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bareenainthedreamhouse's review against another edition
dark
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.25
ankita_maity's review against another edition
4.0
I am not gonna deny that I had a very difficult time reading this book. Not that the writing was sloppy, but the contents in the book is a bit traumatizing . It breaks many presumptions Indians generally have about the Kashmir conflict.
Caught between Militants and Military, the book mostly talks about the struggles of Kashmiri civilians.
Maybe not a book for people who support any kind of religious nationalism.
Caught between Militants and Military, the book mostly talks about the struggles of Kashmiri civilians.
Maybe not a book for people who support any kind of religious nationalism.
minhaj's review against another edition
5.0
Best book to read about what kashmir has been, and still is.
sbhatnag's review against another edition
5.0
This should be required reading for every Indian and Pakistani, or anyone interested in South Asia. A personal, yet balanced, account of the complexities of modern day Kashmir - the conflict, the land, and its people. Powerful and thought-provoking.
springernichole3's review against another edition
4.0
This is a heartbreaking book - especially given what is happening with Kashmir recently. It is a relatively short read. However there were times I had to put the book down for a break. It humanizes what has been happening since the 1990's.
There was a section where the author observes that there is a lack of stories and books about Kashmir. This is one of the books everyone should read when they are learning more about the area.
There was a section where the author observes that there is a lack of stories and books about Kashmir. This is one of the books everyone should read when they are learning more about the area.
prateekkohli's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Rape, and Torture
If you have loved the movie Haider, you would love this book.hekate24's review against another edition
5.0
I've had this on my to-do list ever since seeing the fantastic Hindi film Haider (an adaptation of [b:Hamlet|1420|Hamlet|William Shakespeare|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351051208s/1420.jpg|1885548] that is set in mid-nineties Kashmir.) Basharat Peer wrote the script and the movie made me want to learn even more about the time period explored in it.
This book fulfills a category in the Read Harder Challenge. Actually I could slot it into several categories, but ultimately I'm going to put it into "a book by a person whose gender is different from your own." This is a deliberate decision on my part. This memoir really drives home how life in Kashmir is an incredibly gendered experience. As one reads, one gets the sense of an entire generation of men who have had battle and war imposed on them, whether they wanted to become "militarized" or not. At one point, Peer goes through a bunch of his friends and acquaintances, talking about how they chose to respond. Some left, some joined militant groups and died, some joined these groups and then reintegrated back into Kashmiri towns and villages after years of danger and trauma. Being male in Kashmir seems to mean being viewed as an enemy of the state as soon as you're able to walk.
There are also tons of men who have been flat out "disappeared" by the state. These portions of the book haunted me the most because of my own personal interest in missing persons cases (I am working on a criminology degree because these cases effect me so deeply.) Having a missing loved one sounds like the worst kind of personal hell to me. You can't grieve, you can't give up hope, you feel stupid for having hope. Law enforcement can often be apathetic during these cases, but in Kashmir the government is often complicit in these losses. It's really hard to imagine the psychological toll this must take, but this book gets me a bit closer to imagining it.
Which isn't to say women didn't suffer in Kashmir, because they absolutely did (and still do.) In Kashmir, there's that age old tactic of rape as a weapon of war, and support from the community can be very hit or miss after. Although, on a happier note, I was fascinated by the passages on Islam in Kashmir, and how it generally supports women.
I think the biggest strength of this book (other than its gorgeous writing) is its ability to make me understand. I see this book get criticized for having no "arc" per se, but I'm not sure if Peer is even trying to tell something definitive here. What this book does do remarkably well is to put you in the shoes of everyone he interviews. He makes you feel their fear, and he makes you feel why some people retreat deep inside their personal lives, while others want to lash out. I come from a town that a highly publicized and infamous school shooting a few years back. Even today, you still see how it impacts people's psyches. That was one incident, in one day. As I read I tried to apply that kind of uncertainty and fear in an entire state, for well over a decade. Unexpected violence changes you, and its even worse when it's built into the system, when there's no real recourse. We have problems with that here in America, too. You only have to turn on the news to see it. The circumstances might be the same, but a lot of surface level, primal fears and hopes do not change. This is the kind of book that leaves me feeling like I'll forever see the world different after having read this.
This book fulfills a category in the Read Harder Challenge. Actually I could slot it into several categories, but ultimately I'm going to put it into "a book by a person whose gender is different from your own." This is a deliberate decision on my part. This memoir really drives home how life in Kashmir is an incredibly gendered experience. As one reads, one gets the sense of an entire generation of men who have had battle and war imposed on them, whether they wanted to become "militarized" or not. At one point, Peer goes through a bunch of his friends and acquaintances, talking about how they chose to respond. Some left, some joined militant groups and died, some joined these groups and then reintegrated back into Kashmiri towns and villages after years of danger and trauma. Being male in Kashmir seems to mean being viewed as an enemy of the state as soon as you're able to walk.
There are also tons of men who have been flat out "disappeared" by the state. These portions of the book haunted me the most because of my own personal interest in missing persons cases (I am working on a criminology degree because these cases effect me so deeply.) Having a missing loved one sounds like the worst kind of personal hell to me. You can't grieve, you can't give up hope, you feel stupid for having hope. Law enforcement can often be apathetic during these cases, but in Kashmir the government is often complicit in these losses. It's really hard to imagine the psychological toll this must take, but this book gets me a bit closer to imagining it.
Which isn't to say women didn't suffer in Kashmir, because they absolutely did (and still do.) In Kashmir, there's that age old tactic of rape as a weapon of war, and support from the community can be very hit or miss after. Although, on a happier note, I was fascinated by the passages on Islam in Kashmir, and how it generally supports women.
I think the biggest strength of this book (other than its gorgeous writing) is its ability to make me understand. I see this book get criticized for having no "arc" per se, but I'm not sure if Peer is even trying to tell something definitive here. What this book does do remarkably well is to put you in the shoes of everyone he interviews. He makes you feel their fear, and he makes you feel why some people retreat deep inside their personal lives, while others want to lash out. I come from a town that a highly publicized and infamous school shooting a few years back. Even today, you still see how it impacts people's psyches. That was one incident, in one day. As I read I tried to apply that kind of uncertainty and fear in an entire state, for well over a decade. Unexpected violence changes you, and its even worse when it's built into the system, when there's no real recourse. We have problems with that here in America, too. You only have to turn on the news to see it. The circumstances might be the same, but a lot of surface level, primal fears and hopes do not change. This is the kind of book that leaves me feeling like I'll forever see the world different after having read this.
nuts246's review against another edition
5.0
What is nationalism? When we support the Indian cricket team without really thinking about it, can we judge people for supporting whichever country the Indian cricket team plays against? Aren't both instinctive, emotional responses?
Basharat Peer is a master with words, and brings Kashmir alive from the perspective of a Kashmiri Muslim who grew up against the backdrop of insurgency.
He neither blames, nor justifies. All he does is being people and situations alive. And till each is accepted as a valid perspective, it's unlikely much headway can be made to bring lasting peace and healing.
Basharat Peer is a master with words, and brings Kashmir alive from the perspective of a Kashmiri Muslim who grew up against the backdrop of insurgency.
He neither blames, nor justifies. All he does is being people and situations alive. And till each is accepted as a valid perspective, it's unlikely much headway can be made to bring lasting peace and healing.