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54th out of 297 books
—
35 voters
The Mystic Masseur
by
V.S. Naipaul
Two of V. S. Naipaul's earliest novels, already displaying his humour, endless inventiveness and imaginitive brilliance.
"The Mystic Masseu"r tells the story of Ganesh, who at the beginning of the novel is a struggling masseur at a time when 'masseurs were ten a penny in Trinidad'. From failed primary-school teacher and masseur to author, revered mystic and MBE, his is a jo...more
"The Mystic Masseu"r tells the story of Ganesh, who at the beginning of the novel is a struggling masseur at a time when 'masseurs were ten a penny in Trinidad'. From failed primary-school teacher and masseur to author, revered mystic and MBE, his is a jo...more
Paperback
Published
by Pan MacMillan
(first published 1957)
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This is charming novel and the first work by V.S Naipaul who was awarded the Nobel Prize for this book. Moreover, the movies was filmed in Trinidad and was released in 2001. It will be interesting to watch the movie too. I was impressed by Ganesh's success later in the novel
Recommendation : I would like to recommend this book for people who desire to succed in theier futre. This bokk describes well how someone can control their mind psychologically. If your mind is ver messy, it will absol...more
This is charming novel and the first work by V.S Naipaul who was awarded the Nobel Prize for this book. Moreover, the movies was filmed in Trinidad and was released in 2001. It will be interesting to watch the movie too. I was impressed by Ganesh's success later in the novel
Recommendation : I would like to recommend this book for people who desire to succed in theier futre. This bokk describes well how someone can control their mind psychologically. If your mind is ver messy, it will absol...more
This is Naipaul’s first novel, published in 1957, an amusing, if snarky, little satire on life in the Hindu community of Trinidad. The comedy in the novel is in the contrast between the island’s backwater reality and its pretensions to quality. The protagonist is one Ganesh Ramsumair, the best educated member in his community. Ganesh fails at teaching, marries “well,” and removes to a small village where he establishes himself first as a masseur, then a mystic, then a politician. In between he w...more
Naipaul's first novel; a comic satire set in the Indian community on Trinidad in the 1930s and 1940s. Ganesh Ramsumair stumbles through life and marraige and into the masseur of the titile, quite by accident. His political career is also entirely accidental.There is a splendid cast of colourful characters and thr comice and slaprtick element is high. There is also an undernote of satire. The characters have been described as Dickensian, however I felt that there was just a touch of P G Wodehouse...more
This is Naipaul's first novel, which I found at my local library in a volume of his first three novels. Apparently Naipaul has had two phases in his writing: an early comic vision of which The Mystic Masseur is an example and a later disturbing darker period.
V S Naipaul was born in Trinidad, an island in the Caribbean, to which his grandfather had come from India. The island is a polyglot of races, nationalities and languages and has been ruled by various European nations since the 15th centu...more
I am torn between anywhere from 2 to 5 stars on this book. It reads really quickly, especially in the first half. I read 100 pages on Wednesday and could hardly put it down and was so excited to give it a 5 star review and recommend it to everyone. Then Thursday came and I read the remaining 100 pages but struggled a little more and didn't feel nearly as into it.
It's absolutely wonderful as a description of the life of Indians in Trinidad, who were sent there as indentured servants after the U....more
It's absolutely wonderful as a description of the life of Indians in Trinidad, who were sent there as indentured servants after the U....more
Review of 'The Mystic Masseur' by V.S.Naipaul
Shelf:Indian writer/Indian origin writer,Indian diaspora/post colonial lit/Carribean lit
Recommended for: Fans of Naipaul/realistic post colonial lit
Sir V.S.Naipaul has such a formiddable reputation,both as a scholarly writer & a curmudgeon,that readers/ppl are afraid to approach him(ask writer Paul Theroux!).
