Whew. 933 pages is a lot but hey, it was absolutely worth it. Shantaram is not one of the best books I've ever read but it is certainly one of the most *enjoyable*, and on that criterion I would probably put it in the Top 5 easily. It's a book that made me really want to go to India, it made me more aware of how priviliged I am, it made me reassess what exactly I want to achieve in my life and what my direction is and most of all, it really really made me want to go to India!

 

Let me start by saying this book is not particularly well-written, which is actually a good thing because that makes it tremendously easy to read. And trust me, it had better be easy to read, weighing in at 933 pages. Despite the fact that "Love In The Time Of Cholera" was probably the better book (of those I've read this year), I can comfortably say that Shantaram was far more enjoyable and important for me. I could not read 933 pages of Marquez back to back, for example, despite the fact that I love him to bits.

 

This book appealed to me on many levels. First of all, pure entertainment value. The things that happen to the protagonist are really quite amazing and the fact that it's largely autobiographical and, thus, based on a true story, really boggles the mind. The book is about a Melbourne man who is convicted to 20 years jail for a spate of armed robberies he committed whilst addicted to heroin. After about a year in Melbourne's maximum security prison, he decides that the jailbird life is not for him and escapes over the front wall in broad daylight. He finds himself in India, on a fake NZ passport, and quickly embroils himself in all manner of adventures with a multitude of characters to guide him (or sometimes hinder him) along the way.

 

Secondly, I love the fact that is book is one-part travel journal. I personally love to travel and see internationalism as a key part of who I am and the life I want to lead so I love reading travel writing, other people's thoughts about integrating into another country, etc. The protagonist, Lin or Linbaba as he comes to be known, is full of interesting thoughts and observations about life in India. As someone who comes to really embrace the Indian lifestyle, he provides a refreshing point of view from a Western standpoint.

 

Finally, the ideological discussions in the book interest me somewhat also. They are by no means groundbreaking or even that deep but they do give the book a nice philosophical touch and certainly make you think.

 

The book is by no means perfect, in fact it is quite flawed but hey, it's a debut novel after all. The flaws are generally in the language. Roberts overextends himself many times by trying too hard to be poetic, it just doesn't gel. A lot of the scenes in which he is with his love interest, I found particularly uncomfortable and unineteresting. Truly, his relationship with Karla (this Swiss chick he falls for) failed to engage me as a reader at all and only when certain things come to light at the very end do I become the least bit interested in it.

 

Over all, its flaws contribute to the overall beauty of the book. It is simple and yet it's beautiful because the simple meditations on human nature and cultural integration that are present in this book are all you need to build a solid ideology upon. You can't help but love the protagonist because he is someone we all, more or less, want to be like. He may be a violent, drug-addicted man but he is a human being with a "huge heart", he is moralistic and he stands up for what he believes in. The hero cliche, perhaps, but a beautiful cliche to aspire to, nonetheless.

 

I thoroughly recommend this book, do not be turned off by its size because it is extremely readable and it will keep you enthralled from cover to cover.

 

Alex

Book leant to me by a friend.

 

Thanks to Publishers Weekly for the plot summary:

Kathy Nicolo is a recovering addict whose husband has left her and who is making her way in the straight world with her own cleaning business. When her house in the California hills is mistakenly seized by the county for back taxes and sold at public auction, she finds herself living out of her car and on the brink of desperation. Once a wealthy and powerful man in Iran and a colonel in the army under the Shah's rule, Behrani is now a struggling immigrant who hopes that he can sell the house for a large profit, so that he can once again provide his family with a lifestyle like the one they enjoyed in Iran. Emotions take precedence over ethics, logic, love and the law as their paths collide in a surprising and tragic conclusion.

 

So on to my thoughts. I did enjoy the book and it certainly captured a very interesting element of the immigrant experience, both in America and Australia. Although most people who've read the book claim to sympathise easily with both characters, my sympathies lied mostly with Behrani because I know what my parents had to go through, being educated and fully qualified migrants where their credentials meant absolutely nothing.

 

The character development is interesting but not exceptional. Dubus does delve deeply into the feelings and motivations of the characters that lead them to commit their acts but nothing exceptional is revealed in them, nor do they go through any amazing transformations. The book is simply a good painting of life in America from the perspectives of two seemingly typical Americans.

 

This painting of life and the "American Dream" was my favourite aspect of the book, along with the few random insights into Iranian culture (which I think Dubus pulled off quite well, actually). The lives of the characters themselves didnt really interest me that much, in fact they made me feel uncomfortable at times. I think, however, this book's real problem lies in the actual sequence of events that occurs. Basically, the climactic ending is overblown and overdone, it is far too 'Hollywood' and movie-adaptable. A book that started off as an introspective piece turned into a Die Hard-style action drama.

