Discovery of India by Jawaharlal Nehru - Reviewed by Rajita Jana (Independence day Special)

We know India as one of the most diverse countries in the entire world. It is one of the largest economies in the world with a population of over 135 crores. But just as Jawaharlal Nehru coined 'unity in diversity', we Indians are still united, especially over two things, sacrifice and patriotism. This book 'Discovery Of India' written by our first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru is a tale of great sacrifice, patriotism, and the great heroes, the true sons and daughters of our beloved motherland over Indian history. This book was written during the independence struggle by Nehru while he was imprisoned in the Ahmadnagar fort, Maharashtra by the British for his participation in the Quit India movement along with the other leaders. "Discovery Of India" is not just about the independence struggle, but it's about the rich history, the diverse culture of our beloved motherland and philosophy about different aspects of life. Nehru, in his book has given us an insight of life during the last pages of the final and most dangerous chapter of the British Raj through the eyes of an extremely significant freedom fighter.

In the second chapter of this book, we find that Nehru's wife, Kamala, a proud and sensitive true Kashmiri Indian ( also a freedom fighter) dies due to tuberculosis. In this chapter, we get a clue about who Jawaharlal Nehru was, not as a leader or a freedom fighter, but as a family man, a father and most importantly as a husband.

From the third chapter (The Quest), he begins with the actual heritage and culture of India. He writes about various ancient civilizations, from the Indus valley civilization to the golden era of the Gupta period, from the coming of the Aryans to the last Mughal rulers, to great personalities such as Gautama Buddha, Ashoka and Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, he covers just about everything. And the most important part is that he is not just confined within Indian history but parts of it also tell about the Chinese civilizations, ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, etc.

Nehru stresses on who we Indians are and our cultures. His book is a record of most of the movements of his time of the Indian Congress. How people struggle to achieve what they want- a secular, socialist democratic republic is conveyed throughout the book. Even though this book is not for kids as they won't understand most parts of it, the absolutely wonderful writing style of Nehru attracts everyone and the readers just can't leave the book without finishing it. To read this book you need to be, by heart, a true Indian and if you are not, this book will transform you into one.

Book rating - 9.5/10

The ebook and hardcopy - https://www.amazon.in/Discovery-India-Jawaharlal-Nehru/dp/0143031031/ref=asc_df_0143031031/?tag=googleshopdes-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=397079217740&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17384343913052052195&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9061850&hvtargid=pla-434634082764&psc=1&ext_vrnc=hi