The Quit India Movement of 1942 is a milestone in India’s struggle for freedom. This densely researched volume deals with the developments in the multi-facet upsurge during the World War II. The close interactions between historical forces that stood behind Gandhi, the Conservatives, Jawaharlal Nehru, the Congress Socialist Party encompassing various revolutionary units have been for the first time, fruitfully examined, from the clinical perspective of an unbiased historian. Clearly, formulated, analytically argued and elegantly presented, the work offers a refreshing insight into the epic struggle and its social dynamics. The author’s notes and references include a wide selection from private papers and records from the Cambridge University Library and in the India Office Record Room and Library on the one hand and the District Collectorate’s records in Ballia, Azamgarh and Ghazipur on the other. The interesting aspect of the exercise is a natural blend of source material in the narrative without being pedantic or obtuse.

Dr. Shachi Chakravarty is a Reader in the Department of History, Jesus and Mary College, University of Delhi, New Delhi. Educated at Indraprastha College, Delhi she obtained her Master’s, Doctorate  and Law degrees from the University of Delhi. She has a wide range of interest which include law and gender issues, film appreciation, classical Hindustani music, social service and counselling. She is well travelled and has attended a number of national and international conferences. Currently she is engaged in a research project on gender issues in contemporary Central Asia.