Recently i picked up white mughal by william dalrymple, a book i'd wanted to read ever since it first released in march, 2002... however i am glad i waited some time cause at that age, the thickness of the book as well as some of its content would've totally turned me off... now that i am 20, i have the patiebnce to sit through some boring pages, to reach the more interesting ones...
The name of the book can be misleading. When i first read the introductory pages, i presumed it would deal with the lives of children born from white fathers and their mughal (princess) mothers... I was not completely wrong in my assumption... but it is more of a historical account and hence cannot deal with just a couple of people and their lives....
The basic story is of james achilles kirkpatrick and khair un nissa....and the story of their love, sacrifices and finally of their misfortune... James, was an officer of the east india company, posted as resident of hyderabad (through most of the story, although the beginning does show his rise to the position) and khair un nissa being a teenage girl of 14 born in a highly conservative shi'a muslim family.... Of course they fall in love and the middle few chapters deal with the hardships they had to face to get together...
Anyway, few good points about the book are:
1. it tells us a lot about our country's history and makes you appreciate it (and in my case makes me want to go to hyderabad and have that biryani that is mentioned in the very beginning).
2. it is not a "typical love story" and shows even the humanly and more selfish side of people (well this is a true story so...) , so those who appreciate realistic things will really love this book.
3. it shows how the british weren't exactly ruining the country...coz i used to believe that somehow all the britishers (of that era) were monstrous but by the looks of it...most of them were really nice and were actually more passionate about india that their homeland...
4. each part has been ended in such a way that you really don't wanna out the book down.
some (not so) bad points (about the book):
1. there are pages that go on and on about the food that was prepared on a certain day and although it shows how much work has been put into the book, do you really care???
2. oki, reality or not, i just don't get how this khair chick at the age of 14, gets pregnant and within a couple of years, gives birth to 2 healthy babies... that's like a rare case....
3. this james guy, all respect for his love, how many people destroy their whole life and everything else for a woman, who he's prolly never gonna get, and for whom, he'll have to change his religion? besides, if khair was so much in love, she would've never asked him to change his faith, she was basically trying to escape the other bad guy who she didn't wanna get stuck with.
Its a really great book, should be read by anyone who can sit through 500 pages, mostly interesting (with occasional irritating descriptions)... but definitely... i have great respect for the author, william dalrymple, who's put a lot of work into this book, it comes through in a really marvelous manner.
18 comments:
You really love books :)..
I read about this one some time back...you reviewed it pretty well for me..first I will find out Doi Bon..excited about reading the great man!
@prakhar: yes i love books... i think i started reading before i started talking...lol... clg had really ruined it for me... but recently i got back to it again (bad timing though...with exams n all)... and i needed topics for blog updates...hence.... and maybe it'll make some people wnt to read...so....
very exited to read books,aren't you?
thanks for sharing such a beautiful fact that i did not know.
cheers!
@femin susan: yea...i can read anything and eveything... its more essential for me than water....
as of now m goin through a fiction. wud try my hands on thi book as soon as i finish it..
and yeah, u r most welcome to hyderabad. i wud say the biriyani is worth a visit if u like spicy food :P
@sawan: believe me... there are pats of this book which do sound like fiction... n thank u :)
wow!! nicely written...
Am adding u as a friend :)
@rahul : alright thanks...
hey its a great review.. how can u so patiently go through 500 pages of any book. its a virtue u have.
good.. keep describing books this way. it ispires
@kunal: thanks...oh i can go thru any no. of pages... its a gift of god coz i cant imagine the life of people who cant read books...
Long time no post...how are ya?
@prakhar: one word EXAMS.
Good luck for Exams! :)
Is it an indian book???
ps/ m updated
@shootingstar: it's about Britishers in India and its written by a Britisher who lives half th year in india...so yea its something to do with india, but that doesnt limit its readership...
Did Steve Harvey copy the book title Act Like A Lady Think Like A Man
and theme from an earlier book?
Book with same title & theme copyrighted and published by Sharon P. Carson in 2003
CHICAGO, IL – Sharon P. Carson the author of the original title: Act Like A Lady –Think Like A Man, watched the February 27th episode of the Ophra show on which Steve Harvey was promoting his book of the same title. She was hoping that Steve would reveal to Oprah where he got the title and the theme for the book. It just seemed odd to her that his book had the same title and theme as her book that was copy written in 2003.
Upon subsequently purchasing the book, she found some interesting parallels and realized that it is not unusual for a high profiled person to take a great title and theme, rewrite a book and use their celebrity status to sell it. This she says happens too often to the unsung poets, authors and entrepreneurs of the world.
Steve wrote in his book that his hope was to “empower you with a wide-open look into the minds of men”. Sharon P. Carson wrote in her book in 2003 that her hope was for women to gain some insight into how men think in terms of relationships. Sharon also noted that in chapter 8 of Steve Harvey’s book titled “Why Men Cheat” he came to the same conclusion that she did in chapter 37 of her book, titled “Why would a man cheat”, and the answer was, “because they can”.
Sharon actively promoted her book before the release in January 2009 of Steve Harvey’s book, and would not like to see her promotion efforts hindered. She feels that her book has much to offer from a woman’s perspective and seeks to empower women to practice self love and tough love in relationships.
Before the publication of Steve Harvey’s book of the same title, Sharon bought the domain name: www.actlikealadythinklikeaman.com from which she has been selling her book. She has also held seminars with women at a Chicago University in promotion of her book, and can be viewed on the following youtube clip as she was being interviewed on a cable television program about her book in 2007 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxVVQX15X2Y.
Mindful of all the self - published poets and authors who have a hard time finding publishers for their works, Sharon is currently consulting with attorneys regarding her options, and hopes that her book with the first and original title of Act Like A Lady Think Like A Man will finally receive the recognition it deserves for the wisdom, encouragement, and empowerment that it provides to women.
wow its such a detailed review!
@aruna: oh you have no idea how much i shortened the previous draft i had made...
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