Snakes and Ladders: Glimpses of India

by Gita Mehta

Book Overview

With a novelist's eye for detail and colour, Gita Mehta writes of the continent of contradictions that is host to one-sixth of the world's population. The world's largest democracy, it still practices... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0385474954
• ISBN13: 9780385474955
• Release Date: April 1997
• Publisher: Nan A. Talese
• Length: 297 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.2" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

The Whole Masala

In the past six months I've read at least twice that many books about India, and of them all "Snakes and Ladders" and Wm. Dalyrmple's "City of Djins" have been the best. Gita Mehta is an exceptional writer who manages to combine fact and emotion in a series of elequent essays. The last 50 years in Indian history - her first 50 years of independence - are a swirl of social change in a country that is aswril in its every moment. When you think "India" you must think of a dance of a billion richly colored veils. Ms. Mehta plucks veil after veil from the dance and by describing the veil she describes India. It's a remarkable achievement, and a real insiders view into the politics, arts, and life of an extremely complex nation. Ms. Mehta captures India in a short 220 pages and in doing so presents a view that other authors might take volumes to display. Highly, highly recommended!

Terrific Overview

Some time ago I read a really outstanding piece of fiction about India - "A Fine Balance" by Rohinton Mistry. I am very pleased to have subsequently read this.It's a collection of very easy to read short essays on Indian politics and society since Indendence (including the author watching Gandhi's funeral pass as a 5 year old).It covers many of the events forming the basis of A Fine Balance, especially The Emergency period. It also brings things more up to date.I really like reading it after A Fine Balance - I might not have been so interested, or it might not have meant so much before. In particular, things like references to crowds being herded together for Indira Gandhi's rallies etc - those sorts of events were just so vividly conveyed in Fine Balance. Mehta delivers information about the vast and fascinating mosaic that is India in bite-sized and very digestible pieces, but she certainly doesn't gloss over the uglier seams in Indian political life.

READ IT

I have trashed this writer in the past so trust me when I say this is one of her finest works. It's emotive, beautiful, descriptive (without being overt), and a wonderfully written feature about India. This book both instructs and entertains. I was engrossed from the start to the finish. As someone who recently moved to India I would not hesitate to reccomend it to anyone who wants to visit or has an interest in India.

Really a glimpse of India

A very beautifully written book. The author has been very unbiased and yet so affectionate in her narration. Its a book all Indians can relate to and all foreigners must read before coming to India. She has captured all the vistas India has to offer, good, bad and ugly! Terrific!

An objective review of Indian politics

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.