This book dares to say what the politically correct thought police are determined you should not know. Michael Cole, broadcaster and writer, Chairman of a PR and broadcasting company, journalist and former Director of Public Affairs for Harrods and House of Fraser Group If we fail to learn how to live with one another - it is inevitable that divisions and hostility will occur. From the Foreword by Lord Noon of St John's Wood While focusing on Asians, Kailash Puri's blunt message is that integration among all ethnic communities and the British is a myth. We must accept that reality and address the implications before mental barriers become real barricades. She says that without talking, tensions build up and become a breeding ground for the violence which has hit cities around the world, not just London. But her solution to the dilemma is unique and inspiring. Honour killings and forced marriages continue to hit the headlines, indicating the prevalence of this largely hidden problem. Kailash Puri draws on more than 50 years' experience of advising clients in India, Africa, America as well as the UK, and gives a timely warning about the inevitable consequences of doing nothing. She warns of: *the dangers of drifting into parallel and hostile communities *the failure to understand one another's cultures *the divisions in education *the polarisation of social activity *the insularity of religion *the indifference of the business community *and the fundamental failure of social cohesion

Eleanor Nesbitt's introduction contextualises the life of Kailash Puri, Punjabi author and agony aunt, providing the story of the book itself and connecting the narrative to the history of the Punjabi diaspora and themes in Sikh Studies. She suggests that representation of the stereotypical South Asian woman as victim needs to give way to a nuanced recognition of agency, multiple voices and a differentiated experience. The narrative presents sixty years of Kailash's life. Her memories of childhood in West Punjab evoke rural customs and religious practices consistent with recent scholarship on Punjabi religion' rather than with the currently dominant Sikh discourse of a religion sharply distinguished from Hindu society. Her marriage, as a shy 15-year-old, with no knowledge of English, to a scientist, Gopal Puri, brought ever-widening horizons as husband and wife moved from India to London, and later to West Africa, before returning to the UK in 1966. This life experience, and Gopal's constant encouragement, brought confidence to write and publish numerous stories and articles. Kailash writes of the contrasting experiences of life as an Indian in the UK of the 1940s and the 1960s. She points up differences between her own outlook and the life-world of the post-war community of Sikhs from East Punjab now living in the West. In their distress and dilemmas many people consulted Kailash for assistance, and the descriptive narrative of her responses and advice and increasingly public profile provides insight into Sikhs' experience in their adopted country. In later years, as grandparents and established citizens of Liverpool, Kailash and Gopal revisited their ancestral home, now in Pakistan a reflective and moving experience. An Afterword by Eleanor contextualises the current UK Sikh scene. The book includes a glossary of Punjabi words and suggestions for further reading.