I was always a big India booster, but recently I read V.S. Naipaul's India trilogy, and it turned me into an even bigger India booster.
Naipaul's India books are:
"An Area of Darkness: A Discovery of India"
"India: A Wounded Civilization"
"India: A Million Mutinies Now"
Each one is a travelogue of a trip to India in a different decade -- the 60s, the 70s, and the 80s.
goodreads.com
"An Area of Darkness: A Discovery of India"
"India: A Wounded Civilization"
"India: A Million Mutinies Now"
Each one is a travelogue of a trip to India in a different decade -- the 60s, the 70s, and the 80s.
goodreads.com
"An Area of Darkness" deals with Naipaul's personal relationship to India (he was Trinidadian, of Indian descent), India's extreme poverty, the Sino-Indian War of 1962, and the lingering influence of the British Empire after decolonization.
amazon.com
amazon.com
"India: A Wounded Civilization" deals with Indira Gandhi's suspension of democracy in 1975-77, caste inequality in India, and the lingering effects of the Muslim conquests.
amazon.com
amazon.com
"India: A Million Mutinies Now" is about the beginning of economic development in the 80s, the ferment of new ideas and movements and identities, and the rise of a unifying national consciousness.
amazon.com
amazon.com
I would recommend all three books -- Naipaul is sort of like the De Tocqueville of India, bringing an outsider's perspective combined with a deep personal love of the country.
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