A Bend in the River

By: V. S. Naipaul

Narrated by: Simon Vance

In this incandescent novel, V.S. Naipaul takes us deeply into the life of one man, an Indian who, uprooted by the bloody tides of Third World history, has come to live in an isolated town at the bend of a great river in a newly independent African nation. Naipaul gives us the most convincing and disturbing vision yet of what happens in a place caught between the dangerously alluring modern world and its own tenacious past and traditions.©1979 V.S. Naipaul (P)2004 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"A brilliant novel." (The New York Times)
"Confirms Naipaul's position as one of the best writers now at work." (Newsweek)

A curious journey

The readers english accent was perfect and at times difficult. This book required concentration to discern the subleties of both language and culture that are so different from contemporary USA. While it hints of Out of Africa it tells the story of a sensible man in a complex world in a time when the rules of traditional culture no longer applied.

Fascinating historical document

A fascinating account of Mobutu’s Zaire in the 1970s through the eyes of expatriates: Indian – Tanzanian traders trying to get rich in the booms and busts of post-colonial Kisangani, and a European couple the narrator befriends, the man a some-time advisor to the President, currently in eclipse and semi-exile from the capital.

Naipaul was a good observer. His bitter and pessimistic impressions verge on a racist dismissal of Africa and Africans, as many have observed. But the book is pretty nuanced, and Zairian politics were undeniably horrific.

Nepal‘s writing is beautiful but the book is a bit formless. It has a lot of social/political exposition, which is very interesting, but loses the track of the narrative. The violence of the protagonist’s affair with the European woman is weird and gratuitous. The narrator remains a bit of a mystery.

confusing

I was disappointed in this novel. After listening to it for over 10 hrs. the book just ended with no conclusion. Additionally, while the reader was good the book was rather boring.

terrifying

terrifying. what we know about the venality of humankind laid bare. a a a a

Interesting storyline

Step into colonial African rule & demise. Sad truth as capitalism corrupts ending in a wasted life….