City of Gold: The Biography of Bombay

by Gillian Tindall

This is an historical study of Bombay, the chief city of Western India, which focuses on the architecture and on the British roots of the metropolis, the people who built and ran the city as well as the importance of trade.

Genres: History, India

256 pages, Paperback

First published May 28, 1992

About the author

Gillian Tindall began her career as a prize-winning novelist. She has continued to publish fiction but has also staked out an impressive territory in idiosyncratic non-fiction that is brilliantly evocative of place.

Her The Fields Beneath: The History of One London Village which first appeared thirty years ago, has rarely been out of print; nor has Celestine: Voices from a French Village, published in the mid 1990s and translated into several languages, for which she was decorated by the French government.

Well known for the quality of her writing and the meticulous nature of her research, Gillian is a master of miniaturist history. She lives with her husband in London.

Reviews

[Shridhar Sp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the book. You can see the Mumbai of 18-19th century still existing today. However, it ended rather inconclusively not talking about the 20th century Bombay even upto when the book was written in 1980s

[Khushie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A phenomenal biography of the city of Mumbai. Gillian Tindall has a way with words and an amazing sense of humour. Fair warning though: The book flips back to the past without a warning so you're going to have to keep up.
One of the best books on the city I've read in the recent past. Will bring you to realise that nothing really ever changes in this city.

[Derek Henderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Less than gripping. Skipped most of this: Tindall is a poor guide through Bombay's no doubt fascinating history.

[Mugdha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely an insightful book about history, geography and evolving political and economic scenario of Bombay since 16th century.
It's a heavy read and some chapters can be boring to read in entirety.
Wish there were more images/maps of the location of old landmarks because most of the buildings/iconic places aren't there any more, it's difficult to picturize them.
The language is heavy and written in facts representation way, hence one can lose interest easily.
The author seems to have researched in detail on this subject to write about it in such detail.
Not sure if there are any books better than this one in this category. If yes, please recommend.