Finding the Center [Mass Market Paperback]

V.S. Naipaul (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the essay, "Prologue to an Autobiography," Naipaul recounts his beginnings as a writer and renders a touching portrait of his father. In "The Crocodiles of Yamoussoukro," a study of the Ivory Coast, he delineates two sections of the modern African mind: the Westernized "day" mind and that of the ageless, magic-haunted "night." PW called both narratives "small works of art." January
Copyright 1985 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Vintage; 1st Vintage Books ed edition (December 12, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394740904
• ISBN-13: 978-0394740904
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,947,277 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Finding the Center by V.S. Naipaul, February 27, 2002

By 

L Jonnal "ljonnal" (Virginia Beach, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Finding the Center (Mass Market Paperback)

It is a rear book of two essays that dealt with the author's own personal experiences in two entirely different worlds. Prolouge to an Autobiography, the first one was more personal than the second one and it was related to his background in Trinidad and Indian ancestry. I enjoyed reading it mainly because of my Indian background, and if there was something intrinsic I might have missed it because of the same reason. I need to read it over.

However I found something remarkably valuable in the second essay, The Crocodiles of Yamaoussoukro. It was more of a travel type dealing with foriegn (African) culture with certain intrinsic revelations about the human nature itself. It showed presence of spirituality behind the primitiveness. Acceptance of the way things happen was delicately brought out through people from Ghana when they say "Yesterday we were all right. Today we are poor. That is the way it is. Tomorrow we may be all right again. Or we my not. That is the way it is." ; and throuh Arlette when she says thing like "But the world is sand. Life is sand" when she tries to explain the unstability of Life. Nailpaul draws the parallel themes between this practical acceptance of Africa and that of the Hindu doctrine of Karma.

Naipaul is probably the most focused writer of our times. Only he could have written such observational essays. I highly recommend them to any one with an open mind and a desire to finding one's own center.