Empires of the Indus

Finally here's a travel book that doesn't just take you places but also back in time. Alice Albinia's first book - Empires of the Indus deals with a river that we derive the name of our Nation from and a river we Indians hardly know anything about.

The book and Alice Albinia's travel begins in Karachi close to where the Indus 'empties itself' into the Arabian Sea and ends in Tibet, where the river in born close to Mount Kailash. In between, she explores the present, recent and not so recent history of the places Indus and its tributaries shape - Sindh, Punjab, NWFP, Eastern part of Afghanistan, Swat, Kashmir, Ladakh and Tibet.

Among the places, I was most fascinated by the description and recent history of that missing place mentioned in the Indian national Anthem - Sindh. Many travelogues have been written about the other places mentioned in the book and a lot of them have followed the path of Alexander through the mountain passes of North West Pakistan. A lot has also been written about Punjab and the Indus Valley Civilisation but the meandering course of the river and the history of the people of Sindh is a must read, especially for an Indian reader.

As for the author, she reminds me of William Dalrymple who began his career with a 1989 travelogue called In Xanadu. And we are in for a treat if she follows his footsteps.

Before you buy, borrow, steal and read the book, have a look at the photographs from the book. It's a nice idea to share them, like they have on the book's website.