EUROPEAN CALCUTTA by Dhrubajyoti Banerjea (UBS, Rs 595) is subtitled, ?Images and Recollections of a Bygone Era?. It traces the growth of the city, under the impetus of the colonial project, from three non-descript villages on the banks of the Hooghly to its heyday as the capital of British India, and thence to its present decrepitude. Banerjea tells the story of Calcutta through those of its landmark buildings, its important thoroughfares and localities ? Lal Dighi, Writers? Buildings, St Paul?s Cathedral, Esplanade Row, Chowringhee. This book is valuable for the insights and anecdotes, gleaned from tomes in the Darjeeling Gymkhana Club and the Calcutta Club libraries and volumes of Bengal: Past and Present. But the rather stodgy arrangement and presentation of the rare photographs and sketches are a disappointment.