Independence Day Special: 5 Must Read Books On India’s Independence Struggle

Independence Day 2018: Every year on 15th August the country celebrates freedom from the British rule. As we celebrate independence, here are 5 must-read books on India’s Independence struggle.

NEW DELHI: As India celebrates its independence day, here is a list of books from non-fictional accounts to works of fiction that deal with India’s struggle for independence.

• The Story of My Experiments with Truth by Mohandas K. Gandhi

Written by one of the most inspiring figures Mohandas K. Gandhi, this classic autobiography he recounts the story of his life and how he developed his concept of active nonviolent resistance. He details what propelled the Indian struggle for independence and countless other nonviolent struggles of the twentieth century.

• Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie

The story is told by its chief protagonist, Saleem Sinai, and is set in the context of actual historical events.  The story deals with India's transition from British colonialism to independence and the partition of British India. It is considered an example of postcolonial, postmodern, and magical realist literature.

• Discovery of India by Jawaharlal Nehru

The book is said to be an honest and unbiased view of the Indian magnanimity and brilliance captured through the eyes of the first Prime Minister of India- Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. During his imprisonment in the Ahmednagar fort due to participation in the Quit India movement, Nehru wrote this book.

• India after Gandhi: The History of the World’s Largest Democracy by Ramachandra Guha

This non-fiction book by Ramachandra Guha details the history of the Indian nation after it gained independence from the British Empire on 15 August 1947. It is is a magisterial account of the pains, struggles, humiliations and glories of the world’s largest and “least likely democracy”.

• Freedom at Midnight, by Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre

The book tries to capture the last years of British rule. Its impact of the British decision to quit India on the princely states, the politics and bloodshed around partition and ends with the death of the Mahatma Gandhi.