In the name of Pepper....

Don't you just love books? I do.

I've written about this before. I just adore the fact that books have this capacity to transfer us into another world. That too in about a minute or two!

I just finished reading 'Water for elephants' by Sara Gruen. It is one of those books where you are not really sure whether you liked it. It just grew on me as i was reading. It was in first person, which put me off slightly but, the story i suppose was different, circus in America during the depression. Anyway, it is the next book i laid my hands on which compelled me to write this post... 'Freedom at Midnight'. History that runs like a novel! That too pages and pages of Indian freedom struggle, of British Raj, of Viceroys and Queen, of Pakistan and Kashmir and of Indian Independence of course. In other words what should have been a technically boring 600 pages turned out to be the most entertaining and informative book! A true masterpiece. 

It is just a wonderful feeling when one's prejudice gets broken. I remember hating those times when i was compelled to answer history questions. 'Quit India Movement', 'Clement Atlee' 'Indian Mutiny' etc. How i hated the history question paper! But today i can't wait to get back to those pages. Well, what do you know?

Just thought I could share this bit of information here.... It seems the Dutch privateers who controlled the spice trade raised the price of Pepper, five shillings a pound, which the merchants in England thought was outrageous! Hence 25 merchants decided to hit the seas in search of the 'Land of Spices' - India. Thus was born the East India Company, hence the Imperialism and Independence and hence the title....