Title: The Curry Coast
Author: Binoo K John
Genre: Non-fiction/Travel
Publisher: Speaking Tiger
Cost: Rs 350

It’s tempting for this writer to bypass any new book that celebrates God’s Own Country out of fascination for the narrow strip of land that kisses the Arabian Sea on one side, and is blessed by the Western Ghats on the other. But this habit at times, has cost her dear, given the predictable tone and template found in a slew of recent glossy, hastily-researched armchair travelogue titles (courtesy: the ‘influencer/content creator’ demigods) that are now becoming the norm rather than exception.

It is why seasoned journalist Binoo K John’s The Curry Coast comes as a refreshing departure from all of the above that we’ve experienced by virtue of having to play fair reviewer on the job. The tagline of the book reads: Travels in Malabar 500 Years after Vasco da Gama, and it lives up to the statement. This revised and updated version is a delight for any reader keen to rediscover the fine craft of research-backed stories that have their roots in the origins and histories of the land. John takes us through the locations that the Portuguese conqueror had set foot on. But it doesn’t end there. He mixes up his findings after chatting with local residents and researchers, and in the process cooks up an aromatic stew by piecing the past with the present.