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Liberty or Death: India's Journey to Independence and Division

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Liberty or Death: India's Journey to Independence and Division (Paperback)

by Patrick French (Author)

5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

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Product details

Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Flamingo; New edition edition (5 May 1998)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0006550452
ISBN-13: 978-0006550457
Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 12.8 x 3 cm

Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 15,174 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in these categories:
#2 in Books > History > Political History > Nationalism
#4 in Books > History > Countries & Regions > Asia > India
#5 in Books > History > Countries & Regions > Asia > South Asia

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Review

From the reviews of Liberty or Death: 'A huge, crowded and kaleidoscopic canvas, which the author handles with remarkable authority. It is also enormous fun to read' Philip Ziegler, Daily Telegraph 'Well-researched, beautifully written and immensely scholarly' Andrew Roberts, Sunday Times 'Delightful! quite hilarious' Swapan Dasgupta, India Today

Product Description

'A remarkable achievement' Philip Ziegler, Daily Telegraph 'Brilliant!There can be no doubt that Patrick French is the most impressive Western historian of modern India currently at work' Frank McLynn, Glasgow Herald At midnight on 14 August 1947, Britain's 350-year-old Indian Empire cracked into three pieces. The greatest mass migration in history began, as Muslims fled north and Hindus fled south, over a million being massacred on the way. Britain's role as world power came to an end, and the course of Asia's future was irrevocably set. Using a compelling mixture of scholarship, travel and personal narrative, Patrick French offers a radical reinterpretation of the events surrounding India's independence and partition, including the disastrous mistakes made by politicians, and the bizarre reasoning behind many of their decisions. Exploring the interplay between characters such as Churchill, Mountbatten and Gandhi, it reveals a fascinating tale of idealism and manipulation, hope and tragedy. With sources ranging from newly declassified secret documents to the memories of refugees, Patrick French gives a riveting account of an epic debacle, the impact of which reverberates across Asia to this day.

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Customer Reviews

7 Reviews

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5.0 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)

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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An exhaustively researched, unbiased and well written book, 27 Dec 2004

By	"dirtyfleabag" - See all my reviews

Patrick French's book Liberty or Death is a refreshingly unbiased look at India's freedom movement and the subsequent partition of the sub-continent. The book examines events and prominent figures, Indian, Pakistani and British. Patrick French refrains from casting the main personalities in a black or white mould - all have grey areas and these are brought out in an interesting, and occassionally humorous manner. The book deserves to be read just for its portrayal of the men and women who played important roles in fashioning the destiny of a large chunk of humanity.

The book has other redeeming features as well. It presents a strong argument for why pre-independence India may be considered two separate nations inspite of the people having so much in common. For many Indians like me this is a completely new point of view - one that can lead to a better appreciation of the history of the sub-continent, and in many cases a more broad-minded understanding of the differences between people from the sub-continent's three major countries.

The content is exhaustively researched and presented in a most reader-friendly manner - never once did I find the book dry or uninteresting. I recommend it strongly, especially as it offers an unbiased look at events that have shaped the lives of millions.

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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you read only one book, 10 Oct 2000

By	tskinner@batesuk.com (London) - See all my reviews

concerning the exhausting road towards India's Independence and ulimate partition, then Liberty or Death is the one volume you should read. Patrick French's book takes us comprehensively through the complex journey with amazing clarity. His narrative is enriched by the vivid portraits he paints of all the key participants, always enlightening often refreshingly critical, which helps one's understanding of their motivations and actions which led to partition and consequent tragedy. Given the human misery caused by political petulance, intransigence, indecision, one feels a great sense of guilt in finding this book gripping throughout and difficult to put down

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16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An even handed, gripping, account of the partition of India., 27 Jun 1999

By A Customer

French uses recently declassified British intelligence documents to analyse one of the great tragedies of the 20th century. A useful addition to several works on the history of India and Pakistan, French's Liberty or Death falls into the category of Revisionist History (along with Stanley Wolpert's excellent "Jinnah of Pakistan" and "Nehru - A Tryst with Destiny"; and Ayesha Jalal's "Jinnah - The Sole Spokesman") of the Indian subcontinent. With the fury, hatred and intense passions generated by partition 50 years ago slowly subsiding, more objective analyses of this bleak period are now emerging.

French does full justice to his subject by showing the complex dynamic between Gandhi, an idealistic but nonetheless devious politician using Hindu iconography to mobilise mass support; Nehru, a young idealistic Hindu Socialist firebrand, biased towards street action, rather than patient strategising and negotiation; Jinnah, an anglicised Muslim barrister and superb negotiator, cornered into taking a purely communalist negotiating position; and the British government, continually lagging popular opinion and missing opportunities for less drastic resolutions of the Indian problem.

French's tongue in cheek style lightens the mood in what would otherwise be a heavy and depressing account of human folly.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, unbiased account of the partition of India
Being an Indian born British citizen I became interested in learning about the history of my country and decided to buy this book to learn about one of the most historically... Read more

Published 13 months ago by lil-d1985

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Reading
A masterfully written account of the partition. Patrick French combines a scholarly account of the travails that tore India into two with a travelogue where he gives us access to... Read more

Published 14 months ago by Ibrahim Ali

5.0 out of 5 stars The Different Style
I believe the best thing about this book is that it gives a background of leaders and ample of room for us to think why these leaders acted the way they acted. Read more

Published on 21 Feb 2006 by Ali Mustafa Khan

5.0 out of 5 stars A good book indeed
A very good account of India's freedom struggle. Gives incredible insights into the lives of the 'leaders' at that time. Read more

Published on 14 Jun 2005 by viks28

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