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A review by amritesh
Indira by Priya Kuriyan, Devapriya Roy
5.0
This book was surprisingly brilliant. Like, I was expecting a cute-ish and child-ish form of a book depicting the life of the first (and so far, only) woman prime minister of India, Indira Gandhi.
While yes, it was cute and slightly childish at times, it was so so much more. One of the best parts about this book is how it alternates between two different stories, that of Indira Gandhi (in comic form), and of a student, Indira Thapa, who is collecting information on her namesake (in simple text form).
What struck me the most was the "Indian-ness" of this book, from the quirky comments to the illustrations to the casual use of Hindi words here and there.
Roy writes in a very succinct manner with a distinct voice of her own, while Priya puts soul into it with the oh-my-gosh-so-gorgeous detailed illustrations.
While it would have been very easy to give it a political colour, it was altogether devoid of it. At times though, the author's fascination of Mrs Indira caused her to shed little light over her mistakes.
But, really, this is one book you must read to have an insight into the life of one of India's best prime ministers ever, in a fun, casual, and very interesting way.
Highly highly recommended!!
While yes, it was cute and slightly childish at times, it was so so much more. One of the best parts about this book is how it alternates between two different stories, that of Indira Gandhi (in comic form), and of a student, Indira Thapa, who is collecting information on her namesake (in simple text form).
What struck me the most was the "Indian-ness" of this book, from the quirky comments to the illustrations to the casual use of Hindi words here and there.
Roy writes in a very succinct manner with a distinct voice of her own, while Priya puts soul into it with the oh-my-gosh-so-gorgeous detailed illustrations.
While it would have been very easy to give it a political colour, it was altogether devoid of it. At times though, the author's fascination of Mrs Indira caused her to shed little light over her mistakes.
But, really, this is one book you must read to have an insight into the life of one of India's best prime ministers ever, in a fun, casual, and very interesting way.
Highly highly recommended!!