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Ib's Endless Search for Satisfaction
SHORTLISTED FOR THE JCB PRIZE FOR LITERATURE 2019 SHORTLISTED FOR THE SHAKTI BHATT PRIZE 2019 'And then finally I felt sadness, aided perhaps by those futile notes, by the dust that keeps thickening, by the untouchable past, the inevitable future, and by everything else that pushes us around.' Ib lives with his schizophrenic father and his 'nice' mother negotiating life, not knowing what to do, steered by uncaring winds and pushy people. From his slimy, unmiraculous birth to the tragic death of a loved one, Ib wanders the city, from one thing to another, confused, lost and alone, all the while reflecting on his predicament. He is searching for something-what he does not know-and must overcome many family, religion, love and, finally, death. Will he be defeated by 'this wreckage of modern life?' Will a mysterious woman lift him out of the 'cement' in his soul? In this journey of sadness and self-reflection, Ib tranforms into an ordinary man from an ordinary boy and along the way, tries to figure out life and understand himself. In this audacious debut that is insightful, original and deeply disturbing, Roshan Ali's play of language is nothing less than masterful.
152 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 7, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 31 reviews
October 13, 2019
I believe we all come to a point in life when we begin questioning the purpose of either our lives or of the existence itself. The search takes us on a journey to discover the answers we are looking for. While our quest may sometimes be restricted to substantiating what we already know, sometimes we do come across ideas or thoughts that change our perspectives. Sometimes, it presents before us a mirror, which shakes us fiercely to acknowledge the prosaic reality we may otherwise tend to evade.
For me, reading has come as a means of finding a way to live’s inexplicability. And so when I stumble upon works which also tend to be doing the same, I am completely taken in. Roshan Ali’s Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction is a pursuit too. It is a story of a man who trudges along in life in search of that which might fill his parched soul.
“I am an empty man in an empty city, and every time I begin to fill up, the city sucks it all out again. An empty city is the subject - the subject of everything - and I am the object. What is it about cities that empties me like this? Maybe it’s the density, the fullness, stuffed with people of such lofty stuffing that the natural technique of nature to empty the filled and to fill the empty is reversed by this overdose of man and his mischief; and thus a thin man like me gets the stuffing sucked out of him, till he is hollow and restless. So it is necessary for any objects that move about a city to have these lofty notions of man and society, to contribute, to fit in and thus avoid the mad dissatisfaction of being hollow.”
Ib lives with his parents. His father suffers from schizophrenia while his mother struggles to take care of her husband. He loves his father and his mother but the constant strain of the anxiety that he feels is too much for him. He was only a child when his father “went nuts” so he never really had a father to look up to. His mother, trying to remain sane amidst the chaos, loses sight of life eventually. Ib makes imaginary friends while growing, terrified perhaps to have any real friends because he has no idea how to deal with real people. The banality of everyday existence brings Ib to an intersection that pushes him to drift any which way life takes him. He drops out of college and then leaves his home to be by himself. He picks up a job only to face his stern maternal grandfather who had him admitted to a college. The job helps him meet his ends and just that. He is not ambitious. Once he follows a saint to Himalayas out of curiosity, only to find that his appearance is a sham he uses, to make people come to their senses. However, Ib is not perturbed by that. He has a chance encounter with a girl whose presence stirs him intimately but then her sudden death closes the door to any inclination he might have felt towards life.
This story is about a man who cannot bring himself to terms with his life. From being a child, growing up in the absence of love and care, he becomes a person who doesn’t find meaning in things deemed important by everybody else around. The mental trauma he goes through, growing up in a home with a schizophrenic father, seeps to every other aspect of his life and he finds himself unable to engage in anything that might socially be termed as desirable. Emptiness abounds in his life; spreading slowly and engulfing everything that might have given it a meaning.
This book has been criticised by a few for a storyline that lacks purpose. In my view, the writer aims just that. In writing a work which doesn’t seem to serve any purpose, he points to the gravity of our minuscule understanding of mental trauma, to the struggle which a family and its members might go through, to the effect it might leave on people from such family, to the Endless Search for Satisfaction by those who are lost, who in the absence of a strong support system, are perpetually in danger of being marginalised by a society which feeds only on lofty notions of humanity and meaningfulness.
Yes, nothing happens in this book but this is because the lives of those suffering turn into nothingness too.
Are we listening enough?
For me, reading has come as a means of finding a way to live’s inexplicability. And so when I stumble upon works which also tend to be doing the same, I am completely taken in. Roshan Ali’s Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction is a pursuit too. It is a story of a man who trudges along in life in search of that which might fill his parched soul.
“I am an empty man in an empty city, and every time I begin to fill up, the city sucks it all out again. An empty city is the subject - the subject of everything - and I am the object. What is it about cities that empties me like this? Maybe it’s the density, the fullness, stuffed with people of such lofty stuffing that the natural technique of nature to empty the filled and to fill the empty is reversed by this overdose of man and his mischief; and thus a thin man like me gets the stuffing sucked out of him, till he is hollow and restless. So it is necessary for any objects that move about a city to have these lofty notions of man and society, to contribute, to fit in and thus avoid the mad dissatisfaction of being hollow.”
Ib lives with his parents. His father suffers from schizophrenia while his mother struggles to take care of her husband. He loves his father and his mother but the constant strain of the anxiety that he feels is too much for him. He was only a child when his father “went nuts” so he never really had a father to look up to. His mother, trying to remain sane amidst the chaos, loses sight of life eventually. Ib makes imaginary friends while growing, terrified perhaps to have any real friends because he has no idea how to deal with real people. The banality of everyday existence brings Ib to an intersection that pushes him to drift any which way life takes him. He drops out of college and then leaves his home to be by himself. He picks up a job only to face his stern maternal grandfather who had him admitted to a college. The job helps him meet his ends and just that. He is not ambitious. Once he follows a saint to Himalayas out of curiosity, only to find that his appearance is a sham he uses, to make people come to their senses. However, Ib is not perturbed by that. He has a chance encounter with a girl whose presence stirs him intimately but then her sudden death closes the door to any inclination he might have felt towards life.
