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The most helpful favourable review
The most helpful critical review
24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
A highly lucid and intelligent series of essays on India.
I adored this book. Instead of the usual bland statements of a by-stander on the look-out for material for a book, Dalrymple has very obviously written a book about what he has seen in the course of many years' dedicated observation and investigation. The writing is as consistently finely-tuned as his observations, and his depth of knowledge enables him to throw...
Published on 13 Jan 2000
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2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Vivd yet complacent
The Age of Kali, to be honest, is a bit disappointing. First off because of the form - it is a collection of pieces written for different journals at different times in the 1990s, and there is occasional repetition from one piece to the next, with no overall guiding structure. Second, because of this, the book lacks any synthesising introduction or conclusion, apart from...
Published 20 months ago by Nicholas Whyte
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24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
A highly lucid and intelligent series of essays on India., 13 Jan 2000
By A Customer
I adored this book. Instead of the usual bland statements of a by-stander on the look-out for material for a book, Dalrymple has very obviously written a book about what he has seen in the course of many years' dedicated observation and investigation. The writing is as consistently finely-tuned as his observations, and his depth of knowledge enables him to throw light with what appears to be great ease on complex cultural, historical and religious issues. I was born in India, left at the age of two and have returned for numerous visits since. Such entertaining and informative writing helps to explain and endear a country about which, on some levels, I know a fair amount, and on other levels I have often felt at a great loss to even begin to comprehend. In particular, the chapter about Hyderabad, fascinated me. My mother has often told stories of the great wealth and beauty of the city when she was growing up there in an affluent Muslim neighbourhood, but having seen it only in the 1970s to 1990s, I found these stories slightly unbelievable. Reading Dalrymple's book will certainly make me look at the city in a new light next time I visit, as it has explained the context and history of it with an insight and an interest that I have not found elsewhere.
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
A spicy Bombay mix, 11 Jan 2000
This set of journalistic essays on the state of the Indian subcontinent (India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) in the 1990s should be essential reading for every visitor to this remarkable part of the world. The topics are wide-ranging, shocking, disturbing, uplifting and always absorbing. From political corruption to the Bombay glitterati to religious fervour and the caste system, William Dalrymple provides insights into numerous aspects of contemporary India. A lesson in history, economics, politics, religion, not to mention bigotry, hatred and corruption. A clash between the new and the old and the present day problems caused by this in Indian society is the overwhelming theme. He has a most readable style and his own fascination comes across in his writing. It reminded me intensely of why I both loved and hated India when I travelled there - and also made me ashamed of knowing so little of the local way of life (a bit like the narrator of "Are you experienced?" when he meets the journalist!) I can't recommend this book highly enough.
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18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
Superb - in-depth insights into the darker side of India, 20 Jun 2000
I was very impressed by this book. I have lived in India for a number of years, but I still found this book profoundly illuminating. The author has taken much time and effort to get first hand accounts from the people at the heart of the stories. I am going to go out and buy his other books as well.
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20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
Essential reading for all visitors to India, 22 Oct 2001
By A Customer
I read this on my first trip to India recently. It made more sense of this vast continent than all the newspapers, guidebooks and personal guides put together.Pack this book along with your antimalarials, insect repellent, and camera for the best possible insight to the real India.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Fascinating, breathtaking and real, 31 Jul 1999
By A Customer
William Dalrymple's "Age of Kali" is one on the best books about the Indian way of life that I've read.Having travelled across India I can safely say that reading this book is almost as good as being there. You can "feel" India, you can hear it and you can smell it as you sit, transported. I loved every inch of India and I loved every word in this great book. Not since James Cameron's "Indian Summer" and Vikram Seth's "Suitable Boy" have I felt this way. Wonderful!!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Snapshots of the subcontinent, 2 Jul 2007
William Dalrymple's 'The Age of Kali' carries the subtitle 'Indian Travels and Encounters' but actually includes writings on Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Indian Ocean island of Reunion (in fact a département of France). It is less a historical analysis in the mold of the brilliant 'City of Djinns' but a collection of essays and articles, most of which were previously commissioned and published by magazines and newspapers. Much more jounalistic in style, it is arguably more informal than some of his other books, but no less engaging or informative for that. His obvious love for the sub-continent is reflected in a gently ironic voice that somehow makes light work of the tales of atrocity, corruption and ineptitude here. He is not as pessimistic or misanthropic as Paul Theroux, and is able to imbue his descriptions of even the most hopeless situations with a comic absurdity. Although the content of the book is highly contemporaneous - the pace of development in India and the shifting political landscape post-911 makes parts of the book seem a little dated - the book gives a comprehensive overview of the forces at work on the subcontinent.
