Customer Reviews

India Exposed: The Subcontinent A-Z

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Mr. Limpkin articulated exactly how I felt after returning from my first trip to India 2 weeks ago! He captured the essence through his explanations and photos of a complex nation that is hard to define. The colorful cultures and warmth of the people were reflected in his photos. We are used to our own "personal space", but traveling in India, that notion is non-existent when just driving up to an intersection amongst the cows, buses, motor scooters, trucks, cars, camels, carts, etc., or in a marketplace.... But then, he captures other wondrous sights that makes one curious to return. I recommend this book for anyone who has already been to India or is a "wanna be" traveler to India.

The Indian Subcontinent can be a blur of images and remembered tidbits to most outsiders, covering as it does, so many square miles, cultures, languages and religions within its borders. Limpkin's format of short essays with color photos provides the reader with an easy and appealing way to absorb information about wildlife, traditional dress, the Raj and some very complicated aspects of Indian society. The book designers wisely provide endpaper maps of India highlighted with cities and villages shown in the photos for quick reference.

As a stand-alone photoessay, "India Exposed" also offers views of wildlife and social situations that the ordinary visitor to India would never glimpse, such as the lone janitors who guard Chettinar mansions in Tamil Nadu, a rooftop view of the dhobi family laundries in Mumbai, or the wary archer fisherman in the backwaters of Kerala.

While Limpkin is clearly in love with the Indian people, he is not shy about peppering his essays with commentary about the ills of underage labor, sex and caste discrimination, or government health funding. This book is a colorful introduction to contemporary India and would be a welcome addition to the library of any reader interested in travel, photography, current events or social history. Certainly, anyone considering a trip to India in the near future should consult this book as a way of orienting themselves to the geography and framework of this intriguing, multi-faceted land.

Limpkin's second book is a superb exploration of and explication into current Indian culture.

Abbeville is to be commended for not making this an 8 pound monster "coffee table book." The size of this 216 page, square book encourages browsing and the handy format matches the intimacy of Limpkin's photography. And yet it is a handsome production: cloth over boards on heavy paper with decorated endpapers

I find the A-Z organizational structure commendable. It encourages "return trips" into the book. And while some of the entries are expected: Caste System, Fishing, Saris, Textiles, Crocodiles, others are not -- Barbers, Brick Making, Underage Labor, Safety Standards, and Army.