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Kathmandu’s religions and cultural complexity can make it as obscure as a mandala, multi-faceted, branched like an enormous tree, interwoven like its roots. Wandering through an old neighbourhood can feel like being in an artist’s labyrinth, full of creative genius, and heavy with mysticism. There is an itch to know more: who made that and why, what is that strange structure at the crossroads, why is that festival celebrated and why something is taboo. Cities as ancient as those of the valley take some deciphering. An afternoon barely suffices in locating the surface, let alone scratching it. Most of us cannot devote the lifetimes needed to arrive at an understanding that is more than appreciation. Thankfully, the valley has drawn enough people who have devoted lifetimes to doing just that. Tomes on its many facets have resulted. There are scholarly works as well as impassioned accounts of living in this mandala. Here are five timeless books about Kathmandu that relate to, celebrate a...