This story is about a man who cannot bring himself to terms with his life. From being a child, growing up in the absence of love and care, he becomes a person who doesn’t find meaning in things deemed important by everybody else around. The mental trauma he goes through, growing up in a home with a schizophrenic father, seeps to every other aspect of his life and he finds himself unable to engage in anything that might socially be termed as desirable. Emptiness abounds in his life; spreading slowly and engulfing everything that might have given it a meaning.
This book has been criticised by a few for a storyline that lacks purpose. In my view, the writer aims just that. In writing a work which doesn’t seem to serve any purpose, he points to the gravity of our minuscule understanding of mental trauma, to the struggle which a family and its members might go through, to the effect it might leave on people from such family, to the Endless Search for Satisfaction by those who are lost, who in the absence of a strong support system, are perpetually in danger of being marginalised by a society which feeds only on lofty notions of humanity and meaningfulness.
Yes, nothing happens in this book but this is because the lives of those suffering turn into nothingness too.
Are we listening enough?
September 23, 2019
This book was extremely tiresome to read. Not that I didn't like it, but I didn't love it as well. My feelings towards this book are very lukewarm. Let's get started 😬
~
This book is divided in three parts, first being Ib's childhood and his school days, second about his college days and the third where he tries to be more mature towards life and trying to be in a stable job.
Ib's father is a schizophrenic and his grandfather, his Ajju, who has a dominant personality, looks after his house. Ib becomes a loner and an over thinking individual because that affects a child's mental health very much. His home lacks the happy and healthy atmosphere and he seeks refuge in his imaginary friends. Ib, growing up, finds it very difficult to manage a job and keeps doing odd jobs here and there.
~
The running theme of this book was despair and loneliness. But Ib was least concerned for doing something worthwhile for himself.
The prose was extremely pretentious. The parts where Ib was supposed to have enlightenment was too hackneyed for me and lacked substance and depth.
~
I really felt it could've been a book of our times, representing the mental health issues our generation has, but sadly it missed the mark. The plot could've been kept simple, but the use of cliches killed it. Also we never come to know what Ib learns at the end of his journey. There wasn't any character growth at all. This book had all the required elements to make it a literary masterpiece, but lacked substance. Ib was searching for satisfaction, while the reader was searching for a concrete conclusion.
3⭐
#thebookishtalesreviews #jcbreadingchallenge
~
This book is divided in three parts, first being Ib's childhood and his school days, second about his college days and the third where he tries to be more mature towards life and trying to be in a stable job.
Ib's father is a schizophrenic and his grandfather, his Ajju, who has a dominant personality, looks after his house. Ib becomes a loner and an over thinking individual because that affects a child's mental health very much. His home lacks the happy and healthy atmosphere and he seeks refuge in his imaginary friends. Ib, growing up, finds it very difficult to manage a job and keeps doing odd jobs here and there.
~
The running theme of this book was despair and loneliness. But Ib was least concerned for doing something worthwhile for himself.
The prose was extremely pretentious. The parts where Ib was supposed to have enlightenment was too hackneyed for me and lacked substance and depth.
~
I really felt it could've been a book of our times, representing the mental health issues our generation has, but sadly it missed the mark. The plot could've been kept simple, but the use of cliches killed it. Also we never come to know what Ib learns at the end of his journey. There wasn't any character growth at all. This book had all the required elements to make it a literary masterpiece, but lacked substance. Ib was searching for satisfaction, while the reader was searching for a concrete conclusion.
3⭐
#thebookishtalesreviews #jcbreadingchallenge
September 21, 2019
Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction by Roshan Ali is marked by an endless despair. Ali makes his debut with this novel of searching and aimless wandering that the narrator, Ib, undertakes in his attempt to wrest something meaningful from life. The absurdity that begins with the protagonist’s name only escalates with his endeavors to escape a home where his schizophrenic father and unhappy mother reside.
Ib’s father, referred to as Appoos by both Ib and his mother, has long been confined to the house. Their upkeep is maintained by Ib’s maternal grandfather, Ajju, whose domineering personality engulfs the whole house in silence and subservience. Brought up in a home that lacks stability and any semblance of happiness, Ib grows up to be a loner, perpetually casting off attention and seeking quiet. His only friends are the characters he imagines in his head to keep him company. For Ib, life just keeps on, with no consideration for his feelings or thoughts.
Even as Ib is thrust into adulthood (because if he had a choice, he’d definitely opt out), there’s little that he is concerned about when it comes to getting an education or a professional job. He takes up odd jobs here and there, but a low standard of living and even lower expectations help him survive when he moves out from the ‘shadow’ of his home. But as with all stories, things change. Ib meets someone on a vacation and his insides see a hopeful spark, a glimmer almost, that ignites his love for life. But does it last? And more importantly, is Ib fated for happiness? Or has he embraced darkness and made it a part of his soul? It remains for the reader to find out.
I had many problems with the book; to begin with, I felt the prose took on a pretentiousness with the narrator waxing eloquent about life both when he is dejected and when he seemingly has an ‘out-of-the-world’ experience. I found myself frowning at the specific moment in the book when the protagonist feels a momentous shift in his world as all of it felt too clichéd. In my opinion, the book fell short in that that it could have been a powerful exploration of the nuances of depression and the listlessness that preoccupies the youth of today but the writer opted for clichés thus oversimplifying things.
Ib’s father, referred to as Appoos by both Ib and his mother, has long been confined to the house. Their upkeep is maintained by Ib’s maternal grandfather, Ajju, whose domineering personality engulfs the whole house in silence and subservience. Brought up in a home that lacks stability and any semblance of happiness, Ib grows up to be a loner, perpetually casting off attention and seeking quiet. His only friends are the characters he imagines in his head to keep him company. For Ib, life just keeps on, with no consideration for his feelings or thoughts.
