Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts

10 reviews

loquaciousleon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is a book that changed my life.

This is a book I was buying for people before I finished.

AND, this book is heavy. (A lot of trigger warnings.)

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

tmidge22's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny informative reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, and Sexual harassment

kayfab's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

cherub__'s review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This is a complicated book with a complicated history. In a sense, it's no wonder the page count approaches 1000. There is so much life, history, emotion, and tension packed into every single chapter. The prose can be poetic at times, but sometimes borders on pretentious. It's action-packed, but also slow-paced over the whole -- it really does feel as though I've read 7 years of the author's life. Rarely have I read a novel so capable of expressing scenes in an urban environment, and for a reader who loves urban travel/exploration, the early chapters are a delight of new characters and experiences.

There are two things I'm still chewing on after reading. The first is the matter of authenticity and authorial honesty. Shantaram is marketed as fiction, but the events are obviously inspired by the author's real life experiences in 1980s Mumbai and characters are either entirely real people or are barely-hidden composites of real people. Unfortunately, Prabaker's real-life family disputes the events as told in the story, which gives the story more than a hint of exploitation. This, in addition to the history of Orientalism and travel books going back to the 1960s, put Shantaram in somewhat uncomfortable company.

The second concerning aspect is the core philosophy seemingly held by the author and doled out over the course of the narrative. As Lin learns through his conversations with

Khaderbai

, there begins to be a unifying theme in the novel surrounding the notions of good vs. evil and personal redemption. The philosophy lesson contrasts subtly with a distinct lack of personal growth: Lin accumulates an increasingly fantastical amount of experiences but seems almost wholly immune to gathering the associated wisdom. He is, in essence, the same person/decision-maker at the end of the book as at the beginning, just with more power and an additional 7-8 years of stories to tell. Whether this is an intentional choice by the author or a byproduct of the author's true beliefs is hard to tell, but the proselytizing tone and minor hero complex displayed by the self-insert main character combined with a philosophy that more or less excuses the worst behaviors displayed in the book makes for an interesting reflection after reading.

Despite the above, I'd recommend reading this book to anybody who enjoys characters who are larger than life. Each little interaction in Leopold's or the slums was leaps and bounds more interesting than some of the more fantastical plot points!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Torture, Violence, Excrement, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, and War

Moderate: Car accident

msheftej's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use

jennimunro's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Violence, and War

zormal815's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I just felt like the narrator was a bit on a high horse about being connected to everyone in this culture that wasn’t his own. I guess it felt a bit too white savior? The story was ok but representation in this book was just off.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, and Cultural appropriation

yaelm's review

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Rape, Blood, War, and Injury/Injury detail

thespinystacks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Wow. I’ll be thinking of Lin, Prabaker, Jonny Cigar and more for the rest of my life.

This was a beautiful story of a man that was on the run from his crimes. Usually that wouldn’t excite me or make me want to read a novel - but Lin is a man who seemed to be constantly learning about the world, and his place in the world.

This was a HUGE undertaking. It’s a commitment that at times I didn’t know if I would complete, but I am glad that I did. I was lost for words through much of this book. This review won’t ever do it justice. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Blood

Moderate: Murder

amandajoy's review against another edition

I just did not have the patience to read about a self indulgent white guy. Maybe I’ll come back to it another time. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Confinement, Drug use, and Violence