In Quest of Jinnah: Diary, Notes, and Correspondence of Hector Bolitho

by Hector Bolitho, Sharif Al Mujahid (Editor)

The greatest travail to be undertaken by writers is that of the official biographer. In 1953, Beverly Nichols suggested Hector Bolitho, the New Zealand born biographer of Prince Albert, as the person best suited to write the biography of Pakistan's founder, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the
Quaid-i-Azam and first Governor-General. Hector Bolitho's Creator of Pakistan (1954) became his most celebrated and influential book. Frustrated however, at what he was not allowed to write or include, Bolitho preserved for scholars the first draft of his biography, his diary and notes, his
correspondence with Government of Pakistan functionaries and highly placed individuals in Britain, India and Pakistan who had known Jinnah personally, and the English and American reviews of the book's published version. All of this material is present in this volume.

In Quest of Jinnah which gives not only a stereovision of the original published version, but offers fresh and authentic insights into the personality and politics of Mohammed Ali Jinnah. It is a very rare version. To compile and edit such a vast volume of valuable material, an extraordinary
scholar of Jinnah and Academy, doyen of Jinnah scholars in Pakistan and author of Jinnah Studies in Interpretation (1981), not only retrieved the material present in this volume but very carefully and meticulously edited it, to create a user-friendly volume for both the scholar and the general
reader.

Genres: Pakistan

221 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

(Henry) Hector Bolitho was a New Zealand author, novelist and biographer.
Widely-travelled, he journeyed in the South Sea Islands in 1919 and then through New Zealand with the Prince of Wales in 1920. He travelled in Africa, Australia, Canada, America, and Germany in 1923-4, finally settling in Britain where he was to remain for the rest of his life.
On his arrival in Britain he worked as a freelance journalist. At the start of World War II he joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) as an intelligence officer with the rank of squadron leader, editing the Royal Air Force Weekly Bulletin, which in 1941 became the Royal Air Force Journal. In 1942 he was appointed editor of the Coastal Command Intelligence Review.
He had 59 books published.

Reviews

[Fozia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just bought this book from Foyles on Tottenham Court Road, London, 28/04/07.

[Amanullah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a much more balanced version than the film. However, I haven't read Stanley Wolpert's account, so I can't make that comparison.