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Daughter of Destiny: An Autobiography | 
 enlarge | Author: Benazir Bhutto
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Category: Book
List Price: $15.95
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Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 219906
Media: Paperback
Pages: 480
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 9 x 5.9 x 1.4
ISBN: 0061672688
Dewey Decimal Number: 954.9105092
EAN: 9780061672682
ASIN: 0061672688
Publication Date: April 1, 2008
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Product Description
Daughter of Destiny, the autobiography of Benazir Bhutto, is a historical document of uncommon passion and courage, the dramatic story of a brilliant, beautiful woman whose life was, up to her tragic assassination in 2007, inexorably tied to her nation's tumultuous history. Bhutto writes of growing up in a family of legendary wealth and near-mythic status, a family whose rich heritage survives in tales still passed from generation to generation. She describes her journey from this protected world onto the volatile stage of international politics through her education at Radcliffe and Oxford, the sudden coup that plunged her family into a prolonged nightmare of threats and torture, her father's assassination by General Zia ul-Haq in 1979, and her grueling experience as a political prisoner in solitary confinement. With candor and courage, Benazir Bhutto recounts her triumphant political rise from her return to Pakistan from exile in 1986 through the extraordinary events of 1988: the mysterious death of Zia; her party's long struggle to ensure free elections; and finally, the stunning mandate that propelled her overnight into the ranks of the world's most powerful, influential leaders.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
Vivid, if incomplete, portrayal of Mrs. Bhutto October 14, 1998
Jeff Lee
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
Benazir Bhutto is a striking personality-she is both hated and loved in Pakistan, very much Indira Gandhi on a somewhat smaller scale. Her autobiography begins with her reaction to her father's death-Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was hanged by General Zia ul-Haq after a military coup and the pleadings of the world community. Throughout the book, Benazir paints Zia as the ultimate devil, the evil that consumed Pakistan and sent her family into prison or death. The book is extremely melodramatic in tone, but to me it was quite appealing-not as a portrayal of Mrs. Bhutto's personality but rather as another testament in the mixed reviews of her reign. The book ends with the votes about to be cast in her favor-and they did. Benazir was elected to two terms, but was dismissed by Pakistan's President and replaced by political rival Nawaz Sharif. She has been accused of financial laundering and at one time had an arrest warrant placed on her in Pakistan. Though her character is now under question, Benazir Bhutto still remains a well-spoken, articulate voice, and there is no better reflection of these qualities than in DAUGHTER OF DESTINY. She speaks without much bitterness-there is only moderate waxing of effluvium about the cruel fates her early destiny went through. Though, not having experienced life in Pakistan under her rule as Prime Minister, I cannot form any political or personal view towards Mrs. Bhutto, one thing is clear to me-she has the ability to make her voice heard. Whether or not she is 'defending' American airstrikes against the Taliban in Afghanistan or speaking of how she believes her brother's shooting death was related to a conspiracy to remove the 'Bhutto factor from Pakistani politics', Benazir has an articulate and clear voice. Now if only her morals and character were so lucid.
 Melodramatic June 30, 1997
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
At first, the book seemed to evoke a certain sense of sympathy from the reader as Benazir seemed to suffer a great deal from the Martial Law regime. However, seeing her in office twice, has raised serious credibility issues. In my opinion the real oppressor of Pakistan was not General Zia but ASIF ALI ZARDARI, who has "sucked" every penny from the Treasury and left more than 120 million people to starve
three ways to the power October 29, 1997
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Exciting book, really interesting story. Just read this book as three different ways (always linked)to target to the power: Ms Bhutto riformist way, the mother's bureaucratic way, the brother's revolutionary. And read Rushdie's Shame before or immediately after.
 History maker January 24, 2003
Khalid Memon (West Virginia, USA)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Benazir Bhutto has acquired an eminent place in history of Muslim world. She is the first Muslim elected prime minister of any Muslim country in 1400-year history. This book, no doubt, is part of Pakistan's history now. She talks very eloquently about the atrocities that her family endured during long dictator ship of Asia's model dictator ZIA-UL-HAQUE, who overturned Zulfiquar Ali Bhutto's elected government in a military coup. Z.A. Bhutto had the courage to challenge the WHITE ELEPHANT, and subsequently loose his power and face assassination at hands of undemocratic and tyrant army supported by PNA (Pakistan National Alliance), a group of islamists backed by a foreign agency. Same religious group has gathered some political strength in Pakistan's political scenario, but has now been shunned by the same opportunist foreign agency. Benazir Bhutto talks a lot about the sufferings at hands of military but does not have same heart as ZA Bhutto to challenge her real enemies. This book is however a "must read" for those who are interested in the politics and history of this region. She has art to impress the reader and make her point clear.
The early Bhutto December 27, 2007
FrKurt Messick (Bloomington, IN USA)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Benazir Bhutto, on the brink of a political comeback against the odds in several ways, was assassinated after a political rally on December 27, 2007. Bhutto is an impressive figure from a prominent political family, whose history includes several untimely deaths -- her own father, a Prime Minister of Pakistan, was killed in a coup in the 1970s; her brothers were killed in suspicious circumstances. Now Bhutto herself has been lost, and likely the aftermath will continue in different ways for some time to come, both internally to Pakistan as well as internationally.
Bhutto's strongest claim to fame in history will be that she was the first female Prime Minister of a Muslim nation, an accomplishment unlikely to be achieved in any other Muslim nation any time soon (even nations such as Turkey, which are officially secular). Her rise in some ways paralleled that of Indira Gandhi, who also gained political power in large part from the family reputation bestowed upon her initially. Bhutto, however, was no mere figurehead for her family or her party. Educated at Oxford and Harvard, she had a good intellect and a keen understanding of the world.
This book details Bhutto's feelings and memories of her family, her growing years, and the struggle to the point of her first election as Prime Minister (she would go on to be re-elected after being deposed, and then spend many years in exile in the West). This is not dissimilar to the kinds of books that every American presidential candidate feels obliged to publish - part policy, part history, part wish-list. Still, it is one of the rare books we have on Bhutto, and (at least partially) by Bhutto. As such, it is worthy to be read. How it will compare to the upcoming autobiography (due to be released in April 2008) will be interesting.
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