The Age of Kali

William Dalrymple has proved himself to be one of the most perceptive and enjoyable travel writers of the 1990s. His first book In Xanadu became an instant back-packer's classic, winning a stream of literary prizes. City of Djinns and From the Holy Mountain soon followed, to universal critical praise. Yet it is to India where Dalrymple continues to return in his travels, and his fourth book The Age of Kali is his most reflective book to date.

The result of 10 year's living and travelling throughout the Indian subcontinent, The Age of Kali emerges from Dalrymple's uneasy sense that the region is slipping into the most fearsome of all epochs in ancient Hindu cosmology: "the Kali Yug, the Age of Kali, the lowest possible throw, an epoch of strife, corruption, darkness and disintegration". The brilliance of this book lies in its refusal to slip into the cultural pessimism of books such as V.S. Naipaul's Beyond Belief. Dalrymple's love for the subcontinent, and his feel for its diverse cultural identity, comes across in every page, which makes its chronicles of political corruption, ethnic violence and social disintegration all the more poignant. The scope of the book is particularly impressive, from the vivid opening chapters portraying the lawless caste violence of Bihar, to interviews with the drug barons on the North-West Frontier, and Dalrymple's extraordinary encounter with the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka. Some of the most fascinating sections of the book are Dalrymple's interviews with Imran Khan and Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan, which read like non-fictional companion pieces to Salman Rushdie's bitterly satirical Shame. The Age of Kali is a dark, disturbing book which takes the pulse of a continent facing some tough questions. --Jerry Brotton

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Vivd yet complacent - Rated
The Age of Kali, to be honest, is a bit disappointing. First off because of the form - it is a collection of pieces written for different journals at different times in the 1990s, and there is occasional repetition from one piece to the next, with no overall guiding structure. Second, because of this, the book lacks any synthesising introduction or conclusion, apart from a page at the very beginning explaining the concept of the Age of Kali, the Kali Yuga.

Having said that, what you are left with is a series of very readable, vivid, in-depth essays on particular places, personalities or events; we start with sectarian violence in Bihar, and end with the Bhutto family. The book is mainly about India, but there are excursions also to Sri Lanka, Réunion, and of course Pakistan. (But for some reason not Bangladesh.) And India is, of course, a fascinating subject, about which I learnt almost everything I know as a result of reading Kipling, Rushdie, and Ian McDonald's River of Gods.

However, what comes across from Dalrymple's account is an India descending into terminal anarchy and violence, where the old days of the Raj are much missed and the new world is uncertain and probably a Bad Thing. The book is nine years old now, and India doesn't actually seem to have disintegrated into anarchy, or even into the statelets foreseen by Ian McDonald in his novel, so I have to wonder how fair the picture painted actually is. And I am dubious about the fact that almost the only aspect of British rule which Dalrymple criticises is that it ended.

Classic Dalrymple and of renewed relevance - Rated
This collection of previous, but quite modern, essays deals with the darker side of the subcontinent. Like his masterpiece City of the Djins, it also includes trip to Pakistan. Ever wondered what Benazir Bhutto's bedside reading is? Well look here. For those watching her return to Pakistan politics may find this book's chapter chillingly relevant.

I found this book dark and sometimes depressing so frequent and sad are the examples of India's decline. But Dalrymple is always amusing and ever capable of finding magic in the heart of tragedy and this book is no exception. Hope springs eternal too. Postitive tradition triumphs alongside sectarian strife or chronic corruption. Heroes emerge everywhere alognside villains. This is a must for anyone who wants a more serious grasp of India's contradictions, challenges, tradtions and, ultimately its promise.

Excellent and insightful - Rated
William Dalrymple is absurdly young to write so well and -- rarer still -- for his journalistic enterprise which seems to effortlessly reach the inner sanctums of the movers and shakers of the Indian sub-continent. Whether it is murderous bandit leaders from Bihar or the haughtily imperious Benazir Bhutto, Dalrymple has a fine eye for the bizarre and the mystic. This is really a wonderful fusion of travel writing, journalism and political essay. Having just read Jules Stewart's excellent The Savage Border, I found these two books complemented each other very well.

Ace - Rated
This really blew my mind.It gave me so much more of an insight into India and its history than any Lonely Planet and really captured my imagination whilst travelling in India.A very inspiring writer.

Snapshots of the subcontinent - Rated
William Dalrymple's 'The Age of Kali' carries the subtitle 'Indian Travels and Encounters' but actually includes writings on Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Indian Ocean island of Reunion (in fact a département of France). It is less a historical analysis in the mold of the brilliant 'City of Djinns' but a collection of essays and articles, most of which were previously commissioned and published by magazines and newspapers. Much more jounalistic in style, it is arguably more informal than some of his other books, but no less engaging or informative for that. His obvious love for the sub-continent is reflected in a gently ironic voice that somehow makes light work of the tales of atrocity, corruption and ineptitude here. He is not as pessimistic or misanthropic as Paul Theroux, and is able to imbue his descriptions of even the most hopeless situations with a comic absurdity. Although the content of the book is highly contemporaneous - the pace of development in India and the shifting political landscape post-911 makes parts of the book seem a little dated - the book gives a comprehensive overview of the forces at work on the subcontinent.

Whereas 'City of Djinns' and his later work 'White Mughals' were heavy on historical narratives and anecdotes, 'The Age of Kali' finds the author a more visible presence. Like in his stunning debut 'In Xanadu', the book leaves you impressed by his bravery in pursuit of his subject. From accessing the base camps of the Tamil Tigers to travelling the lawless mountain routes of Northern Pakistan, Dalrymple builds a vivid and remarkable picture of the region seldom exposed by journalists of any nationality, and often with considerable personal risk. Although the book has no unifying objective, the articles included build an informative overview without any prescriptive remit. If you enjoy this - which you should - you should read the aforementioned titles in the author's back catalogue. If you want to complement it with some fiction, try Rohinton Mistry's 'A Fine Balance' or 'Family Matters'.