A Passage to India (Penguin Classics)

I'm torn on this review. On one hand, there's nice historical references for the tension between Britain and India during this time period. the writing is fantastic and really does paint clear pictures of what's being talked about. Unfortunately, on the other, not a lot....actually happens. The prose is great, the setting compelling, but not much else. There's little going on here beyond a very pretty setting involving very pretty characters in a very tense environment.

That said, I think I'm going to give it another try next year as a re-read. I really did enjoy the writing style, just not necessarily the substance, or lack thereof.

"A Passage to India" by E.M. Forster a complex, engaging novel which brilliantly tackles some of the thorniest questions about British India and, by extension, the British Empire in general. Written in 1924 and still considered one of the best novels of the 20th century, "A Passage to India" has enjoyed popular and critical acclaim and can engages the modern reader with a simple yet complex narrative which mostly keeps the reader engaged from start to finish. Forster is a brilliant writer who has come up with an interesting (if not wholly complete) universe that perfectly captures the situation in British India at the beginning of the twentieth century. To do so he utilizes complex characters, dazzling imagery, interesting symbolism, and excellent observations. What makes this such an excellent book is that it does all of this in slightly under 300 pages. An excellent read.

This is another one I read in graduate school. I did not particularly like it, but sometimes, even if you like your major, you get to read some things you may not like. Here is what I wrote back then:

>>The issue that comes out right away is the prejudice between the British and Indians. It is clear the British are attempting to bring their world to India, yet the conventions of Britain are not good enough; they must be tightened and adapted to this new world. Then there is the interplay between the Anglo-Indians and Indians, superiors and subalterns where lines are drawn and expectations must be kept. The novel was interesting in the measure it shows how India was for the British, but it is not an engaging piece of fiction.