Ashoka

by Subhadra Sen Gupta

Ashoka the Great, the ruler of ancient India's largest kingdom, took the path of peace, tolerance, non-violence and compassion after a fierce battle in Kalinga. He now addressed his subjects as a father would his children, and erected pillars that spread his thoughts throughout the land in the people's own language. He put their welfare above all else and worked towards that for the rest of his life. One of the most well-known symbols from India's history, the Ashoka chakra, now adorns India's national flag, and the lion capital from his pillars is our national emblem. In this lively, engrossing account of Ashoka's life and the times, Subhadra Sen Gupta deftly brings him alive again from behind the swirling mists of time.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

120 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 8, 2009

Reviews

[Karan joshi · Rating 4 out of 5]

He was indeed the great ruler of India.

[Shrikanth Venne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is not about asoka the emperor but history of mauryan Empire. It was like reading a history book. Author has repeated many things again and again, for example Ashoka followed Buddhism and sent scribes across the world this was mentioned more than 2 times. This book is informative about the mauryan Empire. what was available, what people use to wear, what people do everything about the mauryan Empire. In short don't take this book as a novel but a informative book about mauryan empire which included bits and part of Asoka. The books name is misleading it should have some other title. On the basis of my expectation seeing the title of the book it's misleading but it's very much informative.

[Rohit Srivastava · Rating 4 out of 5]

A crisp history of Ashoka which is surprising in detail. A short wonderful read.

[Aseem · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book Ashoka by subhadra Sen Gupta is for starters who are not well aware of this great king.
The language of this book is very lucid and easily understandable for every one.
All the important aspects of Ashoka's life is covered very impactfully by author.
One must read this book for an overview of what's like to live and experiencein that period.

[Darsh Jain · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book for a beginner reader who is interested in Indian history. The language is very easy to understand and also quite fun to read.

[Raja Subramanian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think nearly all of us have read of Emperor Ashoka. In school about 50 years ago, I must have read of him and must have hated him for making my life miserable and having to remember dates, stuff and more stuff. But I have always history too, except that I have had some really awful textbooks to read from, and even more awful teachers to listen to (who simply read out the text book).

I chanced upon the Puffin Book series while browsing books at a Crossword store. I decided to get a couple of them and the first one I picked for reading was Ashoka by Subhadra Sen Gupta. I immediately fell in love with the short, wonderfully written book. Perhaps it was written for the Young Adult. But what the heck, I am Young (at heart) and I am Adult, so I guess that is ok.

The short book is information packed, yet capable of bringing out the imagery to enjoy history. I sincerely wish that the book had some illustrations too. Even otherwise I found the book fantastic! I wish such books were available and prescribed when we were in school.

A great read. I have also bought a few other books in the Puffin Series. I enjoyed reading this book and I am sure that I will enjoy reading the other books too!

[Soumyabrata Sarkar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A marvellous introduction to Ashoka and the times and lives of society and people during his reign. The author patches you up with all the references you need to know. The flow is smooth like water rolling down on a lotus leaf. We get brief, to the point but beautiful description of :
1. how society developed and thrived from the period of Buddha to that of Ashoka
2. how the Mauryas shaped India's history
3. how Kalinga war impacted and changed Ashoka, thereby changing the course of history for India, Buddhism and the rest of the world
4. the collaboration and coonection of India and the rest of the world - in all aspects.
5. how Ashoka - an emperor was re-traced and changed history with his benevolence, peace and dhamma

A short and precise book, with aptly detailed descriptions on Devanampiya Piyadasi Ashoka.

[Socrates Chinniah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Very good book that gives a brief view on the life of Ashoka. The book is like an essay that gives out important details on the timeline of history in which Ashoka lived. The book can be a good starter for someone interested in history and it could also point to some good references if we want to go into the details. Short , crisp and immensely interesting.

[Kapil Vijayvergiya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only based on his piller and huge faith in Buddhism

Nice effort by author to narrate the story of Ashoka but lacking in content because there is no much more interesting content or data available on ashoka's personal life in history.