Freedom at Midnight

Rating:
Summary: Not Impressed
Review: I came to this book with a great interest in the life and work of Mahatama Gandhi, my copy actually had the words "Gandhi's greatest triumph" printed on the cover as if it were the subtitle. I was disappointed. A more accurate subtitle would read "Mountbatten's greatest triumph". Surely Lord Mountbatten is one of the most dynamic figures in recent British history, but one tires of reading about what a charismatic and personable person he was. The authors' never miss an opportunity to inject that particular plug. Likewise, if repeating sweeping statistics were the hallmark of writing history, then we are dealing with a pair of von ranke's here, the reader is reminded in every chapter that British India holds one fifth of the world's population. Now this an impressive figure, but working it into every chapter seems a bit unnecessary.

Freedom At Midnight recounts the difficulties that the Brittish government faced in releasing the peoples of the Indian subcontinent from their authority. The story is peppered with accounts of the leadership of the Congress Party and the Muslin League as they apply to what the British are doing. Now this is fascinating subject and one worthy of study, and the British side of the story should certainly be told. But the authors' have made very little attempt at balance and are content to merely recount and relay the events as they unfold, without getting into more meaty matters analyzing the how's and the why's.

One is left wondering, for example, why Jinnah was so determined to have an independent Pakistan, and where the bulk of his support was coming from. There is not much context for his demands and they seem a bit outrageous. Jinnah very well may have been horribly wrong, his decision, egoism and lack of vision may have condemned millions to death. But neither his case, nor the case of his opponents, is not adequately made. Jinnah comes across as a two-diminsional cartoon villian.

Furthermore, the cataloging of the various excesses of the majarajahs seems a bit out of place, as if an attempt has been made to throw some titilating little morsels to the reader before he gets too bored and puts the book away.

Rating:
Summary: Thrilling...
Review: I can only say that this book is really splendid. It is like all history books should be: it describes historical events and portrays the personality of the persons that played a role in it, but it also concentrates on the common people that lived in that time, on their dreams, on their beliefs...
And this last part is surely what makes of this book a great book: the fascinating diversity of the indian religions, the manifold of colours and scents of India are depicted vividly.
And also very vivid are the personalities who appear in this book, the "little" ones as good as the "big" ones.
For example the figure of Gandhi is depicted in all his greatness and spiritual authority, but also the strange parts of his character are shown. The same for Nehru or for Mountbatten. And in this way all the meetings of this persons become like the scenes in a thrilling novel.
If you read this book you'll learn to love India like I do!

Rating:
Summary: Indian Independence
Review: I enjoyed this book. Freedom at Midnight is about the transition of India from a British Colony to an independent nation on midnight of 15 August 1947. I learned about the history and background of that event, however, the stongest attribute of this book is the description of the characters and personalities involved. The key players are Mountbatten, Ghandi, Nehru and Jinnah. I developed a high regard and respect for Ghandi and his work. I did not feel that the authors presented one viewpoint at the expense of others. If there is a fault with this splendid book it is in its over-reliance on Mountbatten. Even that is minor and forgiveable. What does come through is how the lives of the people at an individual level were and are still affected by this historic political change. If you are interested in the history of India, this book will be interesting to you.

Rating:
Summary: Indepth research, superb narrative, must for history buffs
Review: I found this a superb narrative of human history in that part of the world. Very readable book - with tremendous amount of research gone into it. Vivid and touching review of complexity of human emotions and actions set off in the powder keg of political and religious ideology. Makes me wonder, was freedom really worth the price paid? Must for world history, political and sociology majors.

Rating:
Summary: History You Can't Put Down
Review: I found this book captivating. Since I work with more than 20 Indians and one Pakistani, I was able to discuss the events in the book at length with them. One of my friends' father barely escaped death on one of the trains fleeing Pakistan. He and his brother have bullet wounds to show. The Pakistani's father also narrowly escaped death while leaving India for Pakistan. Two of the Indians decided to read the book with me. All agree that the book is accurate. It was very emotional for me to read of the atrocities and understand the personalities involved. My Indian friends experienced even more intense emotion as the read of the experiences of their parents.
One of the other customer reviews stated that the book made Montbatten look too good. My Indian friends disagree. Montbatten was a great man. The book might have underrated him, if anything.
The book also shows several sides of Gandi that most Westerners are not exposed to. He is still a great soul, though.
This book will change you. At least read the first 100 pages before you make a decision -- it'll draw you in.

