Gregory David Roberts
Paperback | Pages: 936 pages Rating: 4.27 | 151064 Users | 12581 Reviews
Present About Books Shantaram (Shantaram #1)
| Title | : | Shantaram (Shantaram #1) |
| Author | : | Gregory David Roberts |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | First Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 936 pages |
| Published | : | 2004 by Scribe (first published 2003) |
| Categories | : | Nonfiction. Psychology. Self Help. Philosophy |
Representaion To Books Shantaram (Shantaram #1)
"It took me a long time and most of the world to learn what I know about love and fate and the choices we make, but the heart of it came to me in an instant, while I was chained to a wall and being tortured."So begins this epic, mesmerizing first novel set in the underworld of contemporary Bombay. Shantaram is narrated by Lin, an escaped convict with a false passport who flees maximum security prison in Australia for the teeming streets of a city where he can disappear.
Accompanied by his guide and faithful friend, Prabaker, the two enter Bombay's hidden society of beggars and gangsters, prostitutes and holy men, soldiers and actors, and Indians and exiles from other countries, who seek in this remarkable place what they cannot find elsewhere.
As a hunted man without a home, family, or identity, Lin searches for love and meaning while running a clinic in one of the city's poorest slums, and serving his apprenticeship in the dark arts of the Bombay mafia. The search leads him to war, prison torture, murder, and a series of enigmatic and bloody betrayals. The keys to unlock the mysteries and intrigues that bind Lin are held by two people. The first is Khader Khan: mafia godfather, criminal-philosopher-saint, and mentor to Lin in the underworld of the Golden City. The second is Karla: elusive, dangerous, and beautiful, whose passions are driven by secrets that torment her and yet give her a terrible power.
Burning slums and five-star hotels, romantic love and prison agonies, criminal wars and Bollywood films, spiritual gurus and mujaheddin guerrillas – this huge novel has the world of human experience in its reach, and a passionate love for India at its heart. Based on the life of the author, it is by any measure the debut of an extraordinary voice in literature.
Describe Books As Shantaram (Shantaram #1)
| Original Title: | Shantaram |
| ISBN: | 192076920X (ISBN13: 9781920769208) |
| Edition Language: | English URL http://www.shantaram.com/ |
| Series: | Shantaram #1 |
| Characters: | Lin Ford, Karla Saraanen, Lisa, Prabaker, Abdel Khader Khan, Abdullah Taheri, Nazeer, Didier |
| Setting: | Bombay(India) Afghanistan Australia …more India …less |
| Literary Awards: | Commonwealth Writers' Prize Nominee for Best First Book (the Pacific Region) (2004) |
Rating About Books Shantaram (Shantaram #1)
Ratings: 4.27 From 151064 Users | 12581 ReviewsCommentary About Books Shantaram (Shantaram #1)
I realised that I'd already 'reviewed' this work by way of a reply I'd made to a recommendation (by Andy S). So I've simply copy/pasted that same reply here: I can understand the 'Marmite' love-it-or-hate-it axiom; the book has literary mood swings.I read Shantaram a while back. A sprawling novel favoured by backpackers the world over. It polarises opinion; readers either love or hate it. It's overly self-righteous and puts you in mind of Walter Mitty, but the author has certainly suffered forI have spent the last two weeks in Roberts's seductive, chaotic, slum filled, audacious Bombay, full of vibrant, wonderful, charismatic characters. This is a grand, sprawling, intelligent, autobiographical novel, elegantly written and splendidly evocative of an India I would otherwise never know. As I sit here trying to decide how to best sum up just what this novel is about I realize that it is about everthing. All of life's many lessons are here in this huge, sweeping, monumental story; but
I had been told that this was a beautiful love story. And it was; in between the parts where he mopes over lost loves so much that you feel like you're back in a middle school girl gripefest.I had been told that this was a philosophically profound book. And it was; except for the passages where Roberts smug knowledge of "complexity" made you want to punch every philosophy major you ever knew right in the face as a proxy.I had been told that this was a riveting page turner. And it was; until he
I managed 200 pages of this utter drivel before giving up completely. Poorly-written nonsense which is gathering critical acclaim from people who probably read one book a year. At one point - during a scene when the narrator is looking at a river - he ACTUALLY writes: 'I was thinking of another river. A river that runs through all of us. The river of the heart.'I do not have time in my life for this sub-Danielle Steel horseshit.EDIT: About ten years on I still keep getting activity on this
I loved, loved the first part of this book. The author's description of arriving in Mumbai is so similar to my experience - the sites and smells, staying in Colaba, the restaurants visited - it really brought back my trip to a city I loved.However, I've had to put this one down for a bit of a break. I just have the feeling Gregory David Roberts is pretty far up his own ass and I'm not sure I'm buying what he's selling.What's making it hard to just sit back and enjoy this book is Robert's
Returning to read Gregory David Roberts' epic novel again, I found myself drawn to the complexities and nuances embedded throughout the text. As the novel opens, the reader is introduced to Lin, a man who has escaped his Australian jail and arrives in Bombay, hoping to hide in India's vast populace. Early on, Lin is forced to realise that India is a beast unlike any other; culturally, racially, and economically. It is, however, home to many who have the same idea, hiding from their criminal
Gripping story. Beautiful descriptions of India and its people. Rhetorical dialogue provides provocative one-line philosophical nuggets: "Civilization, after all, is defined by what we forbid, more than what we permit.""The worst thing about corruption as a system of government is that it works so well.""A lot of bad stuff in the world wasn't really that bad until someone tried to change it.""The truth is a bully that everyone pretends to like.""A dream is where a wish and a fear meet. A
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