On 20th May the Indian summer monsoon will begin to envelop the country in two great wet arms, one coming from the east, the other from the wes... read full description
reviews
Jan 29, 2012
Erika
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I have read this book several times, usually as a summer read at the beach, and each time I am transported to alluring and exotic places and times by Frater's colorful descriptions and lyrical prose. The binding of my original copy is broken, with the pages - stained with sweat, tanning oil, seawater, sand and muck - secured between the covers by means of a large rubber band. Yet the experience of reading the battered pages while sweltering in the heat and humidity of a summer's More...
Dec 09, 2011
Nandakishore
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This is, without doubt, the most fascinating travelogue I have ever read. Frater follows the monsoon from its genesis in Kerala up to Cherrapunji in Assam, the wettest place on earth: in the process, he gives fascinating insights about India, the monsoon, India + the monsoon (a strange entity!) and human nature in general. His writing is wryly humorous (without being sarcastic) and sympathetic at the same time.
Being from Kerala, I know and love the monsoon. So it was all the more More...
Being from Kerala, I know and love the monsoon. So it was all the more More...
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Nov 18, 2010
Shahina
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Frater has captured India's emotion filled response to this fantastic phenomenon. There are paragraphs that leave you feeling drenched and free. It is a refreshing travelogue with a lot of humour, facts, incidents and conversations spanning India and its people from Kanyakumari to Cherrapunji.
Yes, that’s what he has done; after welcoming the bursts at Trivandrum he has followed the south west arm of the Monsoon culminating this unique experience at Cherrapunji where he finally meets up wi More...
Yes, that’s what he has done; after welcoming the bursts at Trivandrum he has followed the south west arm of the Monsoon culminating this unique experience at Cherrapunji where he finally meets up wi More...
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Feb 09, 2012
Elizabeth
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I loved this book!! We found it in a stack of books marked "free" on someone's lawn as we walked home from the market. We liked the look of the cover and because it is a Penguin book decided to give it a try. We. Couldn't. Put. It. Down.
Half memoir, half travel diary, it is wonderfully paced. How wonderful to get a completely different view of rain. At one point in Bombay, there is a lovely picture of a little girl leaping around in the pouring rain and happily calling to her More...
Half memoir, half travel diary, it is wonderfully paced. How wonderful to get a completely different view of rain. At one point in Bombay, there is a lovely picture of a little girl leaping around in the pouring rain and happily calling to her More...
Jan 12, 2008
Raghu
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Alexander Frater's book is a tribute to the phenomenon of the monsoon and the romance associated with it in the popular culture of India. Frater is on a journey through India with the sole aim of following the monsoon from the tip of the south western coast of India all the way along the west coast up north to Delhi and then hopping on to Calcutta and then on to Shillong in North East Meghalaya and then ending the 'pilgrimage' in Cherrapunji, the wettest place on earth which gets nearly 500 inc
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May 29, 2011
Vasha7
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A pleasant though rather inconsequential account of a journey through India, prompted by health troubles and family memories (and the freelancer's eternal search for something to write about). Frater affects a rather naive tone, which I think is a pose. But his experiences, such as they are, are not badly served by his way of suggesting that he's just setting things down as they passed his eyes, or thoughts as they popped into his head.
Aug 11, 2011
Violet
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I was a little apprehensive to read it because I have never read a travelogue before. But this is much more than just travel. It is also a part memoir. He is so good with words, he can actually paint a picture before your eyes.
In the book, he follows the monsoon from Trivandrum (the southernmost point in India, well almost) up to the north. I knew monsoon is important to India, important to agriculture and all, but this book gives you a different perspective altogether. He describes More...
In the book, he follows the monsoon from Trivandrum (the southernmost point in India, well almost) up to the north. I knew monsoon is important to India, important to agriculture and all, but this book gives you a different perspective altogether. He describes More...
Sep 02, 2011
Venkateshwaran
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I was searching for a lot of books under travel memoir genre for some months and I got really piqued with this book and as soon as i bought it, thats it..I got involved with the book, the gloomy weather near my place, mingled with the monsoons and kindled my spirits also to chase monsoon at some point in my life. Gr8 writing by Frater. You can experience what he has experienced - The chill, the completeness, the chase and finally the monsoons. For who those think monsoons are life to many people
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Jan 16, 2012
Sashi
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Excellent travel book, from the beginning of the SW monsoon in India in Kerala to its break on the Himalyas and then to its return as the SE monsoon. All that he describes about the hazzle he went thro to just step foot in Chirapunji, rings very true.
May 16, 2009
Bethany
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The best travel memoir I've read on India (and I've read tons!). Frater literally chased the monsoon through India, which is a very interesting atomospheric and cultural phenomenon. It's funny and charming and a fantastic glimpse of life on the subcontinent.
Aug 01, 2010
Tom
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A great travel book (in a world where travel books tend to be average at best), which especially appealed due to my particular circumstances (ie, in India, during the monsoon).
Jan 22, 2012
My diary says I read this in 1991 but I have exactly zero recollection of it.
Mar 28, 2011
Dayna
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Lovely combination of childhood memoir, science and travel book. I loved reading how the Indians emotionally are tied to the monsoon.
May 07, 2011
Amit
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I read it only to know about the monsoon in India, and wasn't expecting anything more. And I got just that. Frater accounts the travel along with, and sometimes following the rain clouds on road, rail and by flight, rather well. He also makes references to other, but older works on the monsoon that I think will be useful to those who want to know more about it. But otherwise, not a particularly enjoyable read.
Aug 02, 2011
Sharanya
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Nice travelouge. Gives a decent perspective of what monsoon means to different people in India
Mar 11, 2008
Jenelle
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I connected with this book in a unique way because the author embarked on part of the same journey I experienced in India. At times I found myself shelving it in place of more exciting books but overall it was an especially interesting way to view India, through its weather.
Mar 29, 2008
Brad
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I bought this in New Delhi and read it fitfully throughout India but only really got hooked once I got back to the states. An excellent travel book, with all my favorite features: obsession, hardship, idiosyncracy. Highly recommended.
Dec 16, 2009
Jen
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I've never been to India but I still find it fascinating, and I'm always a willing armchair traveler. This is an easy and entertaining read. The author explores India prior to/as the monsoon hits. I didn't want to leave at the end.
Aug 27, 2007
Michael
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Lovely travel book set in India, the author travels with the monsoon from the tip of India up to the Himalayas meeting some great people along the way.
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