Astonishing the Gods [Paperback]

Ben Okri (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1999

This is a story for all ages, set in a time and place best known to lovers of fairytales and myths. It is a modern fable, a way of understanding who we are now and how our search for identity affects our perceptions and actions, shot through with the gentle magic of Ben Okri's imaginative prose. 'Astonishing the Gods is properly worked and exact, and fulfils Calvino's prescription for lightness - being like a bird rather than a feather' New Statesman & Society

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Powerful, sensuous and philosophical' -- European

About the Author

Ben Okri was born in Nigeria and now lives in London. He has published fiction (short stories and novels), poetry and essays. He has won numerous prizes for his work.

Product Details

• Paperback: 158 pages
• Publisher: Phoenix Paperbacks (1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0753808641
• ISBN-13: 978-0753808641
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #529,102 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The invisible reality, October 4, 2002

By 

Esther Nebenzahl - See all my reviews

This review is from: Astonishing the Gods (Paperback)

"Astonishing the Gods" is a spiritual/philosophical journey, one whose goal is to reach "Perfection," a road long pursued by countless humans. Seen from the Christian point of view it is the journey back to the state of grace, for Buddhism it is the state of ultimate meditation, for the apocryphal it is the soul striving back to its origins, for Plato it is reaching the Forms and Ideas, and for the scientist the discovery of the Theory of Everything. In one way or another, Ben Okri touches (purposely or not) on these different roads to reach the "unreachable star," leaving the reader free to judge and give his own interpretation.
Ben Okri makes uses of mythological themes such as the unicorn, religious allegories to the original sin and Christ, a beautiful paralllel between the "archangel of invisibility" (a "she" figure) and Sophie, the god of Wisdom. "Astonishing the Gods" is a tapestry of profound thoughts, touching on issues of depth with respect to love, death, reality, and the ultimate purpose of life. It carries a message of hope, a belief in our innate ability and power to free ourselves from a world of illusions and reach the reality beyond, a state in which goodness and love will be the driving force. Needless to say, this journey is not easy, straightforward, and smooth. Ben Okri does hit some bumps along the way, his reasoning not totally free of paradoxes... inevitably so, it happens to anyone who attempts to journey into a reality in which time and space ceases to exist, and at the same time is chained to temporal perception.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Amazing Tale of the Human Condition & Experience, July 31, 2005

By 

Avid Reader (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Astonishing the Gods (Paperback)

Ben Okri's tells the story in an elegant manner with a love of words filled with abstract and concrete notions. There is peace, love, suffering, longing, and darkness within this beautiful tale. As you read you find yourself filled with the curiosity of a child, the humility of an enlightened being, and a love beyond compare among other things. As you begin to read you may initially feel overwhelmed by the abstract concepts, however do not be deterred because as you continue to read you will receive rewards that are limitless. By the time I had completed the book in 2 days I felt as if I was in a deep meditation that eloquently ended leaving me satisfied and at peace. I loved this book and it will be one I shall read over and over again!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Untidy and as beautiful as nature!, September 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Astonishing the Gods Hb (Hardcover)

Okri can inspire his readers by totally tranforming their expectations in a very short space of time. In "Astonishing The Gods" however, he can at times fail to live up to his own expectations for the book. Without, discussing the ending, his warmth for humanity seems to undermine many human qualities which are found in the migrant, travelling theme.

Time might improve this novel, as many sections are a little esoteric if not spontenious. Perhaps, that is the charm of the book, as well as its weakness.