The Story of My Experiments with Truth: An Autobiography: Deluxe Hardbound Edition Paperback – August 6, 2020

One of my top 10 books, Ghandi's masterpiece reads like a travelogue interspersed w tasty nuggets of simply brilliant insight into the nature of humanity and the relationship between the societal members individually and collectively and the political state. To greatly oversimplify his work, he leaves South Africa because he cannot win the non violent fight against apartheid because the political leadership does not have a conscience. So he takes his work to India, where, by following the simplicity of a sustainable lifestyle, he provokes brutal repercussions which trigger the conscience of the British people. Realizing that Hitler is a much greater threat than Britain, along the way he serves Great Britain as an ambulance attendant in WWII, demonstrating his political loyalty to the crown. Clearly, Ghandi had one of the great minds of the modern era, overthrowing a hegemonic dictator just by living simply. It still gives me chills to think about it.

I have a great respect for Gandhi and I read this book to get a clearer understanding of the man. I reject the pedestal he has been placed upon, a fate no one deserves. Here are his words and thoughts, foreign in many ways to those of the west and unfamiliar with of man of his time and place. Readers who cannot understand his era or upbringing will likely be disappointed or confused by his account. Those with insight, compassion and the wisdom to know that Gandhi was indeed only human, will be able to enjoy this book completely.Due to the publisher's marketing is is called an autobiography, which it was never intended to be and does not include his later years when he was a considerable political force. Still there is much here and plenty of opportunities to meet the real Gandhi with all his glitter and grime. I feel I know him so much better now and am amused and surprised of the many attitudes/beliefs we share. It is unlikely that if I were a contemporary I could have called him friend, but it is especially satisfying to be able to identify more closely with what made this good man tick. A great read, but not a breezy read and not for those who do not want to see anything but a courageous white knight figure. He was so much more than that stereotypical caricature.

Very good book for those wanting to explore Gandhi for the first time or thereafter.Very thorough accounts of Gandhi’s life.Important read for understanding this most important philosophical man

This is as close to an autobiography as you’ll find by Gandhi. It isn’t a typical autobiography since it is focused on his development of his nonviolent philosophy and his dietary experiments. Modern readers will probably find those strange, but they need to remember the time he lived. He was developing his philosophy and experimenting in the 1890’s and early 1900’s.

Your view of this book will depend to a great extent on the reasons you choose to read the book and the extent of your historical knowledge about Gandhi in particular and the history of India in general.I must confess that I was disappointed because I was reading the book with the expectation that I would gain a better understanding of Gandhi and his place in Indian history.The book is not really an autobiography. It covers only a limited period of his life. And those periods are not fully convered. For example, there are references to time he spent in jail in Africa but there is nothing in the book about the details of the time spent in jail or the reasons he was jailed. He only relates bits and pieces of his life.The book would be much more beneficial to someone who had a strong historical knowledge of Gandhi.There are many people introduced in the book but no adequate background information on them. There is much discussion about certain events but there is inadequate discussion about the background of the events. This goes on throughout the book. There are many people, places and movements that I did not fully understand because he either assumes the reader knows or in some cases it directs the reader to other publications.The book is not complete within itself. To truly appreciate the book, you need more backgound information.Because the book only covers a certain period of his life, I am left to wonder if he changes his thinking as he progresses. Gandhi subtitled the book, "The story of my Experiments With Truth". But there are a lot of things that makes you wonder about what led him to his position on being a father and husband. He seemed to have little concern for his wife or his children.It was interesting getting an inside look at the man. However it seems much more suitable for advanced study than as a first exposure to the life of Gandhi.

very interesting