Anita Ganeri,
The Ramayana and Other Hindu Texts (Sacred Texts series).
Evans Publishing, 2003.
ISBN: 0 237 52347 7

This is a fascinating and in-depth book about the origins, history and beliefs of Hinduism, which also simply explains the sacred texts of the religion (the Vedas, Upanishads and Puranas, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata). Additionally, there is a short section about the daily lives of Hindu worshippers. Although the book is full of long and unfamiliar words - to Western eyes at least - Anita Ganeri has split the book into short, easy-to-handle sections that do not overwhelm the reader. The appealing and informative text, illustrations and design of the book encourage the reader to find out more about Hinduism; to this end, a bibliography and list of recommended further reading would have been useful.

RA 12+/IL 10+
Reviewed by Sarah Skinner
Winter 2003/4