Snakes and Ladders [Hardcover]

Gita Mehta (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 14, 1997

India is a land of contrasts. It is the world's most populous democracy, but still upholds the caste system. It is a burgeoning economic superpower but one of the poorest nations on earth. It is the home of the world's biggest movie industry after Hollywood as well as to still-practiced religions that are millennia old. As India celebrates fifty years of independence in 1997, the world will want to know, more than ever before, just what India is all about.



As she has proved in three previous books--her wry take on the marketing of the mystic east in Karma Cola; the rich historical saga of Raj; and the beguiling tales of A River Sutra--there is no better guide to India's multi-hued mosaic than Gita Mehta. She knows India in all its rich detail--its folkways and history, its culture and politics, its ancient traditions and current concerns. In Snakes and Ladders, she gives a loving but unflinching assessment of India today, entertaining, informative, and wholly personal.



Combining a topic that will be in the news all year with a high-profile writer known for her sharp tongue and brilliant observations, Snakes and Ladders is sure to be one of the most talked-about and reviewed books of 1997.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Gita Mehta is a keen critic of her homeland. In her brilliantly satirical Karma Cola she skewered the guru business and the marketing of Eastern spiritualism. In Snakes and Ladders Gita widens her net to include politics, economics, religion, and so much more. The 35 essays contained in this collection are wholly personal accounts of national events; recalling Gandhi's funeral, Gita finds her humble memories of the actual event quite different from the scenes depicted in Richard Attenborough's film, Gandhi: when she asks one of Gandhi's grandsons whether the Mahatma did indeed receive a huge military funeral as the film showed, he replies that such a ceremony did briefly take place, invented by Nehru and Mountbatten "for the record." "What record?" Gita wonders. "Soldiers? Gun carriages? For the disciple of nonviolence? ... He did not even reach his funeral pyre before his luck ran out."

Gita Mehta's lively, informative, and witty essays are an excellent introduction to the subcontinent for readers who may not be familiar with India's culture or history. Gita explains her title choice by comparing the country's fortunes with the ancient game of Snakes and Ladders: " ... it seems we Indians have vaulted over the painful stages experienced by other countries, lifted by ladders we had no right to expect. At other times we have been swallowed by the snakes of past nightmares ... " Readers of Snakes and Ladders will find themselves eagerly scaling the ladders, then sliding down the snakes' gullets in happy pursuit of Gita Mehta's perceptive portrait of India as she knows it.

From School Library Journal

YA. Mehta's personal essays on modern India should whet most readers' desire to see the country for themselves. The title refers to the classic Indian game as well as the slides backward and jumps ahead that the young nation has endured since gaining its independence from Great Britain 50 years ago. The author divides this collection into four parts: her personal involvement; the tremendous difficulties of poverty and diversity within a country of over 400 different languages; the historical path that India has taken since independence; and the present status and future outlook toward achieving a unified oneness. The 35 essays flow from subject to subject and yet each of them stands alone. Mehta paints with words, making the complexity of Indian life vivid and understandable. She is able to distill and simplify such overwhelmingly huge issues as the role of nonviolence in a violent society, election chaos, film mania, and women struggling for their identity. A political chronology provides a framework while Mehta's personal stories and illustrative Indian myths give a freshness to this readable and attractive book. A valuable and essential title that will be useful for reports, and that casual readers will also find fascinating and intriguing.?Dottie Kraft, formerly at Fairfax County Public Schools, VA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Nan A. Talese; 1 edition (April 14, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385474954
• ISBN-13: 978-0385474955
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,733,686 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This non-student of India found the book fun to read!, April 30, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Snakes and Ladders (Hardcover)

As someone who has never loved reading serious, academic, historical studies, I found this book delightful. My "knowledge" of foreign cultures and history comes from traveling, from reading fiction, and from studying art. And when I wanted to learn more about India, a country of huge size and population, of countless religions and traditions, and of a mystifying political history, I couldn't even imagine attacking the tomes it would take to gain even a small understanding of this country. Though it may be "a slim confection of descriptive jottings and dinner party anecdotes," that's exactly the kind of book I was looking for. My approach may be that of a dilettante, but I know more now than I did before reading the book, and that's a start. And I thoroughly enjoyed the "dinner party anecdotes," which stay with me longer than pure scholarship would have

4.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful introduction the the Indian conundrum!, January 11, 2012

By 

Carno Polo "adventure traveler" (Rome, Italy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Snakes and Ladders (Paperback)

This book awes and shocks at the same time, which is perhaps the best way to summarize India today. Assuming there is such a thing as "India" beyond the state on the map. Mehta points out that most Indians are foreigners to other Indians (p.20)!

Here we get a panoramic introduction to the essence of this incredible assembly of over one billion people. Mehta jumps easily from history to politics, from religion to economics, from social life to art. This is where the majority is Hindu but Buddhism was born, as can be seen at such wonders as Sanchi, Ajanta and Ellora, but where some of the best known national symbols are the Taj Mahal (Muslim mausoleum), the Golden Temple of Amritsar (Sikh), the Jain temples of Rajasthan and Gujarat.

This is the country where the foremost independence leader, Mahatma Gandhi, invited the last colonail ruler, Lord Mountbatten, to become the first head of state of independent India, so as to show reconciliation with all! A country where women still suffer heavily from discrimination but where a woman (Indira) was the most powerful politician ever elected and another (Sonia, a foreigner and a Catholic) followed in her footsteps.

4.0 out of 5 stars An objective review of Indian politics, September 2, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Snakes and Ladders (Hardcover)

The book 'snakes and Ladders' is indeed a very nice book which introduces reader to various facets of Indian politics over the last fifty years. The choice of title is very appropriate as author tries to take a stalk of progress of India over the years and the factors that hinder the growth. It is not an easy job to write an objective book almost free of personal bias. The book can be said to be an outsider's view and yet the author understands India being an insider. Her discussions about dynasty in India- Late Pt. Nehru electing (or rather imposing) Indira Gandhi as Congress President and Indira's rule in later years are particularly appealing. She also discusses the incident of Nehru dismissing elected communist government in Kerala which showed the glimpses of dictatorship which followed a decade and half later. However, I feel the twentyone month emergency rule deserved a little more space in the book. Also the author could have included discussions about state formation process based on linguistics which still has some unresolved issues. In my view this would have made the book more comprehensive. I would strongly recommend this book to Indians or non-Indians who wish to understand today's India.