A Good Man in the Woods and Other Essays

Thousands of years ago, Socrates said that an unexamined life was not worth living. The piece of paper we pick up from the ground to read its content is an examination of life. The blood cell, which is analysed under the microscope, is an examination of life. The astronauts, who are sent to the orbits to explore the universe, are an example of the examination of life. The columns written by Mohammad Badrul Ahsan come in that tradition of examination in the variety of their style and substance. The author has a limitless interest in life and a passionate desire to unravel and understand it speck by speck, which prompted him to choose his topics in their widest range. He has written about anything that touched his heart, stirred his imagination and stoked his curiosity. For any reader, reading this book would be like embarking on a kaleidoscopic journey, where the patterns and scenes shift with each turning from the death of a man to the future of the country to the US invasion of Iraq. But there is one compelling connection amongst all his pieces, which is his undying faith in the inherent goodness of man. At the end of each reading, the reader will start to miss that goodness and will be left yearning for it. Finally, this impressive collection of essays is bound to leave its readers thinking, perhaps at times asking questions to themselves on fundamental issues which they might not have thought before.