The Honourable Company, written by John Keay, details the rise and fall of the English East India Company from 1600-1820. The novel chronicles the shaky beginnings of the East India Company and the challenges they faced. The Dutch and the Portuguese competed with them for trade, and eventually the French also joined the competition. From Calcutta to Singapore, Keay records the Company's first voyages to later wars and eventual decline.
While full of interesting information, the book was very dry. It had some useful maps and pictures to help decipher some location of some key places, but the story maintained little to no plot. The names of the many places that were visited also became confusing over time because there were so many important trade factories. The author also had a tendency to jump around in time, and while the novel was split into four parts concerning time period, it became hard to follow when he stated the death of an important figure and then mentioned him again within the next chapter. Overall, I thought the book could have used more fluency and was somewhat apathetic. However, if you like books chock full of historical facts and information, then I would recommend The Honourable Company.
-Otto von Bismarck
I LOVE that last sentence!!
ReplyDeleteAlthough the book sounds tough to read, were there any heroes? Any highlights? Anything interesting that might be worth passing along?
When I read the Wreck of the Batavia this summer, I was absolutely enthralled by the story of the Dutch East India Company and how freakishly controlling it was. Was the BEIC just not that interesting??
~KLM
sounds like a lot but also like a I book I could be interested in reading.....i remember we talked about the Eastny India compa last year in AP US 1
ReplyDelete-MIng dynasty
Sounds like my book(The opium Wars) and this would over lap quite a bit. I felt the same about the facts and stuff.
ReplyDelete-Helen Keller
This book doesn't sound too engaging but it does sound as though it would give a great deal of information, dunno if I'd read just for fun though.
ReplyDelete-Mohandas Gandhi
This book sounds similar to my book, Imagined communities. They both discussed the English East India Company, and the beginning of european imperialism in India. Additionally, the writing of both books seems to be dry
ReplyDelete- Marie Antoinette
It seems like Pepper guns and parleys would go right in line with this book, hopefully however it was written in a fashion that is more easily read.
ReplyDelete-vlad putin
The book I read mentioned the downfall of the British East India Company. It sure is an interesting story to read about the downfall of one of the world's most significant trading company.
ReplyDelete---Voltaire.
I did think the book was very dry, but the facts would be entertaining if they had been presented in a different light or plot line. It was definitely not an easy read, and most definitely not a beach read either. However, I found the history of the Company pretty interesting and it surprised me that their rise to the top was not as smooth as I had originally though.
ReplyDelete-Otto von Bismarck