Questions of belief and science infused with untold stories (IANS Books This Weekend)

Khushwant Singh's quest to decipher God's existence, questioning everyday science, what makes a successful entrepreneur tick and a collection of stories about the darkest years in Sri Lankan history. This is how the IANS bookshelf is stacked this weekend. Take a look.

1. Book: Religion; Author Khushwant Singh; Publisher: Rupa; Pages: 206; Price: Rs. 250

The author, one of India's most original thinkers, remained keenly engaged all his life with the nature of belief and faith; with God; and the many foibles - some significant, others laughable - of organised religion. And after having intensely and extensively introspected on his own spirituality, the author evolved a personal credo everyone would do well to bear in mind - that human beings must work out their own religion as it best fits their lives.

This book brings together some of Khushwant Singh's most evocative writing that includes his explorations of the concepts of morality and reason; his unsparing skewering of the many customs and habits which masquerade as religion and faith; and recountings of the delightful encounters he had with the god women of his times.

2. Book: Question Everything; Edited by: Mick O'Hare; Publisher: Profile Books; Pages: 282; Price: Rs.399

Ever wondered why tornadoes have the shape of an inverted cone? Or why do most clouds appear to have defined edges? Or why is the night sky is black even though is it full of stars?

Many such intriguing science queries are dealt with in this compilation of 132 science -related questions with "unexpected" answers from the 'New Scientist' magazine.

Divided into various sub-heads like chemistry, evolution, alcohol, transport and earth, the book is the key to many such questions which leaves us all wondering at times.

3. Book: Start-Up City; Authors: Moloy K. Bannerjee, Siddharth Bannerjee, P. Ranganath Sastry; Publisher: Collins Business; Pages: 214; Price: Rs.450

Dedicated to all entrepreneurs - past, present and future - the book highlights 10 tales of "exceptional entrepreneurship" from Bengaluru's software world.

From chronicling the live of Bharat Goenka, whose father pushed him to develop a user-friendly accounting software that nearly 80 percent of the market now uses, to N. Ramakrishnan, who set up Computer Call, a computer education centre, the book lauds those who "started out on empty pockets but built companies that are worth crores today" and turned their dreams into reality.

Meant to "engage, inform and inspire", the book intends to most benefit the young and ambitious entrepreneurs across India and other developing nations who may be looking for "inspirational examples".

4. Book: The MGR Murder Trial; Author: Shobasakthi; Publisher: Penguin; Pages: 307; Price: Rs. 299

A young man confesses to a bizarre crime. A girl is hailed as a miracle worker when she makes a desperate appeal to God. A seaside town is plagued by mysterious thefts. The death of a whore triggers a lifelong obsession in a teenage boy. A refugee returns to Sri Lanka to find a country engulfed in a living nightmare.

In these vivid and inventive tales, the author gives shape to the unspeakable violence, fear and trauma unleashed during the years of Sri Lanka's civil war and its aftermath.