City of djinns

                                                  -William Dalrymple    

This book is a kind of a memoir recording the response of a single, gentle and learned travel instinct to the presence of an ancient city. William peels back the layers of Delhi’s history, in a travelogue that goes back in time, from the 1984 riots, to Indraprastha, the mythical city of the Pandavas. Each chapter deals with a period in Delhi’s history, in tandem with a season of Delhi’s weather. One pattern however that the author follows is to try and find survivors in the present Delhi of every historical chapter he talks about. 

For me, the book has been an eye-opener. It brings forth myriad details of the history of my country and my capital city that were unknown to me all these years. I’m sure there are millions of Indians who are still in absolute ignorance of the charm of their capital city and how it has been a central force in history and shaping the future. The wonder at learning things new, the honest observations, the discoveries tinged with familiarity and the gradual foundation of a long-standing relationship between the author and the subject are what make this book so much more colorful to read.