sufferings direct from the horse`s mouth but don`t like to hear about their own complicity in creating the conditions that highlight the plight of women.

Talking about Dr. Tahira`s unstifled voice, poet Raja Sadiqullah says in the blurb `bold and brave,she is a woman of independent mind in modern times. She speaks unhesitatingly and clearly. Some may feel she speaks too loudly. But don`t you think that in excruciating pain or anger one`s voice bouncing off the walls can be heard outside?` Anger or rage even when it is legitimate extracts its price.

Poet Brecht expresses the Tahira`s dilemma beautifully when he writes talking of his generation`s struggle; `For we went changing countries oftener than our shoes/ through the wars of classes, despairing/when there was injustice only, and no rebellion/And yet we know: hatred, even of meanness contorts the features/Anger, even against injustice makes the voice hoarse / Oh, we who wanted to prepare the ground for friendliness could not ourselves be friendly.

Tahira`s poetry exposes the violence that is inherent in the women`s situation created by patriarchy, gender discrimination and traditions in a hierarchical society. The violence, expressed forcefully in her poems, is both physical and psycho-emotional. Her expression issimultaneously a protest and a cry.

It`s rather a protest as a cry and a cry as a protest. `If you beat me dead and bury me somewhere / I shall grow in some form or other / If you beat me dead and throw me in the river / I shall join the fishes.

Jutti is a must read if you want to hear the other side.

Mansoor Behzad Butt`s book Zila Gujrat aur Sikh Sultanat published by Sulekh Bookmakers is a good example of topophilia. One can hardly eject the place from one`s mental map where they are born.

Mansoor was educated in his ancestral city of Gujrat. He worked for the Dawn Media Group for some time and later moved to Canada where he did his graduation in administration and art history. The book reHects his deep interest in history writing.

It deals, as is obvious from the title, with the military, political, literary and social history of Silch period with special focus on Gujrat. It has 15 chapters that cover in some way all aspects of Gujrat`s history from 1500 to 1947. Political history in particular makes an interesting read.

Ranjit Singh, who became maha-raja of Punjab, was from his neighbouring district Gujranwala. With his military strategy and political acumen, he pushed out invaders and marauders such as Afghans from Punjab and a large area of present-day Khyber Palchtunkhwa which was then a part of his kingdom. The boolc offers a lot of relevant historical information on people and places. The towns and cities of the area bore the brunt of foreign invasions as a result of being on the highway that led to Lahore and Delhi. It also affords us a glimpse into the family histories of the personages who helped shape the politico-socialand culturalhistory ofthe region showing us how religious diversity was accepted as a norm prior to the division of Punjab in 1947. The picture evokes a pang of nostalgia. The book has a sizable number of historical photographs of people and places making it a visual treat.

Mansoor`s history portrays the pluralistic society of Punjab which was later destroyed by the fires of communalism. The book must be in your library. soofi0l@hotmail.com