Rating:
Summary: Thorough and well written
Review: I greatly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to all those interested in knowing about this historic, popularly known in the western world as, 'Land of Snake Charmers and performers of the Rope-Trick'.
The introductory chapter gives insight to the cultural diversity and Hindu-Muslim ideologies in the pre-independent India. The book, I feel, does not favour any religion or person and leaves the reader make his own judgement of the actions of all those involved in the partition of India and its repercussions by explaining in detail the motives and dilemmas of the political leaders. I believe the authors have put in lots of efforts in digging out various facts related to the lifestyles of the Indian princes and especially those linked to the assasination of Mahatma Gandhi.

Rating:
Summary: The best FICTIONAL view on India's freedom.
Review: I grew up in India being taught in schools about the god-like characteristics of leaders like Nehru. But this book offers a very thought provoking viewpoint on the people who played the major roles in the historic drama that ended the British Raj. This book is co-authored by an American and a French and it is definitely a result of a lot of research. It is written as a fiction rather than a historic documentary. The authors have gone to great lengths in describing each character and scene in great depth.

There are still some limitations that I see about this book. This book was published in 1975. The only major character alive when the authors were doing research for the book was Lord Mountbatten and he is the one they have extensively interviewed. I suspect the authors might have been unintentionally (or otherwise) influenced by a lot of Mountbatten's views. Mountbatten has been portrayed as the perfect human being who became the saviour of India. Gandhi whom Mountbatten apparently held in high regards is portrayed as a saint. And, Jinnah whom Mountbatten evidently disliked is a villain of sort (This book was banned in Pakistan because of that). I am not disputing these views. They sound accurate from what we know about these people now. But, I am just wondering if the authors had gotten an opportunity to interview Jinnah at length (provided the "cold" Jinnah would have opened up), would the story look different ?

But, since this is not written as a documentary, but as a fiction, I guess the authors have the freedom to wander a bit. Because of the same reason, I would recommend against treating this book as a historical guide. I have heard many people arguing about Indian independence basing their argument on what they read in this book. I am not sure if this book is reliable enough to form opinions based on.

And, one word for the over-patriotic Indians who would argue that this book is biased and who keep blaming the British for everything (Jalian Wal Bagh is their favorite topic), this book's story focuses on India's independence from British, not India's occupation by British. The story begins in beginning of 1947 when Mountbatten was assigned to be India's last viceroy and ends at the death of Gandhi in Jan 1948. The story of occupation is another story. For a few days, unremember everything you learned in school and read this from a neutral point of view. For average reader who wouldn't have the patience to dwell into history books, this is as neutral as it can be. The more history-oriented folks should read some real history books.

Rating:
Summary: A Biased presentation of Indian History
Review: I have finished reading this book few days back and still wondering that I read a history book or a fiction novel. I must say that this book was quite an interesting read. I've spent most of my life in India and know its history quite well. Though I picked this book for just another good read but it left a sour taste by the end. I can't help thinking the biased picture being presented to the people who are not aware of the Indian histroy very well. Authors have certainly try to project an image for Britishers emphasizing their reluctance to give away India but not mentioning the exploitation done to Indians for 400 years. Readers are made to believe that British gave up India as mother sends her child abroad for higher studies. Page after page it describes about the blessing that British Raj proved to be for India. I think they could not avoid talking about Jallianwaala bagh tragedy but they did make it a point to blame it on a single person and remove any possibility of it symbolizing the general attitude of raj towards Indians. They couldn't risk writing anything against Gandhi but they glorified Mountbatten as the war hero of all times and put Gandhi assassins in the most pathetic description. .....

Rating:
Summary: fascinating and illuminating, loved it
Review: i picked up this book cuz i was curious about the event of the end of the British Raj. in countless other books, this subject came up over and over. now i see why. it is not only about the breakup of England's control over India, and the formation of Pakistan and India. the interplay of events, personalities, religion, politics, the intense discrimination between Indians themselves, all had a part to play in the awful way things played out. it is very very easy to say religion caused everything that went wrong, or that England totally screwed up the separation when they knew better, but these authors make sure we see the big picture. this book does not describe a morality play of conquerors vs. natives, or the good religion vs. the bad ones. the book really describes all too human motives and fallabilities that in this case, caused India's woes, but it could have happened wherever humans live and create societies that rub up against each other.

Rating:
Summary: The chaotic madness of the partition of India and its heroes
Review: I read this book when I was in my college junior year, in India. I never thought that any 'foreign' author(s) could understand the mindset of a person from the subcontinent, with all the complex thought patterns mixed with impulsive instincts. This book proved me wrong. It was also the book that showed me how little it takes for some men to make decisions that will affect hundreds of millions of people. The vagaries of history are demonstrated in ways that makes one realize that to glamourize history, is to create a fantasy. In the end, history is about the choices made by a select few, and the blind trust that the multitudes had in those decisions. And when two such decisions collide, the victor can just as easily be a hateful person, as it might be someone like Gandhi.