Review by Choice Review
In a book based on thorough research in a variety of sources, both British and Indian, and on personal interviews, these two British authors show that only after WW II, when England found the fires of discontent burning both in the army and bureaucracy, did London decide to give independence to India. Read and Fisher persuasively argue that the British did make an effort to leave a united India with various autonomous units, but by that time the Hindu-Muslim differences, which the British themselves had exploited in a classic "divide and rule" policy, had deepened so much that the only way out seemed to be to accept the demand of partition as advocated by Mohammed Ali Jinnah of the Indian Muslim League. But the partition came with the loss of almost a million human lives and the uprooting and migration of a few more million. Mistakes were made all around, both by the British and the Indian leaders, ultimately contributing to the tragedy of partition and leaving a legacy of bitterness that continues to mar relations between India and Pakistan. One of the best studies of British rule in India. All levels. S. K. Gupta; Pittsburg State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Although Britain's entire involvement in India is implied by this book's title, the British writing team of Read and Fisher (The Fall of Berlin, LJ 3/15/93) concentrate primarily on the period after the founding of the Indian National Congress in 1885. Written for the general reader, their sweeping portrayal of the quest for independence at times seems more journalistic than historical. In contrast to most works on this topic, the authors treat Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, more favorably than Mahatma Gandhi, the founder of modern India. Unfortunately, some factual and spelling errors may cause problems for some readers. Libraries actively collecting general world histories may want to consider this work.ÄDonald Johnson, Univ. of Minnesota Lib., Minneapolis (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A change of pace for the authors, who have written extensively on Germany (The Fall of Berlin,1994), but their history of the British in India is just as good. The British government got into the act with the Honorable East India Company in 1773 when the company was baled out of a financial embarrassment. British rule of the subcontinent was always remarkable for the way in which a tiny civil service, some 1,000 strong, and a small army controlled a country that, by the end of British rule, had a population of 400 million. Equally remarkable was the loyalty of the Indian people: During the WW I, nearly one and a half million Indians volunteered for military service. By the end of the war, the mood had soured, in part because expectations had been raised as to what Britain's reaction would be. The history of the next 30 years, in less skillful hands, could have been a dreary tale of misunderstandings, mistrust, and missed opportunities, but it is relieved by the unflagging zest of the authors and their lively understanding of the frailties and foibles of the participants: Gandhi, part politician, part saint, of whom it was said Ah, if the Mahatma only knew what it costs us for him to live the simple life; Nehru, who followed him and spent nine years of his life in prison; Jinnah, a brilliant lawyer who found in Pakistan his last and greatest client; and Mountbatten, whose charm rescued negotiations time and again, but at whose door the authors lay the blame for the haste of the British departure and the huge loss of life. They may be too severe. Something drastic was needed just to bring the arguments to an end. The authors may also err in describing this as Britain's proudest day. But their history is a stirring achievement.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Library Journal Review
Review by Kirkus Book Review
