Reviews with content warning for Suicidal thoughts - A Passage North

You can say so much about A Passage North, and not one word will be enough to describe how beautiful and meditative this book is. I should start and say that this book is absolutely not for everyone. It’s incredibly slow-paced, it meanders, a single sentence/thought can go on for an entire paragraph, and some may find it too erudite for their taste (which is completely fair).

The opening passage—a “mere” three sentences long that spans two pages—makes clear what’s in store for the reader in terms of pacing, approach, and writing style. And, for me, it was one of the most beautiful opening passages I’ve read in a long while. Arudpragasam writes in such a reflective and thought-provoking way that just stays with you from start to end. Reading this book is a moving experience told from the perspective of Krishan, the protagonist, whose thoughts wander off to philosophical ideas of being, death, desire, love, among other themes. Philosophical ideas themselves are difficult to tackle, and yet, Arudpragasam masterfully ties them to Tamil history to also reflect on their grief and trauma stemming from the Sri Lankan Civil War.

A Passage North is as much a philosophical lesson as it is a history lesson. It will make you pause and reflect on what you just read. And, really, it’s incredible to realize that so much thinking can take place in the span of a train ride, which is the case for Krishan, who was on his way north to his grandmother’s caretaker’s funeral. This journey was as poignant for me as it likely was for the protagonist.

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harshibuvan's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

5.0

I found this book breathtakingly beautiful with the imagery and stories. At the same time it broke my heart reading the plight of the Tamil people that I would have been a part of it my parents hadn't left Srilanka. There’s something chilling about reading about murder in a book, with the sense that it was a part of history, that it happened way before you were born, and then talking about it with your parents who tell you they remember reading it in the newspapers when they were young adults.

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sandaru's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective sad 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

4.75

A lot to say about this book. First of all the author Anuk is a friend of my husband and he is also a Sri Lankan. so this book speaks a little close to my heart. The book is mostly written around the memories of the main character Krishan in fragments and in lengthy descriptions of the smallest details and its psychologies. There are accountable descriptions of the smallest not so-important details within topic like war, Tamil funeral ceremonies, bereavement and grief. And also about relationships with other characters. I loved how Krishan describes his grandmother's condition, the funeral of Rani (the caretaker of his grandmother).

He once mentions how after a human dies the process of letting go is done gradually, stage by state. First the funeral body then we reduce it to ashes and that also after a while we reduce to a photograph of the dead.

Being shortlisted for the Booker prize 2021, a lot of book critics spoke about how lengthy the sentences are, which is true. Sometimes one sentence would start from one page and the same one ends in the next page. This is something I would actually be bothered usually. However, the prose language Anuk used did not bore me except for the parts he spoke about the main character's brief relationship with Anjum, a hippie, bi-sexual girl he met in India. The rest of the lengthy paragraphs were very much interesting to me as they explored more of a psychological aspect than metaphysical subjects.

Also this year I shall be very critical and strict the way I give star reviews to a book. This did not fall into 5 star category only because of the brief part about his relationship that I was not interested in. Other than that this is an awesome book for me to start 2022.

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strabbyfieldz's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

a collection of thoughts, themes and ideas presented just like the echos of memory. loved the reference to mythological stories contrasted with the historical events that occurred.

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yatinarora's review against another edition

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adventurous informative inspiring sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

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narpetcards's review against another edition

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emotional reflective 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

4.0

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deedireads's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.

TL;DR REVIEW:

A Passage North is undoubtedly a beautiful and impressive novel. At times, it felt a bit over the top to me, but on the whole I liked it and I’m glad I read it.

For you if: You are open to experimental, description-heavy narration styles.

FULL REVIEW:

A Passage North was my first read from the 2021 Booker Prize longlist, and what a way to kick things off.

The book is about a Sri Lankan man named Krishan. Two things happen to kick us off: he receives an email from an ex-girlfriend, Anjum; and he learns that his grandmother’s former caretaker, Rani, has fallen down a well and died. The novel takes place over the following two days or so, as he travels north to Rani’s village to attend her funeral.

So much of this just feels like a Booker book — heavy themes, lyrical prose … and not a single bit of dialogue in the whole book, lol. There are conversations recounted and remembered, but none of them are written as dialogue. The whole novel takes place inside the thoughts and memories swirling around Krishan’s head — memories of his time at university, of stories and poems that moved him, of his relationship with Anjum, of his grandmother’s fierce denial of her aging body contrasted with Rani’s halfhearted battle with depression and PTSD.

Paragraphs go on for whole pages or more, while sentences go on forever and ever, never ceasing, as though they could keep going forever, as though you will never reach the end, twisting and turning around in his thoughts with momentum, with revision, and just when you think they’re concluding, there’s another clause, another comma, another line taunting you, making you feel as if you’re trapped for all eternity.

You know that feeling when you stay in a really fancy hotel or do something bougie and you’re like this is amazing, but also so extra? That’s how I felt about this book. The narration style often felt overworked, to the point where it was almost distracting. I did sink into it during some stretches, and the audiobook helped a LOT, and it really was a beautiful, impressive book. So I walked away feeling net positive.

If you love lyricism and you’re up for a challenge, give this one a shot. But if you’re not one for experimental styles, proceed with caution.

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