Whereas 'City of Djinns' and his later work 'White Mughals' were heavy on historical narratives and anecdotes, 'The Age of Kali' finds the author a more visible presence. Like in his stunning debut 'In Xanadu', the book leaves you impressed by his bravery in pursuit of his subject. From accessing the base camps of the Tamil Tigers to travelling the lawless mountain routes of Northern Pakistan, Dalrymple builds a vivid and remarkable picture of the region seldom exposed by journalists of any nationality, and often with considerable personal risk. Although the book has no unifying objective, the articles included build an informative overview without any prescriptive remit. If you enjoy this - which you should - you should read the aforementioned titles in the author's back catalogue. If you want to complement it with some fiction, try Rohinton Mistry's 'A Fine Balance' or 'Family Matters'.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
a must for anybody who loves or hates India, 27 Oct 1999
By A Customer
The first time I visited India (1984)it was a great experience, but I felt it could well be the last time I'd been there. The fact that we had to stay four more days because of another mistake by Air India (does that sound familiar?) might have had something to do with this. Well after that first visit I've been back four times, so I'm seriously addicted to this fascinating country and it's inhabitants. The moment I'm out of the airport and into the bustle totally at home. Unlike lots of other travelogues William Daymple's book gives the same feeling of coming home, of feeling at home in India. And that's exactly the reason I like it very much.But even if you visited India and htd it, this book is a must. After reading it you know exactly why you never want to go back again. Or maybe ou might one day?
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
A wonderful collection of articles and portraits of India, 29 Jul 1999
By A Customer
William Dalrymple described this work as "a labour of love" and his affection for the people, culture and eccentricities of India is on every page. He also casts an eye over some of the darker aspects of life in the subcontinent; the terrifying slide into anarchy in Bihar and Lucknow; the commonplace abuse of political power and influence; the apparent social exclusion and divisiveness imposed by the caste system and the omnipresent poverty. This is a very fulfilling book and a delight to read. At times very amusing (the portraits of certain Bollywood celebs made me laugh out loud) and at other times sober and cautionary, it made me want to return to India straight away. The book is easy to read, being set out in a series of accessible chapters, themselves divided into bite-sized pieces which even the shortest attention span will be able to manage! Working logically around the districts of the country from the north to the south Dalrymple serves up a rich banquet in which each succeeding dish is as good as the one before. I recommend it very highly.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Classic Dalrymple and of renewed relevance, 4 Dec 2007
This collection of previous, but quite modern, essays deals with the darker side of the subcontinent. Like his masterpiece City of the Djins, it also includes trip to Pakistan. Ever wondered what Benazir Bhutto's bedside reading is? Well look here. For those watching her return to Pakistan politics may find this book's chapter chillingly relevant.
I found this book dark and sometimes depressing so frequent and sad are the examples of India's decline. But Dalrymple is always amusing and ever capable of finding magic in the heart of tragedy and this book is no exception. Hope springs eternal too. Postitive tradition triumphs alongside sectarian strife or chronic corruption. Heroes emerge everywhere alognside villains. This is a must for anyone who wants a more serious grasp of India's contradictions, challenges, tradtions and, ultimately its promise.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Excellent and insightful, 2 Nov 2007
William Dalrymple is absurdly young to write so well and -- rarer still -- for his journalistic enterprise which seems to effortlessly reach the inner sanctums of the movers and shakers of the Indian sub-continent. Whether it is murderous bandit leaders from Bihar or the haughtily imperious Benazir Bhutto, Dalrymple has a fine eye for the bizarre and the mystic. This is really a wonderful fusion of travel writing, journalism and political essay. Having just read Jules Stewart's excellent The Savage Border, I found these two books complemented each other very well.
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