Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
18th out of 71 books
—
36 voters
The Amazing Absorbing Boy
Both familiar and strange, this story of a large Canadian city seen through the wide eyes of a naive and inexperienced young immigrant — wise in the culture of comic books — is both hilarious and heartbreaking.
Samuel is just 17 when his mother dies and he is called to live with the father he has only heard of. He leaves his village in Trinidad and flies to Toronto, where h...more
Samuel is just 17 when his mother dies and he is called to live with the father he has only heard of. He leaves his village in Trinidad and flies to Toronto, where h...more
Hardcover, 327 pages
Published
January 26th 2010
by Knopf Canada
(first published January 5th 2010)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
237)
I liked Absorbing Boy. It was a complex and disjointed story which took time to read but in the end I was glad I did. I think it gives a new perspective to the immigrant story for Canadians to understand.
Page 254:
I didn't get the opportunity to ask Danton about a typical Canadian because he never returned to Queen Bee. But on the day my classes ended, a week before Christmas, I was sitting on a bench not too far from the CBC building. On a nearby bench there were tweo men from Afghanistan. I was...more
Page 254:
I didn't get the opportunity to ask Danton about a typical Canadian because he never returned to Queen Bee. But on the day my classes ended, a week before Christmas, I was sitting on a bench not too far from the CBC building. On a nearby bench there were tweo men from Afghanistan. I was...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This fascinating novel follows a young Trinidadian, Samuel, in his early life in Canada. When Samuel's mother dies, it is arranged that he joins his father in Canada.Samuel is sixteen and hasn't seen or heard from his father for years. He hopes for a warm welcome, but does not get it. His father barely talks to him and disappears without warning, sometimes for days. Samuel decides he must discover this country on his own. He is a good watcher and we see the new environment and the people he meet...more
In tiny, dilapidated Mayaro, Trinidad, Samuel has spent much of his sixteen years speculating about the splendid life his father is leading in Canada. But when his mother dies and his father sends for him, Samuel learns that the splendors he imagined are just that: imaginary. Faced with a surly parent who has no interest in his present or his future, who seems to do nothing all day and who subsists on a disability pension in subsidized housing, Samuel realizes that he must adapt to this perplexi...more
http://cozylittlebookjournal.blogspot...
There have been some wonderful books written from the perspective of a child with a limited and specific point of view that reveals a very adult world to the reader. Some that come to mind are Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Stephen Kelman's Pigeon English, and Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. This book fits neatly into that sub-genre. The main character is a young man from Trinidad who tries to m...more
There have been some wonderful books written from the perspective of a child with a limited and specific point of view that reveals a very adult world to the reader. Some that come to mind are Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Stephen Kelman's Pigeon English, and Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. This book fits neatly into that sub-genre. The main character is a young man from Trinidad who tries to m...more
This was a book my sister passed onto me since she had to read it for school, and since she never finished it, I had assumed it wouldn't be too interesting. However, I was wrong. It was an easy read about the difficulties of immigrating to Canada, and understanding and adapting to society in a foreign place. I found myself being able to relate to some of the feelings going through the main character, Samuel, from when my family and I first arrived in Canada 20 years ago. Overall, a great read wi...more
Growing up in the village of Mayaro in Trinidad, Samuel yearns as much as his mother does for his absent father. Even though his Uncle Boysie mutters insults about him, Samuel never really stops believing his father will one day return, or send for him and his mother to live with him in Canada.
When he's sixteen, his mother dies of cancer. Taken in by his uncle, it's nearly a year before he hears the news that his father is waiting for him in Toronto. Armed with a six-month visitor's visa, Samue...more
When he's sixteen, his mother dies of cancer. Taken in by his uncle, it's nearly a year before he hears the news that his father is waiting for him in Toronto. Armed with a six-month visitor's visa, Samue...more
This book was only so-so for me, because the writing felt uncomfortable to read and the plot was hard to follow. If you've ever wondered what life would be like if you were suddenly dropped into totally different world with little explanation from anyone, 'The Amazing Absorbing Boy' depicts this disorientation and confusion quite humorously in some parts. The protagonist's reflections (e.g. the TTC's subways, food banks, and cafes) act as reminders of how the norms and behaviours taken for grant...more
I wanted to like this book, but I really didn't. I was lost at the Trinidadian references until I found the dictionary in the back, lost at the Toronto references because I've never lived there, and missed a lot of the comic book references as well.
I think my problem with this book was that it really wasn't a novel, but a series of vignettes or adventures. There were some good things here, but not enough of them for me. I feel that people who are more familiar with Toronto would enjoy this book...more
I think my problem with this book was that it really wasn't a novel, but a series of vignettes or adventures. There were some good things here, but not enough of them for me. I feel that people who are more familiar with Toronto would enjoy this book...more
To quote Dwight Schrute when asked to comment on his boss's breath: "good, not great". This novel tells the story of a young man who comes to Canada from Trinidad to live with his miscreant of a father after his mother's death. He is left alone to navigate the unfamiliar streets, try to find work, and come to terms with what it means to be an immigrant in the country.
