Product Description
Opening in Calcutta in the 1960s, Amitav Ghosh's radiant second novel follows two families -- one English, one Bengali -- as their lives intertwine in tragic and comic ways. The narrator, Indian born and English educated, traces events back and forth in time, from the outbreak of World War II to the late twentieth century, through years of Bengali partition and violence, observing the ways in which political events invade private lives.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 28 reviews)

Complex and Compelling!

I read this book for a graduate course in global English literature. It was one of the more enjoyable reads in that class. The novel is set in India and Pakistan both before and after Partition. It deals with the effects that Partition had on the cities of Calcutta and Dhaka. Ghosh's prose is clear and lucid. Told from the perspective of a young child, the novel has a lot to do with the power of story-telling and the connection of story-telling to identity. Ghosh addresses the issues of nationalism and transnationalism and of borders (both real and imagined). He forces the reader to deal with the connections between nationalism and violence.
December 03, 2008

A journey through space and time

This is a wonderful piece of work. I was off to a slow start - but after the few pages I got so engrossed in the book, I couldn't put it down till I had finished it. Events from different eras, and happening in different parts of the world are beautifully woven into a coherent narrative. I was really impressed by this unique style of traversing space and time in a non-linear fashion. The main characters are well etched out.
The book would be best appreciated by those who have spent time in India (and know of its unique lifestyle!) and have also had a taste of the western world. However, it is a wonderfully told story, and I would recommend it to one and all.
December 30, 2005

Not upto par

I wanted to read this book as it was being praised as a 'great partition novel' and I had previously read a couple of novels set during the independence of bangladesh. However, this book turned out to be more of a love story, with very little mention of the partition of Bangladesh almost till the very end. However for the most part, it's a well written novel.
September 11, 2004

Ghosh's best

A wonderfully nostalgic tale of growing up in Calcutta, going to college in London, and unrequited love in between.

Also depicts the tragedy of the Indian Hindu-Muslim riots of the sixties. Read it!
July 01, 2004

mind blowing!

If I have to name the singlemost life altering reading experience, The Shadow Lines will be it. Given the present political situation, every Indian with even half a claim at intelligence must read this book. But despite its grounding in politics and history, the story is a most personal account of a little boy's life who drifts back and forth between Calcutta and Dhaka...and his journey where he encounters lines and barriers of all kinds, only to find that they're all but...shadow lines. Amitav Ghosh writes with a flair and a command over the language that most other authors can only dream of.
February 03, 2004

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