Even as Ib is thrust into adulthood (because if he had a choice, he’d definitely opt out), there’s little that he is concerned about when it comes to getting an education or a professional job. He takes up odd jobs here and there, but a low standard of living and even lower expectations help him survive when he moves out from the ‘shadow’ of his home. But as with all stories, things change. Ib meets someone on a vacation and his insides see a hopeful spark, a glimmer almost, that ignites his love for life. But does it last? And more importantly, is Ib fated for happiness? Or has he embraced darkness and made it a part of his soul? It remains for the reader to find out.
I had many problems with the book; to begin with, I felt the prose took on a pretentiousness with the narrator waxing eloquent about life both when he is dejected and when he seemingly has an ‘out-of-the-world’ experience. I found myself frowning at the specific moment in the book when the protagonist feels a momentous shift in his world as all of it felt too clichéd. In my opinion, the book fell short in that that it could have been a powerful exploration of the nuances of depression and the listlessness that preoccupies the youth of today but the writer opted for clichés thus oversimplifying things.
April 26, 2020
There's this familiar saying the old is dying and new cannot be born about 90 years ago. Still Modernity doesn't have any such solid 'new' values for many of us to hold on. Some of us rebel in ways to reconcile our own solid new values with cultural conditioning. They say as long as we pretend to know who we are what we are, it's going to be more or less okay. Majority are so good at playing these to the extent they completely forget it's a game, whereas those who are strangers to themselves are the one we got to worry about. They think often why something has more value over others, why we're doing what we're doing. What's it like, if not the cost, to lead a 'practical' life and love someone?
The author, in my view, captures the vanity and lack of aspirations in modern life on how we keep pretending ourselves as enlightened by knowing and experiencing things with blasé attitude.
Many of us in our times have become subconscious victims of contradicting ourselves embracing the possibilities of living within the structured rigid ways of living. I'm certain with my personal truth that this book's for them for all I know many such victims if not myself to some extent.
As a victim of series of relatable accidents, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Maybe people would find it worthy if they tend to experience the book for what it is than to look anything out of it. They do have similar sayings for many things if not everything.
Camus wrote in his completed graduate work, "What will last is perhaps a shout that is a little truer, a page one writes that will find its chosen reader. To produce that one page takes a life's work." Adding my own personal delusions for the finish, I saw Ibn and myself staring at each other over many of the pages. For that I have nothing but gratitude and compliments for the author.
The author, in my view, captures the vanity and lack of aspirations in modern life on how we keep pretending ourselves as enlightened by knowing and experiencing things with blasé attitude.
Many of us in our times have become subconscious victims of contradicting ourselves embracing the possibilities of living within the structured rigid ways of living. I'm certain with my personal truth that this book's for them for all I know many such victims if not myself to some extent.
As a victim of series of relatable accidents, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Maybe people would find it worthy if they tend to experience the book for what it is than to look anything out of it. They do have similar sayings for many things if not everything.
Camus wrote in his completed graduate work, "What will last is perhaps a shout that is a little truer, a page one writes that will find its chosen reader. To produce that one page takes a life's work." Adding my own personal delusions for the finish, I saw Ibn and myself staring at each other over many of the pages. For that I have nothing but gratitude and compliments for the author.
October 14, 2022
Nope. I don’t have a nice thing to say about this one. Forget it. Not for me.
September 27, 2019
Ib makes up imaginary friends at home, for his father is schizophrenic and is taken care of by his mother. His life from childhood to adulthood is a lonely exercise and the only people he gets to be around are his parents and his maternal grandfather.
Ib is contemplative in nature and seeks no sympathy for the kind of childhood he’s had or the solitary creature he has become. He is matter of fact when describing his father’s condition where he does not allow the reader to have a tiny peek at how it affects him. Mental health is not used as a writing trope by the author and that, I heartily approve.
This is a coming of age story, a seeking of life's meaning despite our everyday mundane existence. During the course of Ib's journey, readers will find questions and doubts about religion and spirituality, education and intellect, parents and empty callings, connections and endings, life’s purpose and ordinariness.
You will wonder where are the emotions: why isn’t the author trying to make readers cry? You will want the character to find his way to some emotional connect. There are two significant people in his life who dies andIb sees how the world goes on despite everything. And then, you see, that is just how life is.
Ib is contemplative in nature and seeks no sympathy for the kind of childhood he’s had or the solitary creature he has become. He is matter of fact when describing his father’s condition where he does not allow the reader to have a tiny peek at how it affects him. Mental health is not used as a writing trope by the author and that, I heartily approve.
This is a coming of age story, a seeking of life's meaning despite our everyday mundane existence. During the course of Ib's journey, readers will find questions and doubts about religion and spirituality, education and intellect, parents and empty callings, connections and endings, life’s purpose and ordinariness.
You will wonder where are the emotions: why isn’t the author trying to make readers cry? You will want the character to find his way to some emotional connect. There are two significant people in his life who dies andIb sees how the world goes on despite everything. And then, you see, that is just how life is.
October 30, 2022
Excellent prose but why is it so dragged? Did I miss something between the lines? Maybe the author wants me to see the book itself as a metaphor to a mundane life (does it even make sense?)
I painfully made myself sit through most of it. It started off so well, I was completely hooked.. but somewhere after 70-80 pages, I couldn’t find myself turning the page.
But again, the way this book is written, the metaphors used, the language, prose - is brilliant! I finished this book just for the prose - rich and exquisite!
The start of this book made me feel that this would be (somewhat) like Em and the Big Hoom by Jerry Pinto (a must read, btw). But it isn’t. I wish it was more about mental health, but is about how we keep longing for more, wait relentlessly for something big to happen, hang on by a thread - but nothing really happens. It’s horribly dark, scary, and sad if you try to interpret the unsaid words/emotions.
Read it for the prose :)
I painfully made myself sit through most of it. It started off so well, I was completely hooked.. but somewhere after 70-80 pages, I couldn’t find myself turning the page.
