Edna Fernandes - Journalist, Author on religion, politics, foreign affairs » travel

March 1 2009: Jewish Book Week

edna — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 09:13:45 +0000

On 1 March at 2pm, Edna Fernandes and fellow author Sophie Judah discussed the history of India’s Jewish Diaspora and its decline in numbers as part of the Jewish Book Week Literary Festival in London’s Bloomsbury. The discussion ranged from the internal conflict of those Jews who left India for Israel as well as the story of the racial divide that plagued Kerala’s Jews for four centuries.

US Jewish Book Council review

edna — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:57:30 +0000

The Last Jews of Kerala details the fascinating history of the 2,000 year old little-known Jewish community in India’s Kerala region, from its inception to its apex to its impending extinction. Author Edna Fernandes gives the work a human side by describing not only the history but her interactions with the present generation of these Jews, who now number fewer than fifty. The reader joins Fernandes in what feels like her personal journey of discovery. The subject is fascinating and poignant, the journey both languid and intense. Fernandes’ strongest suit is her ability to introduce a theme, seamlessly interweave it within the story, and conclude by unfolding a cohesive tapestry. Readers interested in Jewish history will not be disappointed.

Sunday Times

edna — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:55:49 +0000

A touching investigative account…Fernandes movingly captures the sombre, embattled mood of this population in ‘countdown mode’, all too painfully aware that they have already become a ‘souvenir people’” Read Review at Times Online

Naseem Khan, Guardian

edna — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:42:34 +0000

‘What a cast of characters make their way through this sharp-witted and straight-talking book: the fatuous and the venal, the self-important and the deluded, the exploitative and the corrupt. Edna Fernandes has undertaken to track down figures who epitomise the most depressing facet of Indian life – its holy warriors – as well as some of their victims. Her odyssey takes her far and wide – from Nagaland and Kashmir in the north down via Punjab and on to Goa… The reportage is even-handed and responsible and even delightfully witty. Fernandes’ asides are precise and wicked. Above all, she offers a valuable reminder of the dark side of the economic miracle that is modern India.’ Read the review at the Guardian

The Independent

edna — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:41:34 +0000

‘Fernandes reports on India’s differences with compelling insight. Holy Warriors makes for vital reading, showing India’s urgent need to rearticulate an inclusive identity, to master change and exceed past glories,’ Read the review at The Independent.

Nihal Arthanayake, BBC Radio One DJ

edna — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 19:11:38 +0000

‘This is an amazing book. Anyone interested in religions and how they get on – or don’t – should get hold of it.’