Ahmedabad

Abstract

Spodek (Temple Univ.) is a renowned world historian and highly respected specialist in Indian urban history, particularly that of Ahmedabad, which he first visited in 1964. It has been his second home ever since. As a 'shock city,' a term coined by Asa Briggs in 1963 about 1830s Manchester, it contains all the social, ethnic, environmental, and economic problems found in such shock cities through the decades. Based on its textile industry, Ahmedabad is the 'Manchester of India'" Between 1915, when Gandhi settled in its suburbs at his ashram at Sabarmati, until the 1970s, it has been led by a small circle of civic and political leaders, and it is this circle that Spodek focuses on while covering all the major events and movements that have arisen. Part 1 of the book is titled'"The Gandhian Era, 1915-1950,' part 2, "The Westernizing City, 1950-1980," and part 3, 'Creativity and Chaos, 1969-'. The strength of this first-rate, well-illustrated study is its thorough grounding in source material, an intimate knowledge of people and places, and its connections between Ahmedabad and such personalities as Gandhi, Vallabbhai Patel, and Anasuyaben Sarabhia, among a long list of prominent Gujeratis. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Most levels/libraries. - Choice