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Puffin Lives: Ashoka, The Great and Compassionate King is a historical account of the life and times of Ashoka the Great. Summary of the Book There are few names powerful enough to rankle the emotions of Indians like that of Ashoka the Great. He was the grandson of Chandragupta Maurya and the destined heir of the Mauryan Empire which was formed by the ideals of the brilliant Kautilya. However, Ashoka began his reign in utter chaos. The Kalinga War ended the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. At the end of it, Ashoka was disgusted with violence, and it was then that he came across a religion that was taking root in Pataliputra. It was based on the edicts of a man who was said to have meditated under the shade of a tree in Gaya after being stunned by the evils of human life. Buddhism found Ashoka, and gifted the world the greatest and most benevolent monarch it has ever seen. This is the story of a man whose name is synonymous with legend, a man whose legacy was nearly erased after his death, whose mere mention evokes a near mythical awe in Indians to this very day. This is the story of Ashoka the Great. About Subhadra Sen Gupta Subhadra Sen Gupta is an Indian writer working with Penguin India. She enjoys travelling, loves cats and has worked on mysteries, historical adventures, ghost stories and comic books.