NINE HOURS TO RAMA

by Stanley Wolpert ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 14, 1961

Many threads are woven together to form the pattern that climaxes in the shooting of Mahatma Gandhi at one of his prayer meetings in Delhi, and the agitators who have become administrators under the recent dominion status as well as the faithful, the traitors, and the involuntary dupes, have their part in the picture. Narayanaro Godse and Apte come from Poona to conclude the Party's attempt to eliminate Gandhi, and so to correct the failures of previous bombings; the effects of Guruji's revolutionary teachings make him a terrorist to the whites and a patriot to his followers; the loyalty of Acting Superintendent Gopal Das drives him to try in every way to protect Gandhi from the unknown assassins. Here, in the nine hours to the shooting, Narayanaro and the many others recall the past, spend the minutes of the present, and move closer to the murder. The feeling of the dissension, and the background for it, among the various factions, the power of Gandhi's personality and philosophy, the sense of contemporary India and its response to the partitioning, are revealed through all the facets of the story and combine to illumine the murderous plot. The human elements behind national politics give this an immediacy of personality as well as action. High on the publisher's list, this is something to watch.

Pub Date: March 14, 1961

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1961

Categories: FICTION