Conversations with V. S. Naipaul (Literary Conversations Series) (Paperback)

~ Feroza Jussawalla (Editor) "Scarborough, Tobago: He came in the afternoon, complete with liveried chauffeur and the administration car-signs of the $600 that's his for another month or so..." (more)
Key Phrases: million mutinies, West Indian, New York, The Enigma of Arrival (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Intense, controversial, unfailingly clever, V. S. Naipaul has won nearly every major British writing award, including the prestigious Booker Award (in 1971 for In a Free State) and in 1990 was knighted for his literary accomplishments. Born of Indian parents in Trinidad in 1932, he has little sympathy for the land of his birth or forefathers. All that he puts under his microscope--nations, peoples, religions, or ethnic groups--are targets of his clear-sightedness, and he shows no patience with pretense or delusions.

This collection brings together interviews from a thirty-six-year span and reveals a witty, sometimes scathing talker with a free-ranging curiosity, but one who dreads intimacy and cherishes a solitary detachment. This collection shows the changing faces of this world-class author. In early interviews, mostly given to such fellow writers and colleagues as Derek Walcott and the poet Eric Roach, Naipaul is clipped, brusque, and clearly impatient with interviewers. More recent interviews, given primarily to journalists rather than literary figures, reveal a maturing Naipaul, often warm, passionate, and forthcoming about his private life.

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Mississippi (January 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0878059466
• ISBN-13: 978-0878059461
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #815,853 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent compilation of Naipaul interviews, March 25, 1998

By	[e-mail] (West Texas) - See all my reviews

V.S. Naipaul is arguably the greatest author of our time. Yet although a world traveler and a master conversationalist, he is reserved and enigmatic -- a hard man to get to know. Professor Jussawalla's book compiles interviews with Naipaul that date back to the '60s, shedding light on his personal as well as literary progress. This is 'must' reading for anyone with a serious interest in V.S. Naipaul.