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pinecone60's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
klinejosh94's review against another edition
5.0
“When you sick you forget what it is to be well. And when you well you don’t really know what it is to be sick.”
clitbooks's review against another edition
5.0
my heart, my heart!— the colonial middle class, the rummaging for better. the start of the immigrant’s need for education. and thick, humid prose: the trinidadian sun is always suffocating here; the displaced, indentured servant’s culture clings ever on.
14. to have lived without even attempting to lay claim to one’s portion of the earth; to have lived and died as one had been born: unnecessary and unaccommodated.
59. being able to hold a cigarette between his greasy fingers and greasy lips without staining it.
222. to amuse her, he read from his novels, expounded Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus, made her learn the quotations hanging on the wall, made her sit still while he unsuccessfully tried to sketch her.
——
248. what do you want me to do with the food you feed me? what?
—-
357. I raised my hand but I did not know if it got to the top. I opened my mouth to cry for help. water filled it. I thought I was going to die, and I closed my eyes because I did not want to look at the water.
413. at first, this was only a pose, and imitation of his father.
—
450. what about the crosswords, mohun. couldnt you make me win just one?
—
545. while they waited for the revolution, life had to be lived
546. I’ll break the bow over her parents head. people starving, not getting enough to eat in Trinidad, and she playing the violin in Canada!
588. Mr Biswas needed his son’s interest and anger. in all the world, there was no one else to whom he could complain.
14. to have lived without even attempting to lay claim to one’s portion of the earth; to have lived and died as one had been born: unnecessary and unaccommodated.
59. being able to hold a cigarette between his greasy fingers and greasy lips without staining it.
222. to amuse her, he read from his novels, expounded Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus, made her learn the quotations hanging on the wall, made her sit still while he unsuccessfully tried to sketch her.
——
248. what do you want me to do with the food you feed me? what?
—-
357. I raised my hand but I did not know if it got to the top. I opened my mouth to cry for help. water filled it. I thought I was going to die, and I closed my eyes because I did not want to look at the water.
413. at first, this was only a pose, and imitation of his father.
—
450. what about the crosswords, mohun. couldnt you make me win just one?
—
545. while they waited for the revolution, life had to be lived
546. I’ll break the bow over her parents head. people starving, not getting enough to eat in Trinidad, and she playing the violin in Canada!
588. Mr Biswas needed his son’s interest and anger. in all the world, there was no one else to whom he could complain.
ctf149's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
sarahrussell's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
tctas2024's review against another edition
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
The last 180 pages were amazing, the rest of the book was hard to get into. The main character was rather un-relatable and his moodiness made it hard to cheer for him at times. The feeling of being stuck and wanting to find a new life was something that resonated, but the methods of going about achieving that other life were not as much.
carolynmorgan's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
3.5
zaira_frank_2108's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
deegee24's review against another edition
5.0
Without a doubt, one of the best novels since 1945. The narrative style is a throwback to the Victorian era, but Naipaul makes it seem entirely fresh and natural. Mohan Biswas, one of the most memorable characters in modern fiction, struggles to lift himself up into middle-class respectability. His lifelong quest to build himself a house is foiled time and time again by life's little disappointments. Naipaul in life was evidently quite the misogynist, but his female characters are intelligent, sympathetic and quite independent, though their lives are necessarily circumscribed by the patriarchy of a traditional Hindu society. The book is filled with beautiful passages rendering the life of the Indian diasporic community in Trinidad--landscapes and urban dwellings leap off the page and you feel almost as if you've been there.
veecaswell's review against another edition
2.0
if the first 90 pages of bickering and complaining continue for the next five hundred, a summary of this book is fine by me.