I feel lucky that i started my accquaintance with this writer through his first book 'The Mystic Masseur'(1957) which is rather simple &...more
The Mystic Masseur is more subtle in its social criticism than I had come to expect from Naipaul's semi-autobiographical works and collected essays. The author does not break narrative to make explicit commentary about Indian culture in Trinidad, but the characters that populate this novel represent types that undeniably speak of the cultural experience of Indians living in Trinidad. Naipaul's portraits aren't unequivocally positive, or negative for that matter. They're starkly realistic, and wh...more
I can't remember chuckling so much reading any book in the last few months.. Mystic Masseur by V.S Naipaul is one of the finest comic capers i have laid my eyes upon.It is the story of the rise of Ganesh Ramasumair,a failed Primary school teacher and struggling masseur to a writer ,mystic and finally a MBE(Member of executive council) in Trinidad.The book is written in the strangely hilarious English spoken by the Trinidadian people and is set in Colonial Trinidad. Sample some of the rioutous se...more
For the first 4/5ths of this book, it's just a sort of Dickensian tale of a young Hindu man in Trinidad entering adulthood and exploring his world, both spiritual and physical, through a host of eccentric characters that speak in the charming, simplistic island dialect. Once you start to hit the end of the book, you realize that there is more to the story, and it becomes slightly autobiographical, explaining how Naipaul arrived at his current set of beliefs regarding religion, poverty, war, and...more
Wonderfully written, with a dickensian flair for satire. At the end however I was left with a bitter taste in my mouth-- it's clear that the author didn't really like any of his characters very much. No hope for redemption. Understanding without empathy-- just exceedingly skilled mockery. Sort of a disappointment. But as the craft of writing goes this is pretty exemplary.
The dialogue is so hilarious and the language so endearing that I kept finding myself reading it outloud or wishing someone was reading it to me. I wanted to know more about every character, couldn't wait to spy on them again and find out what they would say or do next. Did I mention I LOVED the characters? I would give ths 5 stars but for the lackluster ending.
I needed a book to read on the el as i rode down to the Metra board meeting the other day, and Gravity's Rainbow would not, under any circumstances, fit in my pocket, so i brought this book, recently purchased at Half Price Books (Niles) along with me.
My sister is a dedicated detractor of Naipaul based on her experience reading Guerrillas. I haven't read that book, but i did read A Bend in the River and agree with some of her reasons for disliking him: his nihilistic world view and general unple...more
My sister is a dedicated detractor of Naipaul based on her experience reading Guerrillas. I haven't read that book, but i did read A Bend in the River and agree with some of her reasons for disliking him: his nihilistic world view and general unple...more
This was a tale of naked ambition and casual wife-beating amongst Trinidad's Indian community in the 1940s. Written as a comedy, it didn't really raise any belly-laughs with me, but I suspect if I knew more about Trinidad, and Indian culture in that country, I would have regarded it as a brilliant satire. I also suspect some profound points were being made about religion and politics but allegory usually goes right over my head. The characters aren't terribly likeable; notably the main character...more
I realize this book was published in 1957 I think, but there were some parts that were just disturbing--not because they were graphic, but because they were mentioned so casually. Like threatening and beating your wife as normal part of marriage. And "Niggergram" to refer to the gossip network in Trinidad. Why did this book win a Nobel Prize? This might be another case that I'm missing a critical context or element of this book that but if there is, I clearly don't get it. But then, I know very...more
Aug 09, 2011
Radhika
added it
A story of Ganesh Ramsumair a failed school teacher, who becomes a village masseur. In time he is believed to be a revered mystic. Opportunity gets him to become a revered poltician and thriving entreprenuer in Trinindad. In the 1940's the masseurs were revered as medical practitioners in Trinidad.
Leela the wife of Ganesh Ramsumair is excessively fond of punctuation marks, since she is one of the few girls who went to school in that generation. Leela father Ramalogan a man of extreme mood change...more
Leela the wife of Ganesh Ramsumair is excessively fond of punctuation marks, since she is one of the few girls who went to school in that generation. Leela father Ramalogan a man of extreme mood change...more
Charming, silly and so funny. It took me a while, and some recollecting, after I'd read the book to figure out just how much I liked it! It's the sort of book I would have dismissed as just another breezy, pointless read, had I not given it some thought.
Surprisingly, the strange language, a local version of English with its own very precise grammar, was the thing I loved the most. At one point, someone said "mischeevyus" and I just had to laugh! It's brilliant, how the author has managed to mak...more
Surprisingly, the strange language, a local version of English with its own very precise grammar, was the thing I loved the most. At one point, someone said "mischeevyus" and I just had to laugh! It's brilliant, how the author has managed to mak...more
Naipaul creates a comic system full of characters mired in their petty motives, and lets it loose. The result is a funny read.
