Exploring India: Battles and Warriors Paperback – 20 May 2016

It's a good one but not useful for even youngsters. Good for kids with illustration.

A little detailed but my 8 year old loved it.

Simply awesome!!!

Battles and Warriors is another gem from Rupa Books in the Exploring India series. It documents five major battles which took place in India – Alexander v. Porus, Ashoka v. the Kingdom of Kalinga, Rajendra Chola v. the Kingdom of Srivijaya, Babur v. Ibrahim Lodhi and Siraj-ud-Daula v. The East India Company.The first question which cropped in my mind was that why should my child learn about battles. Fortunately the very talented author Subhadra Sen Gupta answered my question in the introduction. She says that soldiers, horses, elephants and even people who get caught in the middle of a conflict, all pay with their lives so that he men in power can gain even more power and wealth. Whatever the reasons for a battle, there is always someone who pays a price and that is the way it has been since ancient times.The author starts by telling us that India was the only country which used just a horse to conquer a kingdom. Here she is speaking about the Ashwamedha yagya. Most of us know about this yagya. But what we don’t know is that once the land grabbing job was over the poor horse was sacrificed in another yagya. With many such interesting nuggets of the past the author adds to our knowledge and at the same time entertains us too.I feel that the battle between Rajendra Chola and the Kingdom of Srivijaya is the highlight of the book. Hardly anyone knows about it. I had heard of the Chola kings but not about their battle with Srivijaya which is in present day Indonesia. While narrating the stories of other battles she gives details like rules of the war, weaponry used in the war and the personality traits of the warriors which includes their weaknesses and idiosyncrasies as well. The colourful illustrations by Tapas Guha enhance the reading experience. This is a book which you cannot miss.

“If you don’t know history, then you don’t know anything.You are a leaf that doesn’t know it is part of a tree”-Michael CrichtonI have been fascinated by Historical figures,years and dates since childhood.. So ,when I received a mail from Rupa Publications to review the book ‘Battles and Warriors’ by Subhadra Sen Gupta,I just grabbed the opportunity. I received this book in exchange for my honest review.My Son’s Review:My son aged 9 , started reading the book after finding it interesting.Lately, at school they are being taught how to write a book review,hence he did write about what he understood and liked about the book.This is what he has to say – “I liked the story of Alexander and Porus very much.The story was very good.I liked the drawings and war scenes.I liked one Army man in Alexander’s group as his sword was big! I liked how Alexander conquered half of the world!”My ReviewThe Book Cover as well as the Book Title are apt.The book cover depicts the Indian warriors at sea and reminds the present generation that we were also a rich and courageous country once, who conquered other countries without suppressing or torturing the citizens! The blurb more or less gives an idea about ‘Which of the Battles and Warriors’ we can expect to read in the book.” The Exploring India series of books are delicious, bite-sized portions of history that will interest every reader who wants to know more about various facets of India. Battles and Warriors takes the reader on a journey through the events that led to, and the descriptions of, five major battles that took place in India: Alexander vs Porus, Ashoka vs the Kingdom of Kalinga, Rajendra Chola vs the Kingdom of Srivijaya, Babur vs Ibrahim Lodi and Siraj-ud-Daula vs the East India Company. Find out why these battles occurred, the strategies that were employed, the arms and armour used by the warriors, the after effects of these battles and how they shaped the course of Indian history. Concise yet filled with relevant details and accompanied by attractive colour illustrations, the Exploring India series will make history fascinating and unforgettable for every reader”The book delivers more than expected. The descriptions of the wars, the strategies used by the warriors and the planning behind the conquests have been written so effortlessly and in required quantity that the readers -especially children will understand,enjoy and be awed by the rich Indian History!I particularly loved the illustrations by Tapas Guha. Be it the garb of the warriors or the weapons,each of these have been illustrated so well that the reader need not refer to other resources for clarity or details.The pictures are eye-capturing, colourful and self explanatory.This book makes an interesting read for adults and is a good source to know much more about the unchronicled glory of our country.I for one had never read about ‘SriVijaya’ before, but this book helped me to widen my horizon!Overall, this book is sure to kindle a child’s appetite to know more about Indian History by being the perfect appetizer! By the way ,do you know the connection between Gwalior and the ‘Kohinoor’? If not do grab a copy of this book to know about it and to read many more such unknown facts about our Indian ‘Battles and Warriors’!I give this book a rating of 4.5 / 5 !I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review from Rupa Publishers

Wonderful