It has barely been a month since acclaimed poet jeet thayils the book of chocolate saints hit the stands, but even in this short period, the novel has made a mark in literary circles. It was a long wait, but the book of chocolate saints is definitely worth it. Chocolate here refers to the darkish skin complexion, its sweetness a metaphor for the pleasures of the flesh. The book enkindles the chaos and cruelty of the subcontinents streets that once inspired poetry from a society of subcontinents very own chocolate saints who later went on to rot. Without your doing that for me, i wouldnt have been able return to saints and recipes.
In this interaction between the two, the imagined playfully reinterprets the real. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil portrait of. The book of chocolate saints kindle edition by thayil, jeet. The book of chocolate saints explores our deepest urges in a novel that is sexy, dangerous, and entirely uncompromising. Narrated in a huge variety of voices and styles, all of which blend seamlessly into a novel of remarkable accomplishment, the book of chocolate saints is the sort of literary masterpiece that only comes along once in a very long time. Thayils latest, the book of chocolate saints, belongs to this latter category.
In the swooningly hypnotic prose for which his man booker prizeshortlisted novel was acclaimed, jeet thayil paints a hallucinatory portrait of an ambiguous soul. Midway through jeet thayils the book of chocolate saints occurs a remarkable passage that recites the names of poets, writers and artists who, driven by madness or grief or addiction, destroyed themselves sylvia, classic head in the oven. The book of chocolate saints follows the unforgettable character francis newton xavier and his journey towards salvation or damnation or perhaps both. Chocolate, for south indian writer and poet thayil, shortlisted for the man booker prize for his debut novel narcopolis, is about skin color and.
Thayils hypnotic second novel follows a fading, dissolute indian artist and poet back. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil sakshipost. It is intoxicating, blazingly intelligent literary fiction a strange, beautiful hymn to the artistic life lived fearlessly that consolidates thayils reputation as one of. Jeet thayil was born in mamalasserie, kerala, and educated in bombay, hong kong and new york. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil aleph book company an exhilarating account of a decadent artists voyage into an uncertain future the book of chocolate saints tells the story of newton francis xavier, blocked poet, serial seducer of young women, reformed alcoholic but only just, philosopher, recluse, allround wild man, and. As a young boy, up till the age of 18, thayil travelled a lot jeet thayyil. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil goodreads. Its long, at 500 pages, and a difficult read but, for all that, hugely rewarding. The book of chocolate saints jeet thayil 97805736104 allen. His paintings and poems, which embody a flamboyant and decadent jeu desprit, are to be celebrated. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil waterstones. The book of chocolate saints is the story of newton francis xavier, blocked poet, serial seducer of young women, reformed alcoholic but only just, philosopher, recluse, allround wild man and. The book of chocolate saints follows the unforgettable. Buy the book of chocolate saints by thayil, jeet from amazons fiction books store.
The book of chocolate saints kindle edition by thayil. The book of chocolate saints jeet thayils second novel, following his successful debut, narcopolis begins with a poet on the verge of flight. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil artistic licence. Beginning with a one page prologue that immediately immerses you in the world of jeets melancholy and masterful storytelling, chocolate saints encompasses many places, many people and many times. In his second novel, the book of chocolate saints, one hypnotic vignette in particular dents the memory. The book of chocolate saints follows the unforgettable character xavier and his journey towards salvation or damnation or perhaps both. They made me recite my poems at great length in russian, although they didnt understand. Likewise with the book of chocolate saints which has taken the art form of a novel to new heights and yet is undeniably grounded in reality. As someone whose knowledge of indian poetry in english is limited to rabindranath tagore and recently jerry pinto selected poems at that, reading the book of chocolate saints is a huge step up. If there is one thing that writer jeet thayils new novel, the book of chocolate saints aleph book company, will do, it will make you very, very curious. During the traditional season of fasting and selfdenial.
Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. He is being drawn west again, a lure ever since his childhood in goa, where he grew up precocious and taciturn, beguiled by christian saints and english literature. Aleph book company is delighted to announce that it will be publishing jeet. The original manuscript of narcopolis was about a thousand pages. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil portrait of a doomed. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil artistic. There are two ways of interpreting this book that will, for most informed readers, be inescapable.
