This book had been recommended by cousin Heather as she and I both like all things India. I am glad I took her advice as this is a great book! I think I have said before, I like author's first novels and this is Roberts first. It is loosely based on his life experiences but it is fiction. Like the main character Roberts was a fugitive from an Australian prison and fled to Bombay to "loose himself". I have put off blogging about this book as I don't know to to capture it. It is long, a bit complicated as the plot weaves in and out of so many characters lives. As the novel begins, Lin (aka Shantaram) arrives in Bombay on a fake passport and is befriended by a tour guide who introduces him to his eventual circle of friends. Being illegal and destitute, he resorts to the dark side and become involved with organized crime. For a period of time, he lives in the slums and runs a make shift medical clinic where he learns to love Bombay and her people amid all the poverty and squalor. Eventually with his connections to the mafia, he ends up helping his boss in a gun running war in Pakistan. And weaving back and forth in the story is his lover, Karla. How this all comes together and resolves itself is intriguing, captivating, irresistible, and makes you sad when the book ends - even after 933 pages. Ah, you would be better off reading the Amazon review. I am not doing it justice, but I would recommend it and I may even read it again - a rare, rare thing for me!
I think this is the first book all 5 of the Inglis clan read! It was very good and well worth the time it took to read.
ReplyDelete