Asoka: The Buddhist Emperor of India by Vincent A Smith

Chandragupta Maurya and Ashoka, they have a good number of books dedicated to them in our historical fiction shelf. Many of them were related to Chanakya. Well as I said, they are all "Historical Fiction" which means at the end they are fiction. And most of the fictions are written as thrillers or war/strategy book, so it would show more violent and emotional side which affect readers the most. Till now I haven't read historic records or researched book on Mauryas. So when an opportunity was appeared to review "Asoka The Buddhist Emperor of India" by Vincent Smith I simply grabbed it.

Book Blurb

Asoka: The Buddhist Emperor of India is regarded as a culturally important work in the historiography

of the life and times of King Asoka. A masterpiece when it was first published, its importance

has only increased with time.

I was not aware Asoka was such a well researched and well accepted book worldwide. The book is published in multiple languages in multiple countries.

Being a historic scholar and having exposure to multiple ancient Indian sites, Vincent (the author) has dug out as many relevant information about Asoka than we can find in folklore. The author has been to various sites which were created during Asoka's time. He has studied them and presented us with the crux of his findings.

We have heard many myth about Asoka how he became king by killing his 100 brothers. What if I say there are no proof of that theory. What all Asoka did after the war of Kalinga? Read this book to know more.

The language of the book is slight academical. So is the flow to the subject and medium paced. For people who wanted to know about the great empire and its culture, this is a nice pick. People looking for story and action may stay away from the book. I know cover can misguide you by giving a different picture. And that' what we are for. 

Overall a different style & genre. Content of the book is deep.

I would give 3/5 to this book

Book can be found at Amazon

Review from other readers can be found at GoodReads

Book Review - Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari

"Sapiens - A Brief History of Humankind" was a birthday gift from one of my dear friend and the best birthday gift I ever received too. I am so thankful that Jeyul Chalthanwala and Mihir Sutarwala gifted this book to me so special thanks to you.

Book Blurb

100,000 years ago, at least six human species inhabited the earth. Today there is just one. Us. Homo sapiens. 

How did our species succeed in the battle for dominance? Why did our foraging ancestors come together to create cities and kingdoms? How did we come to believe in gods, nations and human rights; to trust money, books and laws; and to be enslaved by bureaucracy, timetables and consumerism? And what will our world be like in the millennia to come? 

In Sapiens, Dr Yuval Noah Harari spans the whole of human history, from the very first humans to walk the earth to the radical – and sometimes devastating – breakthroughs of the Cognitive, Agricultural and Scientific Revolutions. Drawing on insights from biology, anthropology, paleontology and economics, he explores how the currents of history have shaped our human societies, the animals and plants around us, and even our personalities. Have we become happier as history has unfolded? Can we ever free our behaviour from the heritage of our ancestors? And what, if anything, can we do to influence the course of the centuries to come? 

Bold, wide-ranging and provocative, Sapiens challenges everything we thought we knew about being human: our thoughts, our actions, our power ... and our future.

I am so dumbstruck by this book. I don't read nonfiction that often. Because I found it boring but not this book. I haven't got bored even for a second, with every page I read I get more and more curious about the next page and next chapter.

Sapiens - a brief history of humankind as the name suggests it does explain the events of history but the writing is such that you won't feel that you're reading a history book of school. If only I had this book in my school I would have paid much more attention in history class.

Everything, every event is explained and in a way and in terminology that can be understood by everyone. There are examples given in some places which makes things much easy to understand. At the end also it gives a bit glimpse of what might our future looks like.

I have completely enjoyed this book and it is indeed one of its kind. I think everyone should read this book at least once in their lifetime.

Ratings

1. Cover : - 4/5
2. Content : - 5/5
3. Concept : - 5/5
4. Overall : - 4.5/5

Book can be found at Amazon & Flipkart

Review from other readers can be found at GoodReads