 

For this reason, I was disappointed with Dubus for ruining a fantastic concept with a less than credible ending. Despite the fact that I cant provide an alternative ending for Dubus, I still think he could've toned down the bombastic ending a lot to make the book seem much more serious. The ending is clearly designed to leave you reeling but instead, I saw it a mile away and felt cheap, like I'd gone from reading a good piece of literature to Archer-style trash.

 

Overall, I don't recommend this book but it isn't the worst thing I've read either. I did derive some pleasure out of it so... 2.5 stars.

 

Alex

 

PS. Reading Shantaram at the moment, almost half-way through and it's definitely one of the best books I've read, definitely the best this year. Look out for a review and/or random quotes.

 

 

It was about time I did another review eh? After a great trip to Queensland for SPM (where the weather was freakin' awesome... argh... its raining outside, Melbourne) I'm back home and ready to once again forgo all schoolwork for AIESEC and blogging. Woo.

 

Anyways,

 

This is the first non-fiction novel that I've read in a while but it was certianly very much worth it. The author, Professor Noam Chomsky is an American-born half-Ukrainian, half-Belarussian Jew. Most of his work and academic qualifications are in the field of linguistics, a field in which he has had a huge impact. But nowadays, Chomsky is best known for his political views, specifically his vocal opposition of United States foreign policy and his frequent support of the New Left.

 

For someone like me, still struggling to come to terms with my personal beliefs in a world of clashing and competing political and economic ideologies, this book was another nail in the coffin of any remaining right-wing sympathies left inside. It seems I'm turning into a lefty!

 

Hegemony or Survival is a critical look at American foreign policy in the second half of the 20th century. It looks particularly at the US' impact in Latin America and the Middle East. While much of the world was shocked by Bush 2's actions in attacking Iraq as it seemed to indicate a new approach to foreign policy from the US, preemptive strikes against nations they considered a threat to their security, Chomsky believes that this has been the crux of US Foreign Policy all along.

Chomsky argues that frequent US incursions into various Latin American countries such as Cuba, Nicaragua and Panama during the 70s, 80s and 90s are indicative of their totalitarian imperial aims for the rest of the world. Chomsky believes that the USA is willing to pursue hegemony over the rest of the world at any cost, even if its destabilising and ultimately leads to oblivion.

Chomsky contends that the second superpower is International Public Opinion and that only we have the power, with our vocal protest and opposition, to stop the Bush Regime and probably subsequent American regimes (that will likely act in the same  way) from causing untold damage to the world.

 

The reason why I enjoyed this book so much is because instead of using personal attacks and derogatory humour, like many of his contemoraries, Chomsky has chosen to back up his argument with very sound logic, reason and historical evidence. His logic is just too difficult to refute at times. For example, Chomsky defines terrorism as:  "the calculated use of violence or the threat of violence to inculcate fear; intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological." A definition he sourced from a US army manual. By this definition, it is clear that the political assassinations, sanctions and other various forms of coercion and pressure conducted by the US in Latin America and the Middle East over the course of the last century is quite clearly state terrorism.

 

I can't go into detail obviously but I strongly recommend you read this book, particularly if you are a supporter of the US-led war on Iraq or US foreign policy. It will change the way you think.

 

Alex

 

The Alchemist is just one of those books. In the same vein as "The Da Vinci Code" and Harry Potter, it is a book that you will often stumble across people reading on the train, tram, or any other random public place. It's one of *those* books for the masses. This was what first made me wary.

 

Second, I thought back to a long argument I had with an old friend of mine named Marija (now on a traineeship with PWC in California). She was vehemently arguing that Coelho was superior to Marquez. This made me wary once more. She claimed that Marquez' books were "all about sex" and that annoyed her and she much preferred Coelho for that reason, also because she found Coelho's novels to be helpful in motivating her, etc. I was wary first of all because someone who could so obviously misunderstand Marquez can't possibly have good taste in literature, and secondly because I'm wary of any book that "motivates".

 

So, I figured I would check out this Coelho character and set my mind at ease so, what luck to find two of his novels in the second-hand bookstore near uni.

 

To all you Coelho fans out there, I apologise, I am going to be savage. Please keep in mind that quality is always in the eye of the beholder so if you love him then you can go on loving him and don't hate me for hating him...

 

IMHO...

 

 The Alchemist is a terrible book. It is, essentially, a fable about a little shepherd boy from Spain who goes on a quest to fulfil his "Personal Legend" which takes him all the way to Egypt. On this quest he encounters a succession of characters and he learns lessons from all of these encounters. The lessons are such cliched, but nonetheless, important things as self-empowerment, overcoming depression and believing in dreams. Not that I don't think these are important...

 

They are important things but I just found this novel so damn puerile and primitive that it failed to inspire me to do anything more than burn it. I cannot read it in Portuguese but the English translation is enough to tell me that the language is, at best, simplistic. The plot itself is so old and tired that it leaves me wondering why I didn't just copy every other fable and sell it all over the world to rapturous applause. The morals are important but simple also and things that we can learn in many other ways.

 

I'm even finding it difficult to write about this book because there is just nothing to write about...

