The Shadow Lines: A Novel

I listened to the book thru the audible version.. the reader is really good and it's great to hear the correct pronunciation of names and places. I have read Ghosh's Ibis Triology and 'The Glass Palace' and highly recommend them. This book I had some trouble following as it jumps back and forth in time constantly but it's still very good. His novels so far have all been historic and this is no exception and I got the sense it was literally an autobiography. I would say to read the Ibis Triolgy first as you will absolutely fall in love with this and learn a lot of history during the voyage. Then you might, like I am doing, read all his writings. I can't say enough about the audible versions... it's as if they come alive with the reader giving separate voices to males, females, young, old, Indian, English, Chinese, etc...I awe at how they do this at speed.

I could really not understand about the first 50 pages of this book, but when I finally realized what the author was doing, I understood it and really enjoyed it, and hate to see the book end. Amitav Ghosh is a great and talented writer, and quite inventive in how he intertwines so many characters from so many unlikely places. Before reading this book, if you are a novice to India's history during and after the partition, then you might want to study some of that before reading this book since all the characters revolve around this one time in history and the affect the partition had in the lives of those characters. I love Ghosh's writing, and have ordered several of his other books to enjoy as well.

This is a wonderful piece of work. I was off to a slow start - but after the few pages I got so engrossed in the book, I couldn't put it down till I had finished it. Events from different eras, and happening in different parts of the world are beautifully woven into a coherent narrative. I was really impressed by this unique style of traversing space and time in a non-linear fashion. The main characters are well etched out.The book would be best appreciated by those who have spent time in India (and know of its unique lifestyle!) and have also had a taste of the western world. However, it is a wonderfully told story, and I would recommend it to one and all.

I've read other books by this author and I especially loved the Sea of Poppies Trilogy. I liked The