The refinery of the dialect, the technique of creating a sel-sustaining sytem, and the realization of tragedy as a greater force than out and out comedy -- add these three to The Mystic Masseur and you get very close to Naipaul's first masterpiece in 'The House of Biswas'. For Naipaul afficionadoes Massuer is a must read because not only does it do fairly well as a novel...more
The refinery of the dialect, the technique of creating a sel-sustaining sytem, and the realization of tragedy as a greater force than out and out comedy -- add these three to The Mystic Masseur and you get very close to Naipaul's first masterpiece in 'The House of Biswas'. For Naipaul afficionadoes Massuer is a must read because not only does it do fairly well as a novel...more
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The magic of this novel is that, even though the setting is in remotely foreign Trinidad-Tobago, it will still secure any reader's attention from the very first page, the idiosyncratic conjugation of the verbs `to be' and `to have' in the native patois notwithstanding. What helps is the abundant humor largely of two types: one where you laugh along with the characters in the sheer fortuitous turn of events, the other where you smile at their forgivably human foibles and the narrator's wry observ...more
This is one of those quirky little books that is in its own category. This isn't to say that it is a masterpeice, but as a first novel, it definitely makes me want to read more from the author.
I loved the attempt at regional dialect, but it does conflict at times with the authors sense of humor (which, when clear, is quite good) and the flow of the story.
Also, I have read that Naipaul has been attacked by critics for displaying the poor in a negative manner. In this book it is apparent that the...more
I loved the attempt at regional dialect, but it does conflict at times with the authors sense of humor (which, when clear, is quite good) and the flow of the story.
Also, I have read that Naipaul has been attacked by critics for displaying the poor in a negative manner. In this book it is apparent that the...more
V.S.Naipaul's first ever novel - its pretty hilarious, though too slap sticky at times. The book follows the serendipitous life of Ganesh - a Trinidadian Indian Hindu writer turned masseur turned mystic turned politician, told by a young boy/man who becomes his patient at a young age.
The book predicts a lot of Naipaul's later views on Hinduism (especially the Hindu way of not seeing and Hindu retreat) in A WOUNDED CIVILIZATION and his more depressing novels about colonial politicians having to l...more
The book predicts a lot of Naipaul's later views on Hinduism (especially the Hindu way of not seeing and Hindu retreat) in A WOUNDED CIVILIZATION and his more depressing novels about colonial politicians having to l...more
After reading "Miguel Street" and "A House For Mr. Biswas" I am so underwhelmed. But I have to take into consideration that this is Naipaul's first book and like the character he wrote about in Mystic Masseur who wrote a book as well, this here is a big flop. Life imitates art and we see like Masseur, Naipaul becomes great. You can skip this and move to his later works mentioned above.
In this first of many novels by V.S. Naipaul, the author displays a sense of humor not usually associated with his books. The Mystic Masseur is a fun read that tells the story of the ex-patriot Indian community in Trinidad through the life of one young man. It's affectionate and accurately depicts the pre- and post- World War II era. You'll like it.
I wanted to get a sense of life in Trinidad before our upcoming vacation in May 2008, and VS Naipul is one of Trinidad's famed author's. This tale follows the life and times of Ganesh Ramsumair from his humble beginnings, to schoolteacher, to masseur - and well, I'm that far. He takes a wife, loses his wife, and gets her back again. He fights with his father in law a lot. All the while, we get a well drawn portrait of village life in Trinidad, the economic and racial spectrum of the island, the...more
'The mystic masseur' is very down to earth and real. It's set up in a little country that used to be a colony, Trinidad, and we get to follow the life of a man from his education to first job until he becomes a mystic and latter a politician. I did find it different from other books I've read and it was exciting to read a book from a man who received the Nobel price. But I found it quite hard to get into and I didn't find it very interesting.
I wanted to read atleast one of VS Naipaul's books since he got the Nobel prize.The story revolves around Ganesh,a failed teacher,how he turns into a masseur and then joins politics.Some parts were funny but overall was difficult to read with the trinidanian english.Maybe it was his first book so waiting to read Miguel Street and then
decide whether I want to read more of Naipaul!
decide whether I want to read more of Naipaul!
Clever characterization and use of tone, but a bit too critical for me to enjoy. The characters are very subtly portrayed as fools which makes it hard to relate to any of them, but the dialogue and plot are pretty amusing. I'm not completely sure why this book won a Nobel Prize, but it is an interesting read.
I love Naipaul's tragicomic style and all the satire. As other reviewers have mentioned the first 2/3 of the book is the best part. Weak ending. Definitely read A House for Mr. Biswas by same author.
I really enjoyed this short read from V.S. Naipul. It's a charming story and his writing style is quite engaging. I read it on the beach in Turkey, so perhaps I'm associating it with that time but I can definitely recommend this to anyone.
This book was a great read, and rather funny. Naipaul balances between humor and sincerity..between mysticism and reality. The book leaves you wondering and questioning the true nature of the main character.
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Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad "V. S." Naipaul was awarded the 2001 Nobel Prize in Literature "for having united perceptive narrative and incorruptible scrutiny in works that compel us to see the presence of suppressed histories."
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