GIFTS OF PASSAGE: An Autobiography

by Santha Rama Rau ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 10, 1961

In a sense, everything she has written has been autobiography and this simply fills in some of the gaps and deepens the impress by added episodes. It is a somewhat disjointed collection of delightful pieces of autobiography if you are not already familiar with Home to India and East of Home and it has less than the earlier books of self examination. Some of the pieces have appeared in magazines. Here they are intensified by anecdotal and autobiographical expansion. Hers has been a life with an unusually wide scope, not only of places seen, people known, experiences savored the world around, but with a capacity for enjoyment, comprehension and an ability to share that makes an endearing blend for her readers. One of the most enlightening chapters deals with the trial of Kenyatta, which if better understood at the time might have found the world better prepared for what has happened in Africa since then. Her stories of her native India are unusual in that she brings a Western trained mind to an examination of the mores and emotions of her own people. All in all, here is autobiography, commentary and travel in delightful blend.

Pub Date: May 10, 1961

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Harper

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1961

Categories: NONFICTION