“I can't remember who recommended this book to me.
After two or three pages, I felt amazed at how-well written this is. I am interested in history and civilizations, but often i buy books and stop in the middle because the writing is so dull. This was obviously going to be an exceptional non-fiction book.
I then checked who the author was, and I found that he was the same man who had written, for example "The Great Indian Novel" (which I have now purchased).
The book is captivating. It is clear and informative about evolutions in Indian politics and Indian life from Independence to the present day.
The story of Charlie the Untouchable for example is memorable. I felt it read like something from a novel, so I checked again, and indeed it is mentioned in several reviews, with nobody suggesting the author may have invented it, so I consider it is true. It is amazing because of the steady evolution over the years and because it is a hopeful story, when we are used to hearing only dreadful happenings about inter-caste strife.
This book is a pleasure, and a must if you are a non-Indian who has been wondering about things like the difference bewtween Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Classes, and what the evolution of the caste system (among many other topics) is.”
ophelia wrote this review Saturday, May 31, 2008.
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