Shantaram
This book by Gregory David Roberts is like a wild dream, where things just get crazier and more unbelievable – and it’s also one of the best books I’ve read all year. In fact, after finishing part one, I was tempted to agree with the front cover and call it a masterpiece, but unfortunately the rest of it wasn’t as brilliant – it was still good though.
The story is based on the author’s life, although the narrative has obviously been tweaked (he calls it a novel). Roberts was an armed robber who escaped from prison and fled to Bombay. He met up with a variety of interesting characters, including the woman, Karla, who shapes much of the story. He ends up living in the slums and starting a clinic there, but after a tragedy, leaves and joins the Bombay mafia, and his hero-father figure, “Kaderbhai”. After getting involved in Bollywood, spending months in an Indian prison, and travelling all around the world smuggling, he follows Kaderbhai to Afghanistan, where he discovers to his horror that both his life, Karla’s life, and the lives of thousands of others, have been manipulated by Kaderbhai to support the war in Afghanistan. He returns alive – although Kaderbhai doesn’t – and sees the downfall of the mafia group. When the story ends, he’s planning to go join the war in Sri Lanka.
It’s not just the crazy action, the philosophy, and the lyrical language (sometimes a little too purple) that makes this story – there’s people returning from the dead, twins attacking the hero in a Queen’s darkened tower-room, incredible riches and incredible poverty – but the characters, fascinating, unique, real, and human. The women – including Karla – are neither ciphers nor princesses, the men aren’t angels either, and best of all the hero isn’t heroic. He runs away from the fire in the slum, from the pain of the people, from the worst of everything – it is the Indians who cope and survive and make plans and explain to him how to live. It’s a reverse City of God. He learns, because he’s humble, and that’s why it’s real, because anyone who has travelled knows that’s the real truth of travelling. It’s shocking, disturbing (there’s violence, sex, drug use, death), and tragic, but it’s uplifting because it’s about real people living a real life. Comparing this book to the stories below of sedate wealthy lives enlivened by canteen duty is almost impossible. This is an amazing book because the writer lived an amazing life.
The story is based on the author’s life, although the narrative has obviously been tweaked (he calls it a novel). Roberts was an armed robber who escaped from prison and fled to Bombay. He met up with a variety of interesting characters, including the woman, Karla, who shapes much of the story. He ends up living in the slums and starting a clinic there, but after a tragedy, leaves and joins the Bombay mafia, and his hero-father figure, “Kaderbhai”. After getting involved in Bollywood, spending months in an Indian prison, and travelling all around the world smuggling, he follows Kaderbhai to Afghanistan, where he discovers to his horror that both his life, Karla’s life, and the lives of thousands of others, have been manipulated by Kaderbhai to support the war in Afghanistan. He returns alive – although Kaderbhai doesn’t – and sees the downfall of the mafia group. When the story ends, he’s planning to go join the war in Sri Lanka.
It’s not just the crazy action, the philosophy, and the lyrical language (sometimes a little too purple) that makes this story – there’s people returning from the dead, twins attacking the hero in a Queen’s darkened tower-room, incredible riches and incredible poverty – but the characters, fascinating, unique, real, and human. The women – including Karla – are neither ciphers nor princesses, the men aren’t angels either, and best of all the hero isn’t heroic. He runs away from the fire in the slum, from the pain of the people, from the worst of everything – it is the Indians who cope and survive and make plans and explain to him how to live. It’s a reverse City of God. He learns, because he’s humble, and that’s why it’s real, because anyone who has travelled knows that’s the real truth of travelling. It’s shocking, disturbing (there’s violence, sex, drug use, death), and tragic, but it’s uplifting because it’s about real people living a real life. Comparing this book to the stories below of sedate wealthy lives enlivened by canteen duty is almost impossible. This is an amazing book because the writer lived an amazing life.
posted by Carly at 10:04 am
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