Will there be any other writer capable of understanding the nuances of British rule in India other than Paul Scot, ever? The arguments and counter arguments for and against Indian Independence are very aptly presented in this wondrously weaved tale of forbidden love and misplaced loyalties in imperialist India. One aspect almost never talked about in factual history books was British reliance on diversity of opinions in British India, otherwise known as the divide and rule policy. On the other hand,factual history books in both India and Pakistan are filled with references to how British used Divide and Rule very effectively to prolong their hold over India. Simply put, British were happy to wait for the Indians to make up their minds as they carried on ruling India in the meantime. So good was this divide and rule policy that it made the British look like saints in comparison to the madness of the Hindu, Muslim divisions. As for the native population, they the Muslims and the Hindus and the Anglo-Indian Christians, were as much to blame for participating in this divide and rule policy, because without their ravenous optimism to engage with each other, the Policy would have been a failure.
Paul has somehow used a simple plot to produce a very engaging read which kept me intrigued, engaged and beguiled throughout as it circled around the same rape incident from different narrators over and over again, making the story very thought provoking and extremely holistic indeed.
Check this out as he summarizes the British strategy for prolonging their colonisation of India, 'deny people something they want over a longish period, and they naturally start disagreeing about precisely what it is they really wanted to do in the first place.'
Paul has presented probably the most honest and candid representation of the British and Indians just before Independence to date. They say you can learn a lot of the nature when placed as masters of another nation, and Paul has has done just that. This is a serious study of the British character as masters of a dark race.
I cannot wait to read his second book in the series.
Paul has somehow used a simple plot to produce a very engaging read which kept me intrigued, engaged and beguiled throughout as it circled around the same rape incident from different narrators over and over again, making the story very thought provoking and extremely holistic indeed.
Check this out as he summarizes the British strategy for prolonging their colonisation of India, 'deny people something they want over a longish period, and they naturally start disagreeing about precisely what it is they really wanted to do in the first place.'
Paul has presented probably the most honest and candid representation of the British and Indians just before Independence to date. They say you can learn a lot of the nature when placed as masters of another nation, and Paul has has done just that. This is a serious study of the British character as masters of a dark race.
I cannot wait to read his second book in the series.
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