Mostly focusing on the colonial and post-colonial periods, McLeod (history, U. of Illinois) offers an overview of the history of India. The history offers a standard treatment, primarily discussing the activities of "great men" and offering interpretations that are well within the mainstream of historical scholarship. Appendices provide listings of Mughal emperors, British viceroys, and Indian prime ministers; a bibliographic essay; and a listing of notable people that, curiously and somewhat arbitrarily, includes people like Sonia Gandhi, an Italian born politician in the Congress Party, but not her mother-in- law, Indira Gandhi, one of India's most powerful Prime Ministers, nor Indira's father, Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister and a major leader of the independence movement. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)