Modern South Asia: History, Culture and Political Economy (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: unitary centre, intermediate social groups, minority provinces, Indian Muslims, World War, Muslim League (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Bose and Jalal have produced a sophisticated and conceptually rigorous work.
–Chandar Sundaram, Lingnan University, Contemporary South Asia

Product Description

A wide-ranging survey of the Indian sub-continent, Modern South Asia gives an enthralling account of South Asian history. After sketching the pre-modern history of the subcontinent, the book concentrates on the last three centuries from c.1700 to the present. Jointly written by two leading Indian and Pakistani historians, Modern South Asia offers a rare depth of understanding of the social, economic and political realities of this region.The new edition includes a rewritten, accessible introduction and a chapter by chapter revision to take into account recent research. The second edition will also bring the book completely up to date with a chapter on the period from 1991 to 2002 and a discussion of the last millennium in sub-continental history.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 2 edition (December 18, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415307872
• ISBN-13: 978-0415307871
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #561,174 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Hackneyed, October 13, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Modern South Asia: History, Culture, Political Economy (Paperback)

The book lacks originality and boldness, that is required for a post-colonial understanding of the past 300 years of Indian history.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Lacks depth, December 17, 2002

By	Vijai Tyagi (Urbana, Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Modern South Asia: History, Culture, Political Economy (Paperback)

This is an eighth grade level account of India's history written in a high-sounding English. Also, this book assumes some familiarity by the reader with the past of India, but I think that if you already know that much, you do not need this book.
Perhaps, and only perhaps, the books suffers from mediocrity because the two authors, one of Indian and the other of Pakistani origin, had to make compromises in the emphasis they could jointly place on the aspects of modern India's history which are interesting to the younger generation. One such aspect is the causes and consequences of the partition of India, the role of three parties - the British, Indian National Congress and the Muslim League. The book seems to shy away in taking a hard and penetrating look at this. There are hardly any citations to original sources where one could look for more detail.
There are so many other good books where you can find modern Indian history covered at greater depth and width. If you have limited amount of money to spend to buy a good introductory book, then find another one.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good overview but lacking anything new or revealing, January 1, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Modern South Asia: History, Culture, Political Economy (Paperback)

Although this book may serve to guide people through South Asia, it doesn't really explain or go into the complexities of the region. In the case of Pakistan we do not get a complete picture of its varied past as western Pakistan isn't South Asia, but is instead more Middle Eastern as it is populated by speakers of Iranian languages (as opposed to the Indic tongues spoken in eastern Pakistan) Pashtuns and Baluchis. Also the Hindu-Muslim struggles are reduced to religion rather than adding the linguistic and cultural divisions prevalent to this day. For being tauted as revisionist there seems to be little revisionism just different wording.