8 Books to Read after Listening to the Podcast EMPIRE

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Elisa Shoenberger has been constructing a library since she was 13. She loves writing about all points of books from writer interviews, antiquarian books, archives, and all the pieces in between. She additionally writes recurrently for Murder & Mayhem and Library Journal. She’s additionally written articles for Huffington Post, Boston Globe, WIRED, Slate, and plenty of different publications. When she’s not writing about studying, she’s studying and adventuring to discover cool new artwork. She additionally performs alto saxophone and infrequently stiltwalks. Find out extra on her web site or observe her on Twitter @vogontroubadour.

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William Dalrymple and Anita Anand’s Empire podcast is a revelation. In simply over a yr, historians Anand and Dalrymple have launched over 80 episodes exploring totally different empires and buildings of empire all through the world and historical past. They began with the historical past and repercussions of British imperialism in India; then, they explored the impression of the Ottoman Empire. Season three targeted on the establishment of slavery, held up by imperialism. Currently, they’re investigating the Russian empire. Both historians be sure to join previous occasions to the current day.

The complete collection has been mind-blowing, with deep dives into matters like the Partition of India and Pakistan, the Kor-I-Noor diamond, the First Afghanistan War, and Tacky’s Rebellion on Jamaica. While my husband and I’ve backgrounds in historical past, we’re shocked and illuminated by each episode. So, if you’re inquisitive about studying about empires, take a look at Empire — the fourth season simply began on August 14, 2023.

For individuals who need to know extra about empire, listed here are some lists of books to add to your information on these matters. I included each historical past books by the hosts of the podcast in addition to novels about India and the Ottoman Empire to get you to take into consideration this matter in a brand new manner.

The Hosts’ History Books About Empire

The Anarchy: The East India Company, Corporate Violence, and the Pillage of an Empire by William Dalrymple

Many of us could also be conversant in the East India Company from the Pirates of the Caribbean collection, however this e book exhibits that the Company is greater than a film villain. Dalrymple outlines how the East India Company took over elements of Asia and established itself as a ruling energy. It’s a story of how an organization turned a authorities and the way it extracted and despoiled the lands, notably India, underneath its management.

Koh-I-Noor: The History of the World’s Most Infamous Diamond by William Dalrymple and Anita Anand

In the interval after Queen Elizabeth II’s dying, there was dialogue of whether or not the coronation of Charles would come with the Koh-I-Noor diamond, with growing calls by India for the UK to give the diamond again. This e book supplies a full historical past of this diamond and makes the case that repatriating the diamond to India just isn’t a easy one. The diamond was a spoil of many wars over its bloody historical past, with claims from not solely India but in addition Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. It’s an interesting take a look at the empire by way of the reflection of a diamond.

The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India’s Quest for Independence by Anita Anand

We could also be conversant in the Boston Massacre or the 1968 Chicago Riots, however I’ll admit that I had by no means heard of the devastating Jallianwallah Bagh bloodbath in 1919, the place the British troopers fired on a crowd of people that had gathered illegally in the area. From this horrifying motion, one survivor makes it his life mission to assassinate the commander, Sir Michael O’Dwyer, the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab, behind the occasion. Anand tracks the story of that survivor Udham Singh from his work and travels throughout the world to the pivotal second the place he shot the commander in 1940.

Novels About India and the Ottoman Empire

We know there have been many works of fiction about India and the Ottoman Empire from Western views, so I wished to give attention to non-Western narratives.

Raj by Gita Mehta

Part of this record was impressed by the passing of Gita Mehta on September 16, 2023. In this work, you get a snapshot of British rule in India, specializing in the lifetime of Jaya, a princess of the fictional kingdom of Balmer. Through her eyes, we see how India was altering by way of the twentieth century as India strives for freedom. She struggles together with her personal place in the world as she turns into the Regent Maharani of Sirpur at the dying of her husband.

Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie

This thrice Booker Prize award-winning novel is each a household saga and a historic textual content beginning at the second of India’s Independence and Partition. Saleem Sinai, together with hundreds of kids who had been additionally born at the stroke of midnight on 8/15/1947, have particular powers; Saleem can communicate telepathically to his fellow “midnight’s children.” This story tracks Saleem’s successes and failures, simply as the state round him rises and falls with the harsh rising pains of independence.

(*8*)

The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh

This one was advisable to me by the podcast hosts themselves! In 1885, Rajkumar, a poor orphan, witnesses the British military’s incursion into Mandalay, Burma, and falls in love with a handmaiden named Dolly as she flees the palace to exile in India. Rajkumar seizes the alternative to get entangled in the teak commerce and ultimately turns into a rich man. He decides to set out to discover Dolly regardless of the passage of 20 years. It’s a narrative that covers the histories of Burma (now Myanmar), India, and Malaya.

The Architect’s Apprentice by Elif Shafak

This is the story of an animal coach, Jahan, who helped assemble a few of the most stunning buildings in Istanbul in the sixteenth century. Jahan takes care of the sultan’s animals, together with the elephant Chota, who’s used to assist with development. He strikes up a friendship with chief Ottoman Architect Sinan, who decides to educate Jahan in structure. But can Jahan navigate the venomous politics and contradictions of the Ottoman court docket?

The White Castle by Orhan Pamuk, translated by Victoria Rowe Holbrook

This e book will match effectively with each the Ottoman Empire and Slavery themes of the podcast. Told as a long-lost “forgotten tale,” it focuses on the story of a younger Venetian scholar who’s captured at sea and bought to a person named Hoca in Istanbul. Hoca asks the scholar to train him all the pieces that he is aware of. They develop an uncommon friendship and work collectively to fulfill the needs of the sultan. It’s a narrative exploring the natures of two males, seemingly trapped by the buildings of society and empire.

That’s only a begin! There are so many books to learn from the podcast, simply from their friends themselves. Want extra historic fiction set in India? Check out this record! Or if you would like to be taught extra about Partition, take a look at this crucial article.

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