The Vendor of Sweets (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics) (Paperback)

by R. K. Narayan (Author) "'Conquer taste, and you will have conquered the self,' said Jagan to his listener, who asked,'Why conquer the self?' Jagan said, 'I do not know,..." (more)
Key Phrases: canteen man, puja room, bronze jug, Ananda Bhavan, Market Road, Truth Printing (more...)

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Product Description
While the colourful sweetmeats are frying in the kitchen, Jagan immerses himself in his copy of the Bhagavad Gita. A widower of firm Gandhian principles, Jagan nonetheless harbours a warm and embarrassed affection for his wastrel son Mali. Yet even Jagan's patience begins to fray when Mali descends on the sleepy city of Malgudi full of modern notions, with a new half-American wife and a grand plan for selling novel-writing machines. From different generations and different cultures, father and son are forced to confront each other, and are taken by surprise ...

About the Author
R.K. Narayan was born in Madras, South India, in 1906, and educated there and at Maharaja's College in Mysore. His first novel, Swami and Friends and its successor, The Bachelor of Arts, are both set in the enchanting fictional territory of Malgudi and are only two out of the twelve novels he based there. In 1958 Narayan's work The Guide won him the National Prize of the Indian Literary Academy, his country's highest literary honor. In addition to his novels, Narayan has authored five collections of short stories, including A Horse and Two Goats, Malguidi Days, and Under the Banyan Tree, two travel books, two volumes of essays, a volume of memoirs, and the re-told legends Gods, Demons and Others, The Ramayana, and the Mahabharata. In 1980 he was awarded the A.C. Benson Medal by the Royal Society of Literature and in 1982 he was made an Honorary Member of the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters. Narayan died in 2001.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (June 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014018550X
• ISBN-13: 978-0140185508
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #767,338 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazingly well-written and insightful, July 12, 2001

By	"carunkumar" (Austin, TX United States) - See all my reviews

R.K.Narayan's books offer a wonderfuly detailed and intricate view of the South Indian world,and The Vendor Of Sweets fits into this mould to a T.In this novel,the life of Jagan, the vendor of sweets, and the trials and tribulations of his life are wonderfully captured. What is refreshing, however, is the description of the South Indian way of life that is provided by Narayan--the way Jagan runs his business, the views,opinions he possesses,the fears he entertains.Narayan also vividly portrays the confusions and fears that a person from such a conventional milieu would face when thrown into unconventional situations-- such as having a foreigner for a daughter-in-law, for example. Being a South Indian myself, I can truly appreciate the imagery that his writing evokes, and can also vouchsafe for the fact that it is no easy task to put across to readers whatever he has managed to convey in his books.On the whole,to summarize this review in one sentence:read the book;you will not be disappointed.