Dear Mrs Da Silva,
Unfortunately, I was not able to attend the presentation at the LSE this
week as I had a prior engagement.
I am a Goan academic and would be interested in reviewing the book as I have
done in the case of other Goan author publications.
Please can you tell me how I can gain access to the book? Also, perhaps some
info about the author.
Yours sincerely
Dr Cornel DaCosta (author and specialist in University Education, London.)
From: "Elvira da Silva" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <goanet@goanet.org>
Cc: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Thursday, May 11, 2006 5:37 AM
Subject: [Goanet] Holy Warriors
Dear Sir,
I have read with amusement and interest, the back and forth on your site
about
the book "Holy Warriors" which was the subect of fascinating discussion at
the
London School of Economics last night.
The book includes a section on the erosion of Goan Catholic identity, as
well
as the story of the Inquisition in Goa under St Francis Xavier. Its
subject is
topical and relevant to our community. It explores what makes a holy
warrior
in India today, written by a Goan journalist.
I enclose an extract from a speech by a Professor John Harriss, a director
of
research at the LSE and India expert, who spoke at a discussion on the
book --
"The book is about religion and politics in contemporary India, and she
writes
about Christians and Sikhs, as well as Hindus and Muslims.
"I think that some of the most interesting and also the most powerful
parts of
the book are about the dilemmas of Goanese Catholics, and the persisting
pain
felt amongst Sikhs over the desecration of the Golden Temple, the terror
of
the violence against them in Delhi following the assassination of Mrs
Gandhi
in 1984, and then over the agonies surrounding the 'disappearances' of
people
that took place during the conflict in Punjab.
"As a whole I think that the book conveys extraordinarily well, and with
great
sensitivity, how the construction of the 'Other' as an object of fear, or
a
symbol of historic wrongs done against 'Us', creates its own effects, and
gives rise to a spiral of fear and hate that, once it has taken hold, is
extremely hard to check..."
Perhaps one of our Goans can review this book. I think it's worth it.
Mrs Da Silva
_____________________________________________
Do not post admin requests to the list.
Goanet mailing list (Goanet@goanet.org)
