A Passage to India in Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die

From the Bookshelf of Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die…

A Passage to India

E.M. Forster,

Oliver Stallybrass (Editor),

Pankaj Mishra (Introduction)

Start date: May 15, 2010

Finish date: June 15, 2010

Discussion: 1001 Monthly Group Read

Why we're reading this: May 2010 Group Read
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What Members Thought

Jan 15, 2009 Suvi rated it really liked it

Shelves: _great-britain, 1900-1939, novels, _asia

We are all people and connected somehow but when it comes to the question of nationality and race it becomes a hindrance to some and a difficult thing to overcome. The hypocritical British India is shaken and probably even dropped a little from its pedestal (the court scene) but the prejudices stay and ultimately we wait what happens to the friendship of an Englishman and an Indian. Forster's writing is rich and though sometimes seemingly simple it has some underlying symbolism and great thought ...more

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May 23, 2010 Michelle rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 1001-books, historical-fiction, book_club, lit_fic

a dense, introspective look at the human condition, more about racism and classism than about plot...meaning you have to be in the right mood for long side discussions about the nature of truth and beauty and the everyday depressing filth of life for this to truly sing. On reading the very first paragraph when i got this one home, I thought it was going to be lyrically lovely; by the time I'd finished my book-in-progress, I was apparently no longer in the right mood for this, so instead of soari ...more

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Oct 06, 2016 Elizabeth marked it as to-read

Recommended by Professor Nancy Parker.

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May 11, 2007 Kecia rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: india, times_100_best, audio_books, 1001-books

After reading the book 15 years ago, I listened to it on CD on a drive to Arkansas (10/2007). Forster's razor sharp bite into colonialism is softened by the beauty of the language. It's not an easy story to swalllow because the prejudices of race still exist. This story could as easily be set in 2007 as the 1920s.

Can the Indians trust the English? Can the English trust the Indians? The same answer is given over and over again throughout the novel...NO.

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