the British annexed south Sikkim to their vast Empire and for quite some time called the annexed portion British Sikkim while the leftover of the kingdom was referred to as Independent Sikkim. The area was later named Darjeeling after a village that existed there and subsequently formed into a district by the same name. It therefore surprises author the least bit when peoples call Sikkim, in reference to Darjeeling district, a 'mother state' and refer to West Bengal as a 'surrogate mother'. In this book Dr Wangyal has borrowed the term 'mother state' but at the same time avoided the epithet 'surrogate' for reasons entirely personal. Whatever be the terms used, Sikkim and Darjeeling are historically inseparable. The sheer unchangeable contiguity of their borders provide for the sharing of language, culture and religion. Politically, there are some differences and the most obvious one is that of political parties active in Sikkim are as good as not having any representation in Darjeeling and vice versa. Nevertheless, no two contiguous places in India can claim to share so many things in common as the people of Sikkim and Darjeeling. It is because of this peculiar relationship that there appears to be a strong current of bonding between the people of these two places. Nevertheless, it is precisely because of the shared culture, religion and history that arouses apprehension in a good number of people and many believe, and even fear, that the two areas will day amalgamate to form a bigger and a more 'viable' state. Dr. Wangyal’s books include ‘Footprints in the Himalaya’, ‘People, Places and Practices’, ‘Never Ending Wait for Gorkhaland’, ‘Dooars vis-à-vis Gorkhaland’, ‘Lions Club International Directory’, ‘Darjeeling Stories: Sahibs, Natives and Oddballs’, ‘Darjeeling Place Names’.