Acclaimed journalist and author Samanth Subramanian returns with The Web Beneath the Waves: And Other Reports from Our Tangled World, an incisive collection of essays that brings together fifteen years of reportage and reflection from across the globe. Published by Westland Books, the title will be released on 30 July 2026, with pre-orders opening on 13 July.
Billed as an Economist Best Book for its titular essay, The Web Beneath the Waves presents a curated selection of Subramanian’s writing spanning politics, conflict, science, technology, sport, language and culture. Through deeply reported narratives, the book uncovers the hidden systems, overlooked stories and unexpected connections that shape the modern world.
The collection explores a diverse range of subjects—from the invisible network of undersea cables powering the internet and disappearing languages to the Sri Lankan civil war, Indian cricket, scientific discovery, corruption and privilege. It also ventures into lesser-known stories, including Nigerian Jews, Singapore’s land reclamation and India’s quizzing culture, offering readers fresh perspectives on both global events and everyday phenomena.
Reflecting on the book, Subramanian said, “So much of the world—even the world right around us—is hidden from our view. We can never possibly see it all. The pieces in this book are a result of my being curious or puzzled or wonderstruck about the way our modern world works, and the way people negotiate it. I hope readers find in it the same sense of discovery and amazement that I felt when I was out in the field, interviewing people.”
To mark the opening of pre-orders, Westland Books will host an exclusive pre-release event on 13 July at the Bangalore International Centre (BIC) in Bengaluru. The event will feature Samanth Subramanian in conversation with senior journalist Sharda Ugra and author Aakar Patel, offering readers an opportunity to engage with discussions on journalism, storytelling and the ideas behind the book.
Subramanian, whose work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine and The Guardian, is widely regarded as one of the leading long-form journalists of his generation. His previous book, A Dominant Character: The Radical Science and Restless Life of J.B.S. Haldane, was named among The New York Times‘ Top 100 Books of 2020, while This Divided Island: Stories from the Sri Lankan War was shortlisted for both the Samuel Johnson Prize and the Royal Society of Literature’s Ondaatje Prize.
Blending rigorous reporting with empathy and intellectual curiosity, The Web Beneath the Waves offers a compelling portrait of a deeply interconnected world, inviting readers to look beyond the obvious and discover the hidden forces shaping contemporary life.
