Midnight's Furies: The Deadly Legacy of India's Partition

Well researched and very well narrated, this book walks the tightrope of keeping an objective middle ground between two classic warring parties of Hindus and Sikhs versus Muslims successfully, while avoiding the pitfalls of expressing personal bias, although this must have been very tempting. After reading Midnights Furies it will become apparent why the prejudices between Hindus and muslims linger on and on, while there is no sight of any settlement in the Kashmir issue. Very well worth reading to gain insight into one of the worst episodes of mass carnage the world has ever seen.

I couldn't put this book down. The author brings to life the key actors in this most dramatic and tragic chapters of human history. The author helped me (a white, male, Brit) understand how the Indian sub-continent came to take the divided form it does today with all its anomalies e.g. Kashmir, and engendered a desire to find out more e.g. about modern day Bangladesh. The book also details the central but dubious role played by the UK in facilitating the divisions which beset the sub-continent today. A fascinating and deeply moving read.

When writing about partition many historians blame the British for the death toll. However in reality all the Indian religious factions were guilty of inciting hatred, committing murder and other atrocities against each other. This book also points the finger at Jinnah and Nehru. It makes a change to the usual partition history written from a partisan viewpoint. I would recommend this book for those who want an objective, not partisan view of the events in India in 1947

Tells an excruciatingly painful story not just through the eyes of the big players, Nehru, Jinnah, Gandhi, Mountbatten but from the point of view of the hundreds of thousand of innocent victims of the roaming vicious sectarian murder gangs. A chilling example of how circumstances and the wrong political decisions can create a tsunami which can literally sweep nearly a million away. This is a monumental area of history about which I previously knew very little. Hajari has whetted my appetite for more.

By far the best book I've read on partition. Very nuanced and well written account. However, for a book that says it is looking to analyse partitions affect on contemporary Indian-Pakistani relations, it could explore this a bit further. It hints to future animosities without anecdotally or analytically exploring any of these. Would highly recommend this book, but am only giving it four star because I don't feel it accurately portrays itself.

I found it a most interesting and well written book. I didn’t think it biased one way or the other. You make your own mind up.

One buys a book to read, but I just started it. Hopefully, I will find it interesting.

I've only just started reading this and its so gripping! You will definitely learn something here and be prepared to be infuriated at the history. Regardless of your background, its worth reading and understanding how the impact of these events are still with us today.