A review by theluckiestclover
The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India's Quest for Independence by Anita Anand

adventurous informative sad fast-paced

4.75

This was such a well-told, well-researched book. I saved it on my to-read after listening to a History Extra podcast and managed to pick the audiobook up in a 3 for 2 sale. The book examines the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, an atrocity which inspired Udham Singh to assassinate those responsible for the crime. Anita Anand seeks to find the truth of the massacre, the men responsible (Rex Dyer and Michael O'Dwyer), and Udham Singh, the man who sought revenge. It would be comforting to think that the villains and heroes in this story are one dimensional but of course they are not. Anand highlights a variety of aspects of the players in this story, especially with Udham. The book highlights the white supremacist attitudes of Dyer and O'Dwyer. How Michael in particular extolled these values back in England. Udham's journey and his travels are fascinating and exciting. His flaws are demonstrated throughout the book, and I don't think Anand encourages you to like him, although I did. The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre is a part of British history many more of us should be aware of. <Particularly moving for me, was the repatriation of Udham's remains to India in the 1970s, and how his ashes were distributed to different regions with different religious majorities.>
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