The Mimic Men

Naipaul, V. S.

ISBN 10 : 0330522922 ISBN 13 : 9780330522922

Editeur : Picador, 2011

Synopsis

The Mystic Masseur, V. S. Naipaul's first published novel, is the story of the rise and rise of Ganesh, from failed primary school teacher and struggling masseur to author, revered mystic and MBE -- a journey equally memorable for its hilarity as its bewildering success. An unforgettable cast of characters witness this meteoric ascent: Ganesh's father-in-law, Ramlogan, whose shop gave the impression that 'every morning someone went over everything in it -- scales, Ramlogan, and all -- with a greased rag'; his aunt, the Great Belcher, with her troubling wind; his wife Leela, and her fondness for putting a punctuation mark after every word. Soon, Ganesh's small hut is filled with books (1,500, as his wife will attest), and his trousers and shirt disappear to be replaced by more suitable attire for a proper mystic. As 'The Woman Who Couldn't Eat' and 'Lover Boy', the man who fell in love with his bicycle, line up to be cured, it looks like the mystic masseur is surely destined for greatness. In one of the author's finest comic creations we see the immense sensitivity, humour and endlessly inventive imagination that have become the hallmarks of V. S. Naipaul's genius.

A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur :

A profound novel of cultural displacement, The Mimic Men masterfully evokes a colonial man’s experience in a postcolonial world.

Born of Indian heritage and raised on a British-dependent Caribbean island, Ralph Singh has retired to suburban London, writing his memoirs as a means to impose order on a chaotic existence. His memories lead him to recognize the paradox of his childhood during which he secretly fantasized about a heroic India, yet changed his name from Ranjit Kripalsingh. As he assesses his short-lived marriage to an ostentatious white woman, Singh realizes what has kept him from becoming a proper Englishman. But it is the return home and his subsequent immersion in the roiling political atmosphere of a newly self-governed nation that ultimately provide Singh with the necessary insight to discover the crux of his disillusionment.

Revue de presse :

“A Tolstoyan spirit.... The so-called Third World has produced no more brilliant literary artist.”–John Updike, The New Yorker

“Ambitious and successful.”–The Times (London)

À propos de cette édition

• Éditeur: Picador
• Date d'édition: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0330522922
• ISBN 13: 9780330522922
• Reliure: Livre broché
• Nombre de pages: 288