India: A History

Trying to cover the history of India runs into significant problems. The first is that there's simply so much of it; not only does it stretch back a long way, but the subcontinent is huge and for most of its history was not even close to being unified in the way that, say, China often was. The second issue is that much of its early history is obscure and we have relatively few reliable sources from which to reconstruct it.

So even a chunky book like this has a lot to cover and will inevitably leave gaps - often because we simply don't know. Having said which, this seems about as comprehensive a history as one could fit in a single volume and it's an interesting story about which I'd have to say that I didn't know much before starting. (Which, of course, also means that I can't vouch for the accuracy; I have no reason to doubt it but wouldn't be able to spot an error or glaring omission if there was one). It covers the entire history of the subcontinent from the Harappans to the first decade of the 21st century and includes areas that now lie within Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The writing is mostly clear and accessible and shows a clear passion for the region. Some of the spellings used for Indian places and names are not those most commonly used in English, which can be confusing at times - the most frequent are ‘Panjab' for Punjab and ‘Ganga' for Ganges, which are perfectly legitimate transliterations but not ones one often sees. But, while I know that my taste in history books often fails to match those of other readers, I found this informative and well worth the time, a well-written account of a vast and sprawling story that's often overlooked in the West.