Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
When all your lifelong beliefs and principles crumble down around you, what do you do? This novel examines the situation from a respected Brahmin's perspective. The death of Naranappa throws up more challenges to the Great Learned sage Praneshacharya than he ever posed in his rebellious life. Through the turmoil posed by the sudden turn of events in his life, the sage must decide whether to live a life of repentance or to shed all fear and to redeem himself. "The novel ends, but does not conclude."
medium-paced
One should read this for the seminal work it is. Having grown-up in a conservative family I can understand and like the way author presented the rigidity of the principles. Where do people draw the line? Orthodoxy vs modernity, would show up in unimagined places in such households strangling free thought and voice. For a book that came in 1976 this is very bold and relevant even now. I can hardly imagine anyone of my parents generation, from my household and relatives, being able to read this book without cringing at every line.
If you're someone struggling to come to terms with matters like culture and modernity because of your upbringing, read this. This book won't answer your questions, but helps you question better. Any book that can make you stop and think should be celebrated, and this is one such book.
As someone who has great respect for the work of A.K. Ramanujan, particularly his Folktales from India and his essays, I felt this translation was a letdown. Maybe that's because he was from a generation that measured the success of translation by measuring the 'exactness'. I need to elaborate here. A.K. Ramanujan ji is a great academic and it's not really my place to comment on his work. But his greatest strength was also the greatest weakness. He strives to be exact and in doing so the text becomes pedagogic. It's almost like he chose that over the flow of narrative. For example at one place where he has to refer to Bhasmasura he does so by calling him Ash-Demon. This is but one example. The result is a narrative that's detailed albeit very choppy. Although I'm still grateful for the glossary.
A must read.
If you're someone struggling to come to terms with matters like culture and modernity because of your upbringing, read this. This book won't answer your questions, but helps you question better. Any book that can make you stop and think should be celebrated, and this is one such book.
As someone who has great respect for the work of A.K. Ramanujan, particularly his Folktales from India and his essays, I felt this translation was a letdown. Maybe that's because he was from a generation that measured the success of translation by measuring the 'exactness'. I need to elaborate here. A.K. Ramanujan ji is a great academic and it's not really my place to comment on his work. But his greatest strength was also the greatest weakness. He strives to be exact and in doing so the text becomes pedagogic. It's almost like he chose that over the flow of narrative. For example at one place where he has to refer to Bhasmasura he does so by calling him Ash-Demon. This is but one example. The result is a narrative that's detailed albeit very choppy. Although I'm still grateful for the glossary.
A must read.
Felt that the book tended to "tell" rather than "show"--there was much exposition on the general themes of brahmanism, salvation, self-denial, greed, lust, etc. but the story felt fleeting. Looking forward to discussing more at book club!
Good messages and discussions on caste, purity, and personal responsibility, (except perhaps when it came to women), but I didn't really enjoy the reading experience.
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I wish I knew how to read in Kannada, I am sure I would have bumped it to 4 stars.
I picked this book up because it's required reading for a course I'm taking, but I was pleasantly surprised at how good it is. It's a great story about old vs new, religious vs secular, and rediscovering one's self.