Nehru : The Making of India (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Published in the centennial year of Jawaharlal Nehru's birth, this massive, semi-adulatory, stodgy biography of India's first prime minister limns Nehru as a highly emotional idealist who transcended Hindu nationalism and Muslim revivalism to crystallize the cause of national unity. Critics have charged Nehru with a loss of nerve in 1947, when he rejected Gandhi's stance of "no freedom without unity," but Indian journalist Akbar contends Nehru agreed to the partition of India and Pakistan because he was convinced that Muhammad Ali Jinnah, chief Muslim separatist, was capable of setting a torch to the whole subcontinent. Akbar, an Indian Muslim, offers a scathing portrayal of Jinnah, whom he accuses of pushing for partition in order to further his own political ambitions. We also get revealing glimpses of Churchill's vicious hatred of Indians, his unholy alliance with Jinnah and the famine the British did little to alleviate in the early 1940s. Though he minutely chronicles political affairs, Akbar ( India: The Siege Within ) says little about how Nehru addressed the vast task of rebuilding India.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Akbar's journalistic treatment combines the biography of Jawaharlal Nehru with the history of the Indian Independence Movement from 1890 to 1948. What results encompasses shallow biography and an interesting interpretation of relationships between the British and Jinnah's Muslim League. Akbar takes the position that a British deal with the Muslim League in 1940 served as the springboard for an independent Pakistan. Here Akbar misses the point of British wartime desires to draw on the Muslim's martial qualities while dividing India under imperial rule. Throughout the work are vignettes of key Congress Party leaders and descriptions of their place in the Freedom Movement. The author's scattered anti-imperialist rhetoric should make the work acceptable to his native readership.
- John F. Riddick, Central Michigan Univ . Lib., Mount Pleasant
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 607 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult (April 14, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 067081699X
• ISBN-13: 978-0670816996
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,616,320 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars accurate portrayal of a great freedom fighter, September 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Nehru: The Making of India (Paperback)

A refreshing comprehensive biography by one of the formost scholars in India about one of India's great freedom fighters. If one wants to avoid orientalist lies such as Stanley Wolperts biography, then MJ Akbar's book is for you.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, December 13, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Nehru: The Making of India (Paperback)

This is not only a great book about Nehru, but gives an excellent explanation of historical events that shaped Nehru's life. The reasons behind the events are explained very well. A must read, if you are interested in Jawharlal Nehru.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not Worth the Time, September 12, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Nehru: The Making of India (Paperback)

Mr. Akbar's "effort" is a book suffering from its fair share of inaccuracies. Stanley Wolpert's biography of Nehru is far better, providing a more honest and objective portrayal about a man who was from being the indomitable giant Mr. Akbar makes him to be.