Sikhs of New Jersey - The Pioneers from Punjab

I read this very fascinating book on the Sikhs of NJ cover to cover. I can truly say that I was thoroughly absorbed and spellbound. The book is immensely readable, offers many interesting vignettes and teaching moments; the narrative is kept moving in a seamless manner
I appreciate the keen insights into many issues. The ones I found to be the most educational for me were 1) How the Sikhs came to the USA over a 100 years ago and the trials and tribulations they endured, the obstacles they overcame and established themselves as an intelligent, vibrant society of people committed to better humanity 2) The nurturing of the Sikh community in NJ and how Surinder and Mohinder rendered yeomen service in having a Gurudwara built for teaching the next generation about our culture and traditions. Insightful comments on the rampant politicization of the boards, building several other gurudwaras and the internecine fighting are apt, thought provoking and sadly a bit reflective of us. 3) Declining of many offers to assume a leadership position as there were people with divisive political agendas in their minds 4) The valiant efforts to refurbish the images of the Sikh community in the aftermath of the Indira Gandhi assassination. It was instructive to read the authors comments about the Golden Temple 1984 incidents and how she wrote to Ronald Reagan calling out the fact that Rajeev Gandhi had the blood of thousands of Sikhs on his hands. This was ignored in toto by the Western media. It is sad to see that thousands of innocent Sikhs were killed and that politicians such as Sajjan Kumar, Jagdish Tytler and others have never been charged; some are still active in politics. Even a well- respected person like Sam Pitroda wrote off the anti-Sikh atrocities as “Jo Hua So Hua”.
This informative book will go a long way towards fostering intercultural understanding and friendships with the Sikh diaspora.