Pages - 936

ISBN:  - 13: 9781920769208

Published - 2004

Shantaram

by: Gregory David Roberts

Like Vegemite, this Aussie export is one you’ll either love or hate. Unaware of its polarizing effect on readers when I read it; I loved it as much as I love Vegemite, very much. The tale of an escaped convict from a high security prison in Australia. The main character, Linbaba, escapes to Bombay and is lost in its seedy underworld and surprisingly complex slums. Apprenticed by the Bombay mafia, lost again in a opioid haze, he bounces from Bollywood films, gurus, passport counterfeiting and even joins the mujahideen. There is some romance but it is in no way a romance novel. It’s a rollicking, thinly disguised, autobiographical tale.

This is a tale of transformation and an expose of how there is potential for good in all of us. It challenges the stigma of criminals, slums and the underworld. I found this thought provoking and refreshing.  It explores the depths of human complexity like, no self-help book can.  Not all share this take away from the book.

It is a travel tale that can’t be found in the Lonely Planet guides but has the potential to woo you to India like no guide book can.  

I had not read the diametrically opposed opinions before I read it but later discovered its cult like following. Like other cults many people are repelled by it partly due to a profound dislike for the main character partly its lack of prosy professionalism. Those with the most exciting tales are not always the expert authors. This novel held my attention for the entire 900 + pages. It softened my cliche attitudes to criminals and drug addiction. It proved to be a transformational journey for my attitudes and a lot of fun.