The Afternoon: Marathon Race to Acche Din – 3 | Review

“The heat wave of demonetisation would be recorded in the history of India as a time when the nation did not collapse due to the sunstroke.” ~ Phidalia Toi, The Afternoon

I have read the previous two books of Phidalia’s series called Marathon Race to Acche Din and I have liked them both. The same continues in her latest book called The Afternoon: Marathon Race to Acche Din – 3. And the in-depth analysis of the some of the major achievements and concerns of the Narendra Modi’s government third year is something that the readers from any background will surely like and appreciate. Being a person so much interested in the politics of the day, I can declare with confidence that Phidalia Toi offers an insight in her book which most of the media, electronic or print, lacks. They only focus on the ‘juice’ in the story and here, the author has made a clear and significant ramification of the things.

Major issues that get listed on Phidalia’s index this time are Demonetisation, Surgical Strike, Foreign Policies and Students’ Unions and their feuds. A reading of the book after the eyes run through the index and Author’s Note (which is remarkably short) will tell the readers that the author has done a fair justice with the issues she has listed to opine. Most of the data and facts coming from the mainstream media publications, the major highlight in the book are the commentary and opinions by the author herself.

The Afternoon: Marathon Race to Acche Din is a superior critique, without a doubt, of the Modi Sarkar’s third year at the centre of the Indian democracy. The author just presents the facts to her readers and also extends her opinions which might be interesting and very interesting at some points. For example, Phidalia’s detailed coverage on the issue of demonetisation in this book will work as a fog-cleaner for many pessimistic people who are just opposing it for the sake of political hope. However, some facts that she has pointed out are very well made and valid points for the government to ponder. Her ideas and opinions are well-balanced and at any point, you cannot say that she favouring or opposing the present government – she is, just, stating her facts and figures and opinions which are valuable and interesting as well.

Phidalia Toi is a seasoned author and with every new book by her, I think, she is only moving towards a ‘more mature’ state. The Afternoon seems to be moving towards a further level of writing exhibited by Phidalia Toi and I am sure the more she writes the maturer writer we will have to read. The very first book by Phidalia in this series, The Dawn, wasn’t that much of her own because she was, one can say, playing safe and just stating the things which were ‘already there’. This time, however, she is indulged in the narrative and she is freely offering her valuable opinions which make the book better by all the possible means!

The Afternoon, I will say, should be read by the readers who want a quick recap of the major events which took place in the third year of Modi government. This will suffice their needs because it offers the events as well as the implications of those events. Get your copies now from the Amazon link given below:

The Afternoon: Phidalia Toi on Amazon India