The flowers of evil 

• DIAL D FOR DON: INSIDE STORIES OF CBI MISSIONS (Penguin, Rs 399) by Neeraj Kumar is a must read for all fans of crime thrillers. In this book, the author, a retired IPS officer with a long stint in the Central Bureau of Investigation, provides a glimpse into the workings of the CBI by taking the readers through some of the most high-profile cases that he and his team had investigated.

The chapters dealing with Aftab Ansari, the man behind the January 2002 terrorist attack on the American Center in Calcutta, and Dawood Ibrahim, are particularly riveting. Kumar gives a candid account of the three telephone conversations he had with Dawood Ibrahim in June 1994. Some of the cases mentioned in Dial D for Don took years to solve - but that does not slacken the pace of the narrative.

• NARGISA'S ADVENTURES (Scholastic, Rs 195) by Manjul Bajaj is an action-packed fairytale. The plot revolves around Nargisa, the "Giving Flower", and her quest to discover the "River of Honey". Nargisa' s expedition takes her to the lair of La-intiaah. The latter is a mysterious power, with shades of grey. And because La-intiaah is neither white nor black, its sinister designs go undetected at first. That brings us to the message that Bajaj has tried to convey. La-intiaah can be described as a character which symbolizes modern civilization. The author has subtly warned the readers about the ill effects of global warming, consumerist culture and the increasing dependence on gadgets, all of which can be linked to modernity.