Jeet thayil francis newton xavier has lived a life of excess in pursuit of an uncompromising aesthetic vision. Chocolate, for south indian writer and poet thayil, shortlisted for the man booker prize for his debut novel narcopolis, is about skin color and subversive calories. Every surface had been colonisedby objects that had noth. Aleph publisher david davidar was seen recommending the book to several western authors at private parties of the justconcluded dhaka literature festival. Everyday low prices on a huge range of new releases and classic fiction. Jeet thayil, the book of chocolate saints tls nothing. Jeet thayil on his new novel, the book of chocolate saints. George, or seemingly fiction which are thinly veiled references to actual. The narrative absorbs an edgy clash between history, literature, and art and it does so beautifully. Saint refers to these artists, mainly poets, as their work on selfexpression and. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil artistic licence the followup to narcopolis is a fractured portrait of a painter that suggests. The book of chocolate saints jeet thayil messengers booker.
The chocolate saints of the title are famous works of art by francis newton xavier, a fictional painter and poet at the centre of this big, exuberant, explosive novel. The book of chocolate saints is a moving, amusing, and superbly written book that celebrates a part of our countrys past that might otherwise be forgotten. Thayils novel is the loathed plus the book of chocolate saints plus a great deal more. The book of chocolate saints is skilfully paced, telescoping in and out of the lives of xavier, lol, bambai and others in a dizzying variety of settings and time periods, from preindependence. In a video, a skinny japanese youtube star eats, alone, a gigantic meal in. The debauched, the gifted and their hangerson feature in this elegiac story about the rackety lives of the bombay poets. Theres no worse thing that can be said about a man. But what verses, would you say, emanate from the bosom of passion that borders on delirium. The book of chocolate saints is a story about art and. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil portrait of a doomed genius the debauched, the gifted and their hangerson feature in this elegiac story. In incandescent prose, awardwinning novelist jeet thayil tells the story of newton francis.
The book of chocolate saints wellington city libraries. The book of chocolate saints audiobook by jeet thayil. As i was working my way through jeet thayils second novel, the book of chocolate saints. As xavier says, the death of god is unbearable when he is all you have got. The book of chocolate saints jeet thayil messengers. They made me recite my poems at great length in russian, although they didnt understand a word. Through these savants of the written word, he inserts a worry about the longevity of art, the value of monklike pursuing of selfexpression and the place of. How to make a chocolate book how to cook that ann reardon duration. From jeet thayils the book of chocolate saints word russia is enough to make some bengalis tearyeyed.
It tells the story of vianne rocher, a young single mother, who arrives in the french village of lansquenetsoustannes at the beginning of lent with her sixyearold daughter, anouk. The book of chocolate saints follows the unforgettable character francis newton xavier and his journey towards salvation or damnation or. This is a book on extraordinary lives, real and imagined. Francis xavier newton is about to abandon his wife in bombay. The book of chocolate saints is an insightful exploration of the consequences of living in a godless world, where it is no longer possible to cling on to some kind of reassuring order. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil my rating. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil overdrive. The followup to narcopolis is a fractured portrait of a painter that suggests the.
Buy the book of chocolate saints 97805736111 by jeet. Structurally the book is presented in alternating parts, the first, after a short prologue, consisting of interviews with numerous characters conducted by dismas and the next a narrative of newton francis xaviers life, alternating back to interviews and so forth. The book of chocolate saints was carved out of your first book, narcopolis newton is a fleeting presence there. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil portrait of a doomed genius the debauched, the gifted and their hangerson feature in this elegiac story about the rackety lives of the bombay poets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the book of chocolate saints. The book of chocolate saints by jeet thayil is published by faber. How writer jeet thayil was inspired by soothing sound of. Narrated in a huge variety of voices and styles, all of which blend seamlessly into a novel of remarkable accomplishment, the book of chocolate saints is the sort of literary masterpiece that comes along only once in a very long time.
Jeet thayils second novel is out five years after his first. The book of chocolate saints kindle edition by jeet thayil. The cities within lifestyle news,the indian express. Jeet thayils latest novel, the book of chocolate saints, stands remarkable for many reasons. In the swooning, hypnotic prose for which his man booker prizeshortlisted novel was acclaimed, jeet thayil paints a hallucinatory portrait of an ambiguous soul. It is jeet thayils spiritual, passionate, and demented masterpiece. The book of chocolate saints jeet thayil 97805736104. Buy the book of chocolate saints book online at low prices.