The Indian Famine Crisis of WW2

[Treve]

Let me simplify Sid as the issues I raised can develop endlessly:

Has there been any negative academic / press response to Churchill's Secret War?

All reviews I have seen are generally positive.

Have there been no exceptions?

[Sid Guttridge]

Hi Treve,

I will have to get the book.

It is certainly not the first to raise Churchill and the shipping issue, but it may have new material.

I had a quick look at some reviews.

One had the doubtful proposition that, "Famines, never unknown in India, became increasingly lethal during the Raj because of the export of foodgrains and the replacement of food crops with indigo or jute."

In fact the population of India nearly doubled between 1800 and 1948, so I would very much question whether famines were really "increasingly lethal" under the Raj.

Cheers,

Sid.

[Treve]

Sid, it would be interesting to get your reaction to the book.

In the meantime this maybe of interest; the author speaking in detail on the book:

http://bloggingheads.tv/videos/2734


and more briefly:

http://www.harpers.org/archive/2010/11/hbc-90007797

[Sid Guttridge]

Hi Treve,

I ordered it yesterday. It is coming from the USA and may take up to 21 days.

Cheers,

Sid.

[Treve]

Good, I look forward to hearing what you have say.

One thing though, don't blame me if you don't end up liking the book!

[Gooner1]

Has there been any negative academic / press response to Churchill's Secret War?

All reviews I have seen are generally positive.

Have there been no exceptions?

A review by Arthur Herman, author of Gandhi & Churchill

http://www.winstonchurchill.org/learn/i ... been-worse

[Treve]

The problem is that his own work is not that of a specialist on Gandhi or Churchill and certainly even less so on the famine which is not to say his criticism is not without some value.

The author of Churchill's War counter-response to that review:

http://www.google.co.in/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=madhusree%20herman&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CFoQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fmadhusree.com%2Femperor.pdf&ei=dDLsT6itN4nYrQfSnLjPBQ&usg=AFQjCNFxFWx5x1vaC3J-ADAIDdEP2X0ywQ&cad=rja

[Led125]

Hi Treve,

I know this is a bit late in getting back to you, but I have responded to some of Madhusree's writings here:
http://hnn.us/node/129891#disqus_thread

I haven't actually encountered any academic review of Churchill's Secret War, although the book was only published in Autumn/Winter of 2010 and often it can take a few years for books to be reviewed in peer reviewed journals. My own view - speaking as someone who has an obessive interest in the Bengal famine of 1943 - is that Madhusree puts too much emphasis on the shipping debates in London and less on the situation in India and Bengal. The definitive study of food crises in India from 1939 - 1945 still has to be written in my opinion.