What do you think?
Rate this book
LIFE World Library
India
HARDCOVER, ED. 1961, BY JOE DAVID BROWN AND THE EDITORS OF LIFE, TIME INCORPORATED. Beautiful photography (both in color and in black and white) from Life Magazine, of India.
- GenresIndia
160 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1962
About the author
Joe David Brown
14 books13 followersJoe David Brown was a journalist and author, best known for the novel Addie Pray which was adapted into the 1973 film Paper Moon.
Brown was the son of William Samuel and Lucille Lokey Brown. He attended the University of Alabama and began his career as a police reporter for the Birmingham Post in the mid-1930s. He married the former Mildred Harbour in 1935. In 1936 he was named city editor for the Dothan Eagle. He moved on to positions with newspapers in Atlanta, Chattanooga and St Louis before joining the New York Daily News in 1939.
Brown served in the 460th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion during World War II, parachuting into Normandy during the D-Day invasion. He was commissioned a second lieutenant and awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and the French Croix de Guerre with palm for his service. The war also ended his marriage to Mildred. Afterward he returned to the Daily News but also began contributing fiction and non-fiction to the Saturday Evening Post. He married the former Frances O'Reilly in 1945, having met her while on assignment in Europe.
Brown's first novel, Stars in My Crown, was based on his earlier short story "Grandpa and the Miracle Grindstone". He was commissioned to adapt the novel for the 1950 film version, starring Amanda Blake, whose family was from Birmingham.
In 1949 he joined the staff of TIME magazine as a foreign correspondent, reporting from India, France and England until he left the magazine to become a freelancer in 1957. The film version of his 1956 World War II novel Kings Go Forth opened in 1958.
Brown's comic novel Addie Pray was set in Alabama during the Great Depression. The film, directed by Peter Bogdanovich, starred Ryan O'Neal and his 10-year-old daughter Tatum as con-artist partners. Tatum won an Oscar for best supporting actress, though her part was really a starring role.
Brown died of a heart attack at his home in Mayfield, Georgia in 1976.
Brown was the son of William Samuel and Lucille Lokey Brown. He attended the University of Alabama and began his career as a police reporter for the Birmingham Post in the mid-1930s. He married the former Mildred Harbour in 1935. In 1936 he was named city editor for the Dothan Eagle. He moved on to positions with newspapers in Atlanta, Chattanooga and St Louis before joining the New York Daily News in 1939.
Brown served in the 460th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion during World War II, parachuting into Normandy during the D-Day invasion. He was commissioned a second lieutenant and awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and the French Croix de Guerre with palm for his service. The war also ended his marriage to Mildred. Afterward he returned to the Daily News but also began contributing fiction and non-fiction to the Saturday Evening Post. He married the former Frances O'Reilly in 1945, having met her while on assignment in Europe.
Brown's first novel, Stars in My Crown, was based on his earlier short story "Grandpa and the Miracle Grindstone". He was commissioned to adapt the novel for the 1950 film version, starring Amanda Blake, whose family was from Birmingham.
In 1949 he joined the staff of TIME magazine as a foreign correspondent, reporting from India, France and England until he left the magazine to become a freelancer in 1957. The film version of his 1956 World War II novel Kings Go Forth opened in 1958.
Brown's comic novel Addie Pray was set in Alabama during the Great Depression. The film, directed by Peter Bogdanovich, starred Ryan O'Neal and his 10-year-old daughter Tatum as con-artist partners. Tatum won an Oscar for best supporting actress, though her part was really a starring role.
Brown died of a heart attack at his home in Mayfield, Georgia in 1976.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 19, 2015
An extremely dated, yet fascinating and interesting look at the country of India, its history, its culture, and its people.
July 22, 2018
The book from 1967!
Pictures India's history,religion,politics and struggle for independence in elegant way.
Pictures India's history,religion,politics and struggle for independence in elegant way.
March 31, 2025
Who better than Joe David Brown to write the text for this Time-Life book of beautiful photographs of India? He is said to have been a long-time correspondent for the New Delhi Bureau of Time and Life Magazines, after serving as a journalist for several newspapers in India. From his writing here it is obvious that he has also studied the deep history of the people of India. He brings it all together in this volume, and he tells the story in his clear and captivating writing.
