Customer Reviews
"Luck is the spit of gods and goddesses." - By: Mary Whipple, 02 Jan 2006 
Sometimes compared to Dickens or Victor Hugo for the strength of his descriptions, Rohinton Mistry uses "ordinary" men & women as his protagonists & fills his novels with the sights, sounds, smells, & color of India. Depicting his characters as neither saints nor sinners, he involves the readerin their lives as they try to survive the complexities of their culture.
In this novel, Gustad Noble & his wife Dilnavaz, livingin a congested apartment buildingin Bombay, try to lead good lives & inspire their children during Indira Gandhi's rulein the 1970s, with all its political, professional, & social upheaval. India is on the verge of war with the Muslims of Pakistan, & though Gustad, a Parsi, is aware of political chicanery, he is far more pre-occupied with having his son accepted at a school of technology, doing his job as a bank supervisor, & supporting his family. Constant blackouts & continually deteriorating conditions on the street add to the frustrations of Gustad's life.
Then Jimmy Bilimoria, an old friend, asks Gustad for help, claiming that he is training freedom fightersin Bangladesh to act on behalf of the Indian government against Pakistani "butchers." Gustad reluctantly agrees to use his position at the bank to deposit money to a secret account, but he soon finds himself enmeshedin a spiral from which he cannot break out, his life turned upside down.
Throughout the novel, the wall outside Gustad's apartment building symbolizes the larger world of Bombay & parallels some aspects of Gustad's own life. At the outset, it is used as a latrine, breeding illnessin the neighborhood but keeping the noise & tumult of the street out of the apartment house. When Gustad persuades a sidewalk artist to paint it, he depicts scenes from all the religions of India, & the wall becomes a shrine--until the government decides to widen the road & tear it down. Gustad's personal crisis & the fate of the wall intersectin a conclusion both moving & profound.
Though this novel lacks the grand scale of A Fine Balance, it is a beautifully constructed & emotionally involving story of a small family trying to live meaningful lives against almost overwhelming odds. The characters are finely drawn, & the plot, though not "exciting," reflects the traumas of an ordinary man & his wife caught upin events & crises not of their own making. Wry & often humorousin its observations of people & circumstances, this early novel by Mistry has all the ingredients which make his later novels so memorable. Mary Whipple
Familiar human nature in an unfamiliar setting - By: , 15 Apr 2005 
This is the second Rohinton Mistry novel I have read ( also Family Matters) & I cannot recommend them too highly. In this novel ( which is about a bank clerk & his family; the doctor mentionedin the above synopsis is a minor character.)Mistry creates a group of characters & describes their interactionin an absorbing & convincing way. In some ways this is like a traditional 19th century English novel of family life, though setin Indiain the 1970s. When I read 'Family Matters', I had never been to India, but Mistry's descriptions enabled me to visualise itin a way few previous 'Indian' novels I had read had succeededin doing. 'Such a long journey' I read during my first visit to India & I can now vouch for its authenticity & humour. The novel however is no travelogue; the characters are interesting because of their human nature. The ending was genuinely moving. A great writer.
A GREAT READ!! - By: , 22 Apr 2004 Such a Long Journey is the first book I have had the pleasure of readingby Mistry & it has been a wonderful experience from start to finish! The culture & traditions are so alivein the book that they seem to jumpout at you & teach you something about lifein India as a whole. A mostcaptivating book that I will definitely be reading again & again.
wonderfully human - By: , 13 Nov 2002 Though lacking the dramatic power & the pessimistic philosophy of his later masterpiece 'A fine balance', 'Such a long journey' is a wonderful, extremely compassionate account of a family's struggle to maintain unity & moral integrityin the face of extraordinary circumstances: both external (the Emergency) & internal (father-son conflicts, disease etc.).
The political agendain this novel is much reduced compared to Mistry's later work, & that perhaps renders 'Such a long journey' a less pressing & controversial book, removing some of the urgency & the vigour to concentrate instead on a very human (and universal) 'journey', which eventually leads to a very human (and universal) catharsis.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, & I rate it as highly as 'A fine balance' & perhaps higher that the latest, somewhat disappointing (to me!) 'Family matters'.
one of the best books in modern indian literature - By: laura.caramante@tin.it, 26 Feb 2002 I can't really say this is the best bookin modern indian literature because my knowledge is not so deep, but you can trust me if I tell you to buy this book & throw yourself into it without esitation. You will cry ,you will smile, you will love the characters and, like me, you'll look forward for the next Mistry's novel.