The writing is strong, but about half way through the book it felt like the story was deteriorating into: lead character meets a n...more
The writing is strong, but about half way through the book it felt like the story was deteriorating into: lead character meets a n...more
I have trouble saying what I really liked from this book. The writing was OK, the character development was OK and the storyline lacked a climax in my opinion.
When I bought the book, I figured that a local writer with local jargon would be quite amusing and interesting, but then as I got into it, I felt that there was so much Trinidadian slang, that it was unreadable by foreigners who don't like to keep flipping to the glossary every few pages.
The story was about a boy who moves to Canada to li...more
When I bought the book, I figured that a local writer with local jargon would be quite amusing and interesting, but then as I got into it, I felt that there was so much Trinidadian slang, that it was unreadable by foreigners who don't like to keep flipping to the glossary every few pages.
The story was about a boy who moves to Canada to li...more
I picked this book up on a whim and I'm really glad I did. I loved the rambling narrative that Maharaj gives us. The main character is simultaneously youthful and old, displaced and lonely, but also curious and open.
I read this book in just over 24 hours, and I will definitely be seeking out some other works by this same author.
I read this book in just over 24 hours, and I will definitely be seeking out some other works by this same author.
The sum total of Absorbing Boy is not nearly as memorable as it should be. Despite some sterling writing - I particularly love the 'chimera fella' who works in the library and complains, "Everything has changed. Now the entire staff is beholden to lists. Horrible memoirs bursting with frivolous grief. I feel sometimes as if I am a custodian of misery" - Maharaj's tale never really connects. Hardly any character lasts more than a chapter or two, and the overall episodic nature of the storytelling...more
Always nice to read about impressions of Canada, even from a fictional foreigner.
Loved reading about Toronto (the city and people) from an outsider's perspective.
Loved reading about Toronto (the city and people) from an outsider's perspective.
well-written, but bleak. reminds me of aspects of toronto i didn't like when i grew up there. everyone felt so alienated. me included. author does a good job of creating a character readers can feel compassion for.
Feb 26, 2012
Joelle Anthony
added it
This is an interesting book about a young immigrant's observations on Canadian culture. Beautifully written.
I loved this so much, it was perfect.
It was like an adventure into a new land, meeting new eccentric people and getting used to a foreign country.
My favourite chapter was "The Amazing Absorbing Boy"
It was like an adventure into a new land, meeting new eccentric people and getting used to a foreign country.
My favourite chapter was "The Amazing Absorbing Boy"
an intriguing look at one immigrant's experience with comic-book comparisons
A very engaging book. Following Samuel's journey into a new life was fascinating.
It was boring, hard to follow.
I didn't like it.
I didn't like it.
I enjoyed this book. I enjoyed seeing Canada and more specifically Toronto through the eyes of Samuel. Was a little dissatisfied with the father character.
Winner of the 2011 Toronto Book Awards. The story of a boy from Trinidad who is sent to Toronto to live with his non-invovled father after his mother dies. It was great! An entertaining and touching look at someone trying to navigate the city with no real foreknowledge and no real help.
(I have fallen so behind with these reviews. Eep.)
(I have fallen so behind with these reviews. Eep.)
Apr 21, 2013
Kelly
marked it as to-read
Apr 04, 2013
Jim Lang
is currently reading it
Mar 28, 2013
Damion Duncan
marked it as to-read
Mar 24, 2013
John Jiang
marked it as to-read
Mar 19, 2013
Dawn Betts-Green
marked it as to-read
Mar 19, 2013
Matt Hickey
marked it as to-read
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ELEVEN READERS CL...: Essay | 1 | 9 | Jan 18, 2012 09:01pm | |
| ELEVEN READERS CL...: The Magnificent and Multi-Cultural Canada | 1 | 11 | Jan 17, 2012 09:41pm | |
| ELEVEN READERS CL...: 90-151pages/327 pages-The Amazing Absorbing Boy | 3 | 10 | Jan 11, 2012 06:18am | |
| THE LAST UPDATE EVER | 1 | 3 | Jan 09, 2012 06:04pm | |
| Chapter 11 to 16 | 1 | 1 | Jan 09, 2012 06:00pm | |
| Chapter 6 to 11 | 1 | 1 | Jan 09, 2012 05:57pm | |
| Chapter 1 to 6 | 1 | 3 | Jan 09, 2012 05:53pm |
Rabindranath Maharaj was born in the fifties in South Trinidad. He received a B.A., M.A. and Diploma in Education from the University of the West Indies, Saint Augustine. In Trinidad he worked as a teacher and as a columnist for the Trinidad Guardian. In the early 1990s Maharaj moved to Canada and in 1993 he completed a second M.A. at the University of New Brunswick. Since 1994 he has been living...more
More about Rabindranath Maharaj...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
Oct 23, 2011 06:13pm