 

I guess this book is just not for me. If you felt empowered or whatever by this book, good for you, I prefer to read novels that teach me something new.

 

Alex

Well... seemingly not many people were interested in my last HK film review :( so I'm gonna put up a book review!

 

Gabriel García Márquez is one of my favourite authors, born in Colombia and now residing in Mexico, he has written many novels. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1982 and his best known work is One Hundred Years of Solitude (Cien Años de Soledad), a book which I have also read.

 

However, having read this book, I have a new favourite Márquez book! Although it is not as acclaimed, I believe this book to be better than One Hundred Years of Solitude.

 

The book is basically a dissection of love in all of its forms. It explores both physical and romantic love, the love of a married couple and the youthful romance between two teens. It looks at love from both a cynical and hopeful point of view, which I found to be unique and interesting.

 

The book's main protagonista is Fermina Daza and it explores her relationship with a man named Florentina Ariza. This relationship spans more than 50 years and is not always a straight-forward one. In fact, for the most part of that 50 years, Fermina and Florentina never speak. But the culmination of that 50 years and its humble beginnings are the formative years.

 

The most interesting issue the novel broaches is life in old age and how that interacts with love. In an age where most people would consider themselves to be degenerating, stagnating and on their way to death, Márquez effortlessly expresses the hope and happiness of a couple rekindling a love affair that was never properly started.

 

Márquez also comments on the societal perception of marriage and, indeed, even its sanctity and relevance to the society of today.

 

The most impressive thing about this novel, however, is how Márquez effortlessly weaves the stories of two people, that are seemingly parallel yet, in reality, have many important junctures. He weaves in and out of these stories with the ease of a pair of knitting needles and, not even once, is there an uncomfortable gap in the narrative.

 

Of course, like with any translated text, it is impossible for me to understand all the subtle nuances in this novel without having read its original Spanish, but the translation was wonderful and so was the novel. I recommend it to absolutely anyone who has ever asked themselves the question of what "love" really is and who does it really apply to.

 

A challenging yet unforgettable read, 5 stars.

 

Alex

 

PS. Next I will be reviewing the movie "The Yes Men" and "The Alchemist", a book by Paulo Coelho. For those that are bored of my even-handed approach, read my Alchemist review because it will be absolutely controversial. I hated the book and I hate Paulo Coelho.

Hooray for intelligence, I'm adding a section for literary reviews... that means BOOKS you dumbasses.

 

This book was given to me by my favourite trainee... Abigail!!! Yay for Abi! I love Abi!!! Abi's Great!!! (Is Abi reading this? I hope so... or it's been wasted) I mentioned to her that another book I read made me want to travel to India, so she gave me this under the pretense that it may make me wish to go to Kabul. Well, I can't say it did, it didn't exactly paint Kabul in the best of lights, but it certainly was an interesting novel!

 

I'm gonna lift the summary of the story right off Amazon.com because I can't be bothered writing one up myself (no point, doesn't contain my opinion): 

 

The Kite Runner follows the story of Amir, the privileged son of a wealthy businessman in Kabul, and Hassan, the son of Amir's father's servant. As children in the relatively stable Afghanistan of the early 1970s, the boys are inseparable. They spend idyllic days running kites and telling stories of mystical places and powerful warriors until an unspeakable event changes the nature of their relationship forever, and eventually cements their bond in ways neither boy could have ever predicted. Even after Amir and his father flee to America, Amir remains haunted by his cowardly actions and disloyalty. In part, it is these demons and the sometimes impossible quest for forgiveness that bring him back to his war-torn native land after it comes under Taliban rule.

 

The book's author, Khaled Hosseini, was a migrant to America from Afghanistan... much like the book's protagonist, Amir... and The Kite Runner is his first novel, along with being the first Afghan novel to be written in English.

 

It is a pretty impressive debut. Not to mention being very well written, Hosseini manages to convey a part American/part Afghan consciousness, along with all the feelings of migrating to a foreign country. The characters that he builds throughout the novel seem very real and plausible, despite some of the goings on being a little bit less-so. Culturally speaking, I cannot be the judge of how accurate this novel is, as my own understanding of Afghan culture is extremely limited... but if it is accurate, then the book is rich in culture and will contribute to your understanding of Afghan culture 10-fold.

 

The book deals with difficult concepts such as: love (the obligatory and in many different forms), trust between childhood friends, the loss of childhood innocence, the relationships between children and their parents, middle-eastern politics, migration, etc and yet it does these rather effortlessly. The lessons the book teaches are also hard to digest at times but, overall, quite worthwhile.

 

I recommend this book to anyone, it is written in simple language and the concepts are not too difficult, however it will really improve your knowledge of Afghan culture and contribute to your understanding of what it is to be a migrant from an oppressive/conservative religous (or political) regime to a Western country like America or Australia. To this I could relate, maybe you will too.

 

Hosseini's Kite Runner.... 3.5 stars.

 

Alex