But again, the way this book is written, the metaphors used, the language, prose - is brilliant! I finished this book just for the prose - rich and exquisite!
The start of this book made me feel that this would be (somewhat) like Em and the Big Hoom by Jerry Pinto (a must read, btw). But it isn’t. I wish it was more about mental health, but is about how we keep longing for more, wait relentlessly for something big to happen, hang on by a thread - but nothing really happens. It’s horribly dark, scary, and sad if you try to interpret the unsaid words/emotions.
Read it for the prose :)
September 22, 2019
Have you ever read a book which is full of thoughts you get in the middle of the night? This book is one of that.
In this book, we read about the journey of Ib as he searches for satisfaction in a city that is empty. It is filled with monotonous thoughts of Ib.
I liked the sophisticated writing style of the author. The language is rich enough to classify it under literary fiction but not hard enough.
Though I liked the writing style, I'm not fond of the characters of this book. The characters are shallow and they're not impactful(IMO). For example, we follow Ib on his journey and we don't even know what he learned at the end of it. There is absolutely no character growth at all. What did he learn throughout this journey?
I felt that the ending of this book is abrupt and incomplete. But for a debut book, the author gave us an impressive piece of literature.
I recommend this book to all the literary fiction fans.
My Rating-3.5/5
In this book, we read about the journey of Ib as he searches for satisfaction in a city that is empty. It is filled with monotonous thoughts of Ib.
I liked the sophisticated writing style of the author. The language is rich enough to classify it under literary fiction but not hard enough.
Though I liked the writing style, I'm not fond of the characters of this book. The characters are shallow and they're not impactful(IMO). For example, we follow Ib on his journey and we don't even know what he learned at the end of it. There is absolutely no character growth at all. What did he learn throughout this journey?
I felt that the ending of this book is abrupt and incomplete. But for a debut book, the author gave us an impressive piece of literature.
I recommend this book to all the literary fiction fans.
My Rating-3.5/5
August 5, 2020
This book is unique. A boy called Ib has lived a life that was far from normal, but for him, that was normal. The household where he grew up in was depressing, his family involved his schizophrenic father, his strict and old fashioned grandfather and his mother. Ib narrates his struggles with religion, loss, death and how ordinary his life has been throughout. His childhood misery from living with his mentally ill father affects him greatly.
Rather than talking directly about mental illness it talks about how living with someone who has mental illness can affect you and your thinking. The book has a different approach with it's writing style, the reader is not just a reader but an observer too. There are layers in Ib's actions, the reader has to look closer to find out. It's the reader who has to make sense of the prose. Not to meniton, I loved this approach a lot.
It's undeniable that the book lacks character development. Throughout the book Ib doesn't grow at all, he remains the same person who is trying to figure out life. I don't necessarily see this as the flaw of the writing but as the effect of his father's illness. The character Ib trying to make sense of his life that is far from normal.
Ib's Endless Search For Satisfaction can easily be misunderstood and is not everyone's favorite. I believe it is because of the different the writer's different approach in writing. It portrays life in the same mundane way as the one we live in. A life full of questions and our endless search for answers.
However there are some things that could've been better. There were a lot of portions that needed explanation, some part of the story looked forced, as if it was added only to make the narrative more interesting.
This book is either a hit or a miss. 3.9
Rather than talking directly about mental illness it talks about how living with someone who has mental illness can affect you and your thinking. The book has a different approach with it's writing style, the reader is not just a reader but an observer too. There are layers in Ib's actions, the reader has to look closer to find out. It's the reader who has to make sense of the prose. Not to meniton, I loved this approach a lot.
It's undeniable that the book lacks character development. Throughout the book Ib doesn't grow at all, he remains the same person who is trying to figure out life. I don't necessarily see this as the flaw of the writing but as the effect of his father's illness. The character Ib trying to make sense of his life that is far from normal.
Ib's Endless Search For Satisfaction can easily be misunderstood and is not everyone's favorite. I believe it is because of the different the writer's different approach in writing. It portrays life in the same mundane way as the one we live in. A life full of questions and our endless search for answers.
However there are some things that could've been better. There were a lot of portions that needed explanation, some part of the story looked forced, as if it was added only to make the narrative more interesting.
This book is either a hit or a miss. 3.9
December 26, 2019
This was my first book from this year's JCB shortlist. I and my buddy thought of reading it together but considering the situation, we both dropped this book in the beginning. We kind of knew what was coming (no surprises given the title). I picked it up again because I am still running behind my Goodreads challenge, so that's that.
First of all, I am highly conflicted about this book. On one side there are common elements of disillusionment that signify a lost soul, quite obvious ones - booze, smokes, spirituality (rather questioning it), sex or the lack thereof - you get the idea. On the other hand, the lessons that the protagonist derives from his experiences have been illustrated lyrically (yeah, I think I am eligible to use this word having a fair idea what it means). There is a rhythm to words, depth in perception but shallowness in the actions.
Evidently, Ib's Endless for Satisfaction follows the journey of weak, feeble, disillusioned Ib from early childhood to adulthood, till the late 20s. A story is woven through a slightly dysfunctional family, revealing teenage years and the existential crisis of growing up amidst the judgemental society. I didn't feel anything remarkable about the setting yet it's a bold attempt for a debut novel. One thing that really frustrated me was Ib's inability to take any actions. For the entire novel, he just keeps running away from the problem. He takes the easy way, merely recounting the feeling of being lost. It made it hard for me to sympathize with the character.
It's a poignant story that is written in a way that makes it a perfect material for a Bollywood movie.
First of all, I am highly conflicted about this book. On one side there are common elements of disillusionment that signify a lost soul, quite obvious ones - booze, smokes, spirituality (rather questioning it), sex or the lack thereof - you get the idea. On the other hand, the lessons that the protagonist derives from his experiences have been illustrated lyrically (yeah, I think I am eligible to use this word having a fair idea what it means). There is a rhythm to words, depth in perception but shallowness in the actions.
Evidently, Ib's Endless for Satisfaction follows the journey of weak, feeble, disillusioned Ib from early childhood to adulthood, till the late 20s. A story is woven through a slightly dysfunctional family, revealing teenage years and the existential crisis of growing up amidst the judgemental society. I didn't feel anything remarkable about the setting yet it's a bold attempt for a debut novel. One thing that really frustrated me was Ib's inability to take any actions. For the entire novel, he just keeps running away from the problem. He takes the easy way, merely recounting the feeling of being lost. It made it hard for me to sympathize with the character.
It's a poignant story that is written in a way that makes it a perfect material for a Bollywood movie.
December 1, 2019
I do not like shitting on books, and certainly not one by a debutant author. So I will not. But I will say that Jerry Pinto flat out lied in his blurb for the book. This book received some favourable reviews and awards upon its release, including the JCB Prize and the Shakti Bhatt Memorial Prize. Next time, finish reading the preview before clicking buy on Amazon. (I don't know if that is an option.)
I purchased this book on impulse after I read an interview of the author where the book's premise is spelt out: a twenty something, raised in a difficult household with a parent who is schizophrenic, on this "endless search for satisfaction". It promised to strike close to home.
Something like that did happen, and now I wonder why I thought I needed this. I see my own problems here, but without the filter of an effervescent mind to see them through. I understand how being a person who clearly wants to express himself and find happiness doing so is difficult, especially when you aren't satisfied with the well laid out paths you see before you and you decide to look inwards and wage war with your demons to find a way out of your personal hell. It's been done well before, notably by bands like The Who in their album Quadrophenia or The Rolling Stones in their single (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction to give only two instances.
There surely is a brand of writing that uses attrition as a method of having the reader relate to the text, but I hope the next time Roshan Ali tries this he lays off the anodyne.
I loved the cover illustration and layout design.
I purchased this book on impulse after I read an interview of the author where the book's premise is spelt out: a twenty something, raised in a difficult household with a parent who is schizophrenic, on this "endless search for satisfaction". It promised to strike close to home.
Something like that did happen, and now I wonder why I thought I needed this. I see my own problems here, but without the filter of an effervescent mind to see them through. I understand how being a person who clearly wants to express himself and find happiness doing so is difficult, especially when you aren't satisfied with the well laid out paths you see before you and you decide to look inwards and wage war with your demons to find a way out of your personal hell. It's been done well before, notably by bands like The Who in their album Quadrophenia or The Rolling Stones in their single (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction to give only two instances.
There surely is a brand of writing that uses attrition as a method of having the reader relate to the text, but I hope the next time Roshan Ali tries this he lays off the anodyne.
I loved the cover illustration and layout design.
January 13, 2020
Terrible. It is one of the worst books I've ever read. Vapid prose alongside unskilled storytelling. An undesirable outcome, always.
November 3, 2019
We already had our winner for this year ! But I'm here sharing my thoughts on this book.
Ib's endless search for satisfaction by Roshan Ali has been shortlisted.
And one of my friend ( not a Bookstagrammer or reader ) has gifted this copy .😌😌
So Our Protagonist Ib lives with his schizophrenic father and mother. He doesn't have a comfortable childhood. His friends were objects, and he used to talk with them. The school life even wasn't good . Nothing can make him comfortable. He lost his job and started searching -something he doesn't know.
The Ib has Endless searched satisfaction sane I endlessly try to find the purpose of the story. But I found nothing. But I think it's what the author has wanted to do with the readers.
I have found it boring when I was reading. I was expecting that SOMETHING would happen and Ib will get a better a life. But noh. That's what happens in real life. We try to live better every. We desire better. We want more. But nothing makes us feel fulfil .
The book isn't for everyone . Either you will dnf or you will not like it if you don't deeply understand it.
Ib's endless search for satisfaction by Roshan Ali has been shortlisted.
And one of my friend ( not a Bookstagrammer or reader ) has gifted this copy .😌😌
So Our Protagonist Ib lives with his schizophrenic father and mother. He doesn't have a comfortable childhood. His friends were objects, and he used to talk with them. The school life even wasn't good . Nothing can make him comfortable. He lost his job and started searching -something he doesn't know.
The Ib has Endless searched satisfaction sane I endlessly try to find the purpose of the story. But I found nothing. But I think it's what the author has wanted to do with the readers.
I have found it boring when I was reading. I was expecting that SOMETHING would happen and Ib will get a better a life. But noh. That's what happens in real life. We try to live better every. We desire better. We want more. But nothing makes us feel fulfil .
The book isn't for everyone . Either you will dnf or you will not like it if you don't deeply understand it.
October 10, 2019
Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction by Roshan Ali is an uniquely disturbing book. Disturbing, because it raises the fundamental question whether something as basic as satisfaction is at all achievable? Unique, because the story is narrated in the context of every day life of a common man called Ib.
The journey depicted in Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction is as much psychological as it is physical and traces the journey of Ib from childhood to adulthood. It traces the contradictions between the different paths that we trudge in our search for satisfaction and the dissonance that such contradictions create towards the achievement of the ultimate goal.
Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction paints a grim picture of the reality of our times and our helplessness in the face of it, the conflicts and dissonance caused by it resulting in a perpetual sense of dissatisfaction.
Full review available in my blog HTTPS://bongbooksandcoffee.com
The journey depicted in Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction is as much psychological as it is physical and traces the journey of Ib from childhood to adulthood. It traces the contradictions between the different paths that we trudge in our search for satisfaction and the dissonance that such contradictions create towards the achievement of the ultimate goal.
Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction paints a grim picture of the reality of our times and our helplessness in the face of it, the conflicts and dissonance caused by it resulting in a perpetual sense of dissatisfaction.
Full review available in my blog HTTPS://bongbooksandcoffee.com
September 23, 2019
It's a depressing book and I am not sure if I liked it much. How do one like a book of a life living with depression or is it depression or is it just the way of his living, his curiosity to know to feel everything, Ib? I couldn't figure.
This book is all about those haunting thoughts of existence in the middle of the night.
There was this one particular moment in the book when his search for satisfaction seemed to be finally ending when life happens to him again, when hopelessness creeps in.
"and then finally I felt sadness by the untouchable past the inevitable future, and by everything else that pushes us around".
This book is all about those haunting thoughts of existence in the middle of the night.
There was this one particular moment in the book when his search for satisfaction seemed to be finally ending when life happens to him again, when hopelessness creeps in.
"and then finally I felt sadness by the untouchable past the inevitable future, and by everything else that pushes us around".
March 27, 2020
"And then finally I felt sadness, aided perhaps by those futile notes, by the dust that keeps thickening, by the untouchable past, the inevitable future, and by everything else that pushes us around."
RATING: 2.5/5
The cover carries a blurb by Jerry Pinto who wrote Em and the Big Hoom, a first-person narrative about a family coping up with the mother's bipolar disorder. In this, the father suffers from schizophrenia. Both the books chart the cruel realities of living with a parent who is ill. But that's where their all similarities end. Divided into three sections, the narrative is sunk in gloom and despair throughout. Em managed to be intensely funny even in its dark moments but here we never emerge out of the miasma. And while Em is one of my favourite books of all time, Ib's Endless Search, unfortunately, proved to be a huge disappointment.
I won't say that it's terrible but there was squandered potential. Precocious in some ways and ignorant in others, his relationship with the world he inhabits is strangely alluring. The portrayal of his depression is also very brilliantly done. The prose keeps mutating, evolving, taking new shapes and forms. It's usually luminous but it also gets supremely awkward a lot. It's occasional mechanical nature also undercuts the narrative and Ib's frequent insights are trite and banal. The book feels incomplete. He never really grows or gets the satisfaction he seeks. Nor do I see any point to it. But maybe pointlessness is the lesson here.
RATING: 2.5/5
The cover carries a blurb by Jerry Pinto who wrote Em and the Big Hoom, a first-person narrative about a family coping up with the mother's bipolar disorder. In this, the father suffers from schizophrenia. Both the books chart the cruel realities of living with a parent who is ill. But that's where their all similarities end. Divided into three sections, the narrative is sunk in gloom and despair throughout. Em managed to be intensely funny even in its dark moments but here we never emerge out of the miasma. And while Em is one of my favourite books of all time, Ib's Endless Search, unfortunately, proved to be a huge disappointment.
I won't say that it's terrible but there was squandered potential. Precocious in some ways and ignorant in others, his relationship with the world he inhabits is strangely alluring. The portrayal of his depression is also very brilliantly done. The prose keeps mutating, evolving, taking new shapes and forms. It's usually luminous but it also gets supremely awkward a lot. It's occasional mechanical nature also undercuts the narrative and Ib's frequent insights are trite and banal. The book feels incomplete. He never really grows or gets the satisfaction he seeks. Nor do I see any point to it. But maybe pointlessness is the lesson here.
December 31, 2021
I always prefer reading Indian authors, perhaps it is because of my less exposer to World Literature or because of their writing style or maybe in some way protagonist's life resonates with me. Undoubtedly I can say that this book is one of the best I have read till now. Roshan Ali took such a humanitarian approach to describe his protagonist Ib and his life.
It is the Indian lifestyle that makes life so hard for Ib, but the colourful story and the writing of the author succeeded to create such a prominent impact on my mind. What I realised is that Ib's life is so different, so unique from an Indian life but in some way, he always tries to fit in with the normal life.
The story of Ib is not the same as a normal Muslim kid in our country. He tried to understand what his religion has to give to him, but he found the wall too rigid for his mind. His mother was Hindu before marriage. So his Ajju decided to take him to the temple, but he picked his place to a monk sitting near the gate of the temple and spend life meditating and smoking weed. The haphazardness of his life lead him to the Himalayas, he tried hard enough to fit in the society but he failed. As he failed his mother, his father, his grandfather and even his love - that existed for a day or better to say a night.
I have no words to describe how beautifully lyrical this book is. In this journey of sadness and self-reflection, Ib transforms into an ordinary man from an ordinary boy, and, along the way, tries to figure out life and understand himself. He stayed away from institutionalised religion and rigid belief and spent a free life. I will recommend everyone to enjoy this dream ride through a city of memory and desire.
It is the Indian lifestyle that makes life so hard for Ib, but the colourful story and the writing of the author succeeded to create such a prominent impact on my mind. What I realised is that Ib's life is so different, so unique from an Indian life but in some way, he always tries to fit in with the normal life.
The story of Ib is not the same as a normal Muslim kid in our country. He tried to understand what his religion has to give to him, but he found the wall too rigid for his mind. His mother was Hindu before marriage. So his Ajju decided to take him to the temple, but he picked his place to a monk sitting near the gate of the temple and spend life meditating and smoking weed. The haphazardness of his life lead him to the Himalayas, he tried hard enough to fit in the society but he failed. As he failed his mother, his father, his grandfather and even his love - that existed for a day or better to say a night.
I have no words to describe how beautifully lyrical this book is. In this journey of sadness and self-reflection, Ib transforms into an ordinary man from an ordinary boy, and, along the way, tries to figure out life and understand himself. He stayed away from institutionalised religion and rigid belief and spent a free life. I will recommend everyone to enjoy this dream ride through a city of memory and desire.
January 4, 2020
I don't know how to write fancy reviews.
But I'll just say, I actually received this book as a gift and was skeptical about a philosophical literature written by an Indian author.
I agree there were cliches, but so does reality often.
There have been days where one contemplates life. What's the point of existence? You may get started with being a stoic, end up being nihilist, questioning existentialism, practice zen or whatever.
This is what one could write as a fiction when one starts contemplating life. What's the point of it? What's the end of it? It definitely was worth reading it. at the very least for me.
The only other book I've read similar to this philosophical literature kind of artistic creation is Stranger by Albert Camus. The only difference is the way of thinking and how it's written.
Here the protoganist just goes one misery after the other and is being sensitive (As Major says) and "mindful" to it.
Just read the book before deciding further, that's all I'm saying.
But I'll just say, I actually received this book as a gift and was skeptical about a philosophical literature written by an Indian author.
I agree there were cliches, but so does reality often.
There have been days where one contemplates life. What's the point of existence? You may get started with being a stoic, end up being nihilist, questioning existentialism, practice zen or whatever.
This is what one could write as a fiction when one starts contemplating life. What's the point of it? What's the end of it? It definitely was worth reading it. at the very least for me.
The only other book I've read similar to this philosophical literature kind of artistic creation is Stranger by Albert Camus. The only difference is the way of thinking and how it's written.
Here the protoganist just goes one misery after the other and is being sensitive (As Major says) and "mindful" to it.
Just read the book before deciding further, that's all I'm saying.
January 13, 2020
It is a masterfully narrated journey of a person, who thinks himself to be a 'loser'. The narrator, Ib, speaks of religion, of the cities which empty those who live in it, of the families, of friends, of sadness. In a nutshell he speaks of everything that forms him, or that which makes him a loser.
As it explores the thoughts and journey of the central character, the book doesn't feel like it has a strong plot. There are no sudden twists and turns. This, to some, may be an underwhelming quality of the book. It may feel lively at some points, dragged at others. But that's okay; isn't the life the same way?
If you get on board with Ib, and are ready to view the world around you through his eyes, he has the capacity to keep you hooked with his beautiful language. Give it a shot.
As it explores the thoughts and journey of the central character, the book doesn't feel like it has a strong plot. There are no sudden twists and turns. This, to some, may be an underwhelming quality of the book. It may feel lively at some points, dragged at others. But that's okay; isn't the life the same way?
If you get on board with Ib, and are ready to view the world around you through his eyes, he has the capacity to keep you hooked with his beautiful language. Give it a shot.
January 5, 2025
The book explores the theme of existential crisis and the search for meaning in life. It discusses how, at some point or the other, we all question our purpose, leading us on a journey for answers. Ib's life is marked by emptiness and disillusionment shaped due to growing up in a chaotic environment, disconnected from meaningful relationships and unable to engage in societal expectations. His life is filled with emotional numbness and a continuous search for fulfillment, which remains elusive. You may criticize it for the lack of purpose in its storyline or a proper ending, but this is intentional as life in itself is an endless search for satisfaction.
May 5, 2020
I was told it is an Indian Catcher in the Rye. I found it much better than the Salinger classic. To be fair however, the quality of books such as these enhances more so when it is in a more relatable setting/surrounding.
Very well written book, which deals with subjects in a commendable manner. It is exactly what the title says, but opines on several things. The first few pages will tell you if you’ll like it or not.
Really liked the tone and writing style of the author.
Very well written book, which deals with subjects in a commendable manner. It is exactly what the title says, but opines on several things. The first few pages will tell you if you’ll like it or not.
Really liked the tone and writing style of the author.
July 5, 2020
The novel encompasses life, contingent to its precarious nature. Far from life affirming - It is honest.
Very well written, brilliant metaphors.
One of my favorites, "it was clear that god had never existed, but was longer-lasting and humorless like a rock or a plastic bottle"
I highly commend it.
Very well written, brilliant metaphors.
One of my favorites, "it was clear that god had never existed, but was longer-lasting and humorless like a rock or a plastic bottle"
I highly commend it.
Read
October 21, 2019Easy to read book about a man with a schizophrenic father and a disorganized household. The authors use of metaphors is interesting. The main protagonist lives the life of a wanderer and he has interesting experiences.
November 3, 2019
This is brilliant debut. The writing is just great, the atmosphere it builds slightly surreal. What it lacks is a proper plot, or atleast a semblance of plot but maybe that's the point of an endless search. Looking forward to read more works by Roshan.
December 16, 2019
Effortless yet Deep Glide
Very much in harmony with my thoughts. Nicely written. Smooth read. Didn't have expectations in the beginning but the book gave goosebumps with perfect articulation of emotions from the start till the very end.
Very much in harmony with my thoughts. Nicely written. Smooth read. Didn't have expectations in the beginning but the book gave goosebumps with perfect articulation of emotions from the start till the very end.
October 27, 2021
Didn’t quite work for me; hoping to read something else from Roshan. Maybe, something less fragmented.
September 24, 2020
Everyone at one point or the other in their lives inevitably questions the point of existence and the purpose of our small lives. Roshan Ali’s Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction is, as the name gives away, the story of a man who wanders through life looking for something to give his life meaning.
Despair and loneliness are the two golden threads running through Ib’s story. Ib’s life is made up of his schizophrenic father, unhappy mother and an overbearing grandfather who he constantly tries to escape. Apart from a couple of friends scattered through his life, he is mostly friendless. The guru he looks up to for enlightenment is a fraud, the employer who he admires turns out to be involved in shady business, and then when Ib finally finds his “aha!” moment, that too is cruelly snatched away from him. I mean, Ib is the kind of character who, if given a choice, would have noped out of adulthood in a wink and honestly I don’t blame him.
I loved the narration. Instances of grief, loneliness, hopelessness and despair have been eloquently described in the book. So much so that the story felt disturbingly relatable at points. Ib’s hopelessness and his quest to find a place where he fits, will be something many if not all readers relate to.
Through his book Roshan Ali correctly shows his readers the consequences of our unawareness and indifference towards mental illness. The mental trauma of growing up with a schizophrenic parent and how any socially acceptable way of running away from the claustrophobic household is welcomed. How easily children are lost in the absence of a strong support system and guidance. And how the society sucks the stuffings out of people like Ib, who don’t have lofty notions of man and society, who are lost, who don’t contribute and fit in.
