City of Djinns
2003 • 352 pages
Ratings3
Average rating3.3
15
Ratings3
Average rating3.3
Sparkling with irrepressible wit, City of Djinns peels back the layers of Delhi's centuries-old history, revealing an extraordinary array of characters along the way-from eunuchs to descendants of great Moguls. With refreshingly open-minded curiosity, William Dalrymple explores the seven "dead" cities of Delhi as well as the eighth city-today's Delhi. Underlying his quest is the legend of the djinns, fire-formed spirits that are said to assure the city's Phoenix-like regeneration no matter how many times it is destroyed. Entertaining, fascinating, and informative, City of Djinns is an irresistible blend of research and adventure.
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This was the wrong book to read prior to my trip to India. All of the fantastic stories that the author relates seem to end with, “these wonderful sights/monuments/environments/people have all been completely destroyed, and nothing is left except worthless ruins”. He makes Delhi seem like a wasteland, all the more disgusting and pathetic in light of its former splendor. The only positive of this book is that the stories he relates are interesting. In short, this book was a major downer.