A mixture of Negroid aborigines, Aryan, Asian, Arab, and varieties of each, have populated its mountains and valleys and desserts and plains and coastlines, beginning at least from around 5000 B.C. They spoke hundreds of languages and have practiced different religions over time, but early on began to unite with Hinduism, said to be a forgiving and tolerant spirituality—except for its doctrine of caste and “untouchability.” In 1961 when this volume was published, independence had come for the nation of India after a long series of overlords intermixed with periods of conflict among the assorted districts of different settlers. Mongols, Mogols, Moslems, plus several dynasties following Buddhism, were eventually succeeded by the British East India Company and then Great Britain itself, against which Mohandas Gandhi protested, evolving to 1947 with the India Independence Act. The Act allowed a segment of what was previously “India” to be cut away to create Pakistan, which caused some shifting of populations between the two territories, resulting in the Moslems mostly resettling in the new Pakistan, leaving India with an 85 percent majority Hindu.
Although today we know India as English-speaking, Mr. Brown says that its “official” language (in 1961) is “Hindi, a Sanskrit-derived tongue of north central India written in Devanagari script.” He also says that “845 languages and dialects are spoken within the borders of India”(!), although only 14 of them are “officially recognized." Apparently, such a multiple language problem initially created much confusion and controversy within the nation’s school system.
An interesting characteristic of the nation (in 1961) is that cows, considered sacred, are allowed to roam city streets, and exotic wild animals such as rhinoceroses, jackals, tigers, wolves, hyenas, monkeys, and poisonous snakes make their ways into cities as well as villages near forests. Some photos also feature elephants. Although there is obvious wealth among upper castes, there is also extreme poverty in the lesser castes. They bathe in rivers in large gatherings. They pray together and revere holy men who preach the faiths. There are ancient carvings of elaborate figures on stone walls and in caves. The Taj Mahal was built in the 17th century. Jawaharlal Nehru, who was the first Prime Minister, was yet in office at the time of publication of this book. He was a devotee of Gandhi, but he also gave credit to the English who gave the nation not only an important language for communication with the world, but also for building a nationwide railroad and other infrastructure and substantial public buildings, including schools.
But India was and is unique. Just as in every other country, it encounters challenges that require cooperation to solve. Perhaps it is an example for others to at least observe for good tips to keep the peace.
A mixture of Negroid aborigines, Aryan, Asian, Arab, and varieties of each, have populated its mountains and valleys and desserts and plains and coastlines, beginning at least from around 5000 B.C. They spoke hundreds of languages and have practiced different religions over time, but early on began to unite with Hinduism, said to be a forgiving and tolerant spirituality—except for its doctrine of caste and “untouchability.” In 1961 when this volume was published, independence had come for the nation of India after a long series of overlords intermixed with periods of conflict among the assorted districts of different settlers. Mongols, Mogols, Moslems, plus several dynasties following Buddhism, were eventually succeeded by the British East India Company and then Great Britain itself, against which Mohandas Gandhi protested, evolving to 1947 with the India Independence Act. The Act allowed a segment of what was previously “India” to be cut away to create Pakistan, which caused some shifting of populations between the two territories, resulting in the Moslems mostly resettling in the new Pakistan, leaving India with an 85 percent majority Hindu.
Although today we know India as English-speaking, Mr. Brown says that its “official” language (in 1961) is “Hindi, a Sanskrit-derived tongue of north central India written in Devanagari script.” He also says that “845 languages and dialects are spoken within the borders of India”(!), although only 14 of them are “officially recognized." Apparently, such a multiple language problem initially created much confusion and controversy within the nation’s school system.
An interesting characteristic of the nation (in 1961) is that cows, considered sacred, are allowed to roam city streets, and exotic wild animals such as rhinoceroses, jackals, tigers, wolves, hyenas, monkeys, and poisonous snakes make their ways into cities as well as villages near forests. Some photos also feature elephants. Although there is obvious wealth among upper castes, there is also extreme poverty in the lesser castes. They bathe in rivers in large gatherings. They pray together and revere holy men who preach the faiths. There are ancient carvings of elaborate figures on stone walls and in caves. The Taj Mahal was built in the 17th century. Jawaharlal Nehru, who was the first Prime Minister, was yet in office at the time of publication of this book. He was a devotee of Gandhi, but he also gave credit to the English who gave the nation not only an important language for communication with the world, but also for building a nationwide railroad and other infrastructure and substantial public buildings, including schools.
But India was and is unique. Just as in every other country, it encounters challenges that require cooperation to solve. Perhaps it is an example for others to at least observe for good tips to keep the peace.
March 9, 2023
It's okay. The writing was quite different in 1967 than it would be now. The pictures are wonderful, although not as bright and clear as if the book were published now. It's quite wordy. I didn't actually read all the words, maybe half. I own this book.
September 5, 2020
The book was written in 1961 so it was good for past history, but not what is happening currently.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews