Set in an African country, this book is narrated by Selim, a young man from an Indian family of traders long resident on the coast. He believes the world is what it is ; men who are nothing, who allow themselves to become nothing, have no place in it. So he has taken the initative: left the coast; acquired his own shop in a small, growing city in the continent's remote interior and is selling sundries - little more than this and that, really - to the natives. This spot, this "bend in the river", is a microcosm of post-colonial Africa at the time of Independence: a scene of chaos, violent change, warring tribes, ignorance, isolation and poverty. And from this rich landscape emerges one of the author's most potent works - a truly moving story of historical upheaval and social breakdown.

I can see why this book won prizes. It is a very well written tale about the life of a thoroughly unpleasant man who is racist, looks down on those in a lower level of society than himself whilst being sycophantic with those in a higher level. He avoids responsibility of any kind including marriage, wants to climb the ladder but doesn't want to work for it. In the end he gets his come-uppance when the one constant and most ill-used person in his life finally turns the tables. Oh, and his attitude to women is despicable.

Mailed to another bookcrosser via the wishlist tag game.

Book arrived safely. I look forward to reading it. Thanks for sharing.

"Non-fiction can distort; facts can be realigned, but fiction never lies."

I have read a few other reviews of this novel in which people complained that nothing really happens but personally I think that that is one of its strengths. Naipaul manages to succinctly portray Salim as a simple man struggling to understand the new Africa around him. It is an insightful piece of observation dotted with a gentle touches of irony. Naipaul has managed to create a sense of moral tension despite, seemingly, very little happens.

Ultimately Naipaul offers no hope of perspective salvation for the country's and perhaps Africa. There is no neat ending here and that is fitting because, at least in the short term, the mistakes of the past are likely to be repeated over and over again until hopefully a new generation, without the stigma of colonialist baggage are ready to assume power. As it says in the quote at the top of this review: "facts can be realigned, but fiction never lies".

Going out as part of a Wishlist tag thread. I hope that you get as much as I did out of it. Enjoy!

Thank you for the tag 😊

3 Jan 22 - I find this book difficult to review. On the one hand it is interesting to read about a country going through some troubled times and I could almost feel the tension as things took a turn for the worse. On the other hand I didn’t really like the main character, he comes across as a bit of a bully, he didn’t treat Yvette very well at all and although probably more common in that era it saddened me to see him trading in Ivory.

Sent on to grant a wish

Thank you so much for this wish granting RABCK. Hopefully I can do the same for you one day.