Land of the Dawn-Lit Mountains

Author: Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is the second book on India I’ve read for my Around the World Book Tour, and I liked it much more than the first one. For me, good travel writing not only gives an account of the author’s journey, but puts the place they’re travelling to into context. The joy isn’t solely in living vicariously through the author’s experiences but learning about the place they’re exploring and getting a deeper understanding of that place.

This book follows Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent’s journey around Arunachal Pradesh, one of the most remote parts of India, in the far northeast corner nearer China and Tibet than most of the rest of the subcontinent. Not only does she meet a myriad of different people including those in remote tribes and Buddhist nuns, she also gives some context on the recent history that shaped the area, including British exploration and colonisation, the World Wars, and political conflict over sovereignty of the area between India and China.

The India Bolingbroke-Kent explored was very different than the India that Monisha Rajesh criss-crossed by train in Around India in 80 Trains, even though the two books were written less than 10 years apart, and it’s amazing to think that they are even the same country.

I found this a fascinating a charming account of the author’s travels as well as a enthralling insight into a relatively remote corner of the world. I would highly recommend for anyone looking for unique and insightful travel writing.