The book does get exhausting at times because of its heaviness. The storyline has been criticised by some for not having a purpose and a concrete conclusion, but I think it fits it’s protagonist’s frame of mind perfectly. I mean it’s an endless search for satisfaction after all!
A solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 star read!
Despair and loneliness are the two golden threads running through Ib’s story. Ib’s life is made up of his schizophrenic father, unhappy mother and an overbearing grandfather who he constantly tries to escape. Apart from a couple of friends scattered through his life, he is mostly friendless. The guru he looks up to for enlightenment is a fraud, the employer who he admires turns out to be involved in shady business, and then when Ib finally finds his “aha!” moment, that too is cruelly snatched away from him. I mean, Ib is the kind of character who, if given a choice, would have noped out of adulthood in a wink and honestly I don’t blame him.
I loved the narration. Instances of grief, loneliness, hopelessness and despair have been eloquently described in the book. So much so that the story felt disturbingly relatable at points. Ib’s hopelessness and his quest to find a place where he fits, will be something many if not all readers relate to.
Through his book Roshan Ali correctly shows his readers the consequences of our unawareness and indifference towards mental illness. The mental trauma of growing up with a schizophrenic parent and how any socially acceptable way of running away from the claustrophobic household is welcomed. How easily children are lost in the absence of a strong support system and guidance. And how the society sucks the stuffings out of people like Ib, who don’t have lofty notions of man and society, who are lost, who don’t contribute and fit in.
The book does get exhausting at times because of its heaviness. The storyline has been criticised by some for not having a purpose and a concrete conclusion, but I think it fits it’s protagonist’s frame of mind perfectly. I mean it’s an endless search for satisfaction after all!
A solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 star read!
May 27, 2020
"I said OK, though I thought it was strange that he spent the largest part of his life on something he didn’t want to talk about. But that was the way of the world, and I didn’t want to probe lest I tear something delicate. And honestly, was it worse than being poor and unemployed, seeing things, observing things, but ultimately I was as miserable as the working people."
Ib's Endless Search for Satisfaction is almost a coming-of-age story of Ib, the unreliable protagonist, who goes through life confused, pondering, alone, and dissatisfied. Ali's prose is captivating, and while it does not bring the environment to life, it did make me come very close to understanding the protagonist and what he was thinking. Ib tells us about his life, forgetting moments, remembering them, and conveying the meaninglessness of it all towards the end. To be fair, the last couple of chapters were somewhat disappointing considering that I was expecting some kind of growth, but what I found instead of melancholy. Ib is a confused young man, and as I went through the book I realised that it could not have been any other way. While Ib may be perceptive, his cynicism is unrelenting, and I think Ali wants the reader to not agree with Ib at many points. In spite of this, Ib is very likeable, unlike Holden Caulfield, with whom I couldn't help but make a comparison since both seemed to me to be misguided, masculine rebels.
With some books that I read, and with some characters, I wonder if it were possible to imagine the protagonist to be any other gender than they already are. With Ib, it was always clear that it could not have been the story of a woman. His concerns, his nihilism & hedonism, his way of looking at women, was unflinchingly masculine. But it was a kind of flawed, painful masculinity that I enjoyed reading about.
I read some horrible reviews of this book before actually reading so I wasn't expecting much. However, maybe due to my low expectations, I actually ended up enjoying the book quite a bit.
Ib's Endless Search for Satisfaction is almost a coming-of-age story of Ib, the unreliable protagonist, who goes through life confused, pondering, alone, and dissatisfied. Ali's prose is captivating, and while it does not bring the environment to life, it did make me come very close to understanding the protagonist and what he was thinking. Ib tells us about his life, forgetting moments, remembering them, and conveying the meaninglessness of it all towards the end. To be fair, the last couple of chapters were somewhat disappointing considering that I was expecting some kind of growth, but what I found instead of melancholy. Ib is a confused young man, and as I went through the book I realised that it could not have been any other way. While Ib may be perceptive, his cynicism is unrelenting, and I think Ali wants the reader to not agree with Ib at many points. In spite of this, Ib is very likeable, unlike Holden Caulfield, with whom I couldn't help but make a comparison since both seemed to me to be misguided, masculine rebels.
With some books that I read, and with some characters, I wonder if it were possible to imagine the protagonist to be any other gender than they already are. With Ib, it was always clear that it could not have been the story of a woman. His concerns, his nihilism & hedonism, his way of looking at women, was unflinchingly masculine. But it was a kind of flawed, painful masculinity that I enjoyed reading about.
I read some horrible reviews of this book before actually reading so I wasn't expecting much. However, maybe due to my low expectations, I actually ended up enjoying the book quite a bit.
November 24, 2024
Messy writing. Characters lacked a degree of depth. The lens that Ib uses to view the world is childlike. Thus the book seems to provide a juvenile exploration of satisfaction and a making sense of the world. Perhaps this was the whole point, but one hoped that the scattered pieces would have been arranged to provide some semblance of depth. Instead, one is left on a cliffhanger which only foreshadows further frustration and despair, and not in an intelligent manner.
Additionally, if the character was more intelligent and demonstrated some form of character development as opposed to latching onto various individuals, then the book could have done some justice to its name. The only pertinent message that Ib seemed to have received is that humans are a source of disappointment or despair. The concept of work, religion and relationships are thus brushed over in surface level depth because the characters are developed on a surface level. It perhaps would have been better to explore Ib’s relationship to these concepts on an individual level rather than through the lens of the characters he interacted with.
Additionally, if the character was more intelligent and demonstrated some form of character development as opposed to latching onto various individuals, then the book could have done some justice to its name. The only pertinent message that Ib seemed to have received is that humans are a source of disappointment or despair. The concept of work, religion and relationships are thus brushed over in surface level depth because the characters are developed on a surface level. It perhaps would have been better to explore Ib’s relationship to these concepts on an individual level rather than through the lens of the characters he interacted with.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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