History! Its rare people would want to buy books and read about it. Who cares what happened?
History is boring!
We are surprised you clicked on this link if you relate to the line above!
But wait..since you are here after being completely be non interested in reading History that too the big bulky books, hang on and read more, kya pata tomorrow you are at the other end of the line…with those rare individuals who are interested in knowing what took us to gain what we enjoy or may be complaint about today!
Those who like the subject generally opt it for their academic studies and all the others , even if they get the content online or have the option to read on their mobile phone or Kindle e-reader with all pro facilities enabling comfortable reading, wont opt to read them!
We completely understand you guys! But trust us once, however apprehensive you may be at first, once you start reading history you will fall in love with the past, you would become curious, you would want to know more!
And to begin, don’t go back to the Ancient History or even the Medieval History we all have been studying as a part of the school syllabus, start read Modern History, you would be able to related to it more and it will be a good starter to get your curiosity levels high!
Read how our Independent Nation was built, how it reached to where it is today!
We help you with 5 amazing books to read and know about our great Nation, you may read and become an expert or read selectively in combination to get an insight!
1. India’s Struggle for Independence – by Bipin Chandra
Starting with How India got Independence, knowing this in detail helps you understand the struggle it took to get us the freedom we enjoy today! This book will give you a detailed overview and would make you proud of our hard earned Independence.
Read it because -
It is a well-documented account of history of India's freedom struggle against the British rule.
It includes all the independence movements and fights, irrespective of their size and impact, covering India in its entirety .
It contains oral and written narratives from different parts of the country, making it historically rich and diverse.
It captures the evolution of Indian independence struggle in full detail and leaves no chapter of this story untouched.
This book is a good read for the #students of Indian modern history and especially for students who are preparing for #UPSC examination and have taken History as their subject.
2. The Discovery of India – by Jawaharlal Nehru
The book was written by Pandit Nehru during his four years of confinement to solitude in prison and is his way of paying an homage to his beloved country and its rich culture.
The television series Bharat Ek Khoj which was released in 1988 was based on this book.
We loved the show, and the book is equally good.
The book starts from ancient history, Nehru wrote at length of Vedas, Upanishads and textbooks on ancient time and ends during the British raj.
It gives a broad view of Indian history, culture and philosophy.
The book is considered one of the finest writing on Indian History.
3. India After Gandhi –by Ramchandra Guha
This one is our absolute favourite, it gives you a detailed and in-depth understanding of the challenges the nation faced post independence and how different leaders shaped the course of the wonderful Nation in making.
It is a magisterial account of the pains, struggles, humiliations and glories of the world’s largest and least likely democracy.
A riveting chronicle of the often brutal conflicts that have rocked a giant nation and of the extraordinary individuals and institutions who held it together, it established itself as a classic when it was first published in 2007.
No doubt the title has eared the below accolades,
The Economist, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Time Out and Outlook.
Winner of the Sahitya Akademi Award We believe everybody should read it once to have an understanding of the socio-political condition of the country.
4. India Since Independence – Bipin Chandra
Another Bipin Chandra's title, It covers the story of the forging of India, the world's largest democracy, is a rich and inspiring one. This volume, a sequel to the best-selling India's Struggle for Independence, we mentioned above!
It covers the framing of the Constitution and the evolution of the Nehruvian political and economic agenda and basics of foreign policy.
The consolidation of the nation and contentious issues like party politics in the Centre and the states, the Punjab problem and anti-caste politics and untouchability.
These, along with objective assessments of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Jayaprakash Narayan, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Rajiv Gandhi, Vishwanath Pratap Singh, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh.
It constitute a remarkable overview of a nation on the move and makes it to our favourite list!
5. A brief History of Modern India – Spectrum Books Pvt. Ltd.
Now this is a holistic book, you read this and you get an insight on the entire history of modern India. It brings together various aspects of the turbulent period (from arrival of the Europeans on Indian soil and the establishment of British rule in India to the day India won independence and the early years of freedom) in a systematic and succinct manner.
Major and important details and milestones are effectively discussed while several relevant but little known details are also highlighted.
It is not just the mainstream freedom struggle that has been considered; the disparate efforts—small but significant— of several groups have also been discussed.
The political and socio-economic developments that have influenced the growth of modern India have been dealt with in independent chapters.
The book is recommended for #UPSC exam and various state PSC exam aspirants too especially for prelims exams.
So,above was our recommended list!
We are sure there may be many more awesome books, if you have read any and want to recommend them to others, do share them in the comments section.
We would love to read them too!
Also if you are just keep buying books and don't read them then you need to Battle Tsundoku (The Japanese Word For Buying Books And Never Reading Them) soon!
Buy a lot of books and read them!
Happy Reading! Happy Learning! :)
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