Humans are the only species who can reprogram themselves. This is astounding. In episode 8 of The Book Club, Amit Varma recommends you read 'Hacking Darwin' by Jamie Metzl, a lucid summation of the technological implications of genetic science – and the ethical questions they raise.

Public discourse has become toxic, and there is no better illustration of this than snark. We don't talk to people any more, we mock. We don't engage any more, we ridicule. In episode 7 of The Book Club, Amit Varma speaks about 'Snark', David Denby's prescient book about the degeneration of our conversations.

Do you want to ignite your reading habit? Do you wish you read more books? Tune in every week to "The Book Club with Amit Varma". Every Sunday, our host will fill you in on the merits of one particular book, and the many contexts that make it worth reading. We will cover all genres and account for all tastes – and hey, you could use it as a catalyst to start your own little book club! In the first episode of The Book Club, Amit Varma explains why there are so many great reasons to read Orw...

Politics in India is deeply complex, and nowhere is this as apparent as in Maharashtra, where centuries-old fault lines of caste, region and ideology collide. In episode 5 of The Book Club, Amit Varma raves about Sujata Anandan's 'Maharashtra Maximus', the perfect guide to this complex subject.

What does Shaheen Bagh have in common with Tahrir Square in Egypt and Gezi Park in Istanbul? A lot! In episode 12 of The Book Club, Amit Varma discusses 'Twitter and Tear Gas' by Zeynep Tufekci, which looks at the similarity in citizen protests across the world over the last decade.

India may seem sexually repressed and prudish – but in the past, we just been just the opposite. In episode 10 of The Book Club, Amit Varma discusses 'Infinite Variety', Madhavi Menon's eye-opening history of desire in India.

The GDP is today more a political tool than a statistical one. In episode 11 of The Book Club, Amit Varma recommends 'GDP: A Brief But Affectionate History" by Diane Coyle, a perfect primer on the origin and drawbacks of this controversial measure.

What is the purpose of the law? What should be the role of the state? Are we subjects or citizens? In episode 6 of The Book Club, Amit Varma argues that we have normalised oppression by the state, and we need to examine it anew with clear eyes. There is no better guide to this than Frédéric Bastiat's 19th-century masterpiece, 'The Law.'

Indian society is toxic, sexist, misogynist -- and it has always been this way. In episode 9 of The Book Club, Amit Varma raves about 'Yuganta', Irawati Karve's masterpiece about the sociology of the Mahabharata.

"It is one of the strengths of families to pretend that they desire what is inevitable." In episode 13 of The Book Club, Amit Varma talks about Vivek Shanbhag's masterpiece Ghachar Ghochar, a moving portrait of the innards of an Indian family.

Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein' was published when she was 20 years old, but it is more than just a precocious book of early science fiction. In Episode 3 of The Book Club, Amit Varma explains how Shelley fearlessly tackled big themes, and delved as deep into human nature as the best literature of the time. Her book gave birth to many tropes that still exist – and showed an ambition that has since characterised the best writing in a genre she helped create.

Economic policy sounds boring – but it affects all our lives. In episode 4 of The Book Club, Amit Varma raves about 'In Service of the Republic', a masterful book by Vijay Kelkar and Ajay Shah that distills decades of experience of shaping public policy. In their book, Kelkar and Shah write not about how to make policy, but about how to think about policy, in clear lucid prose that makes its complex subject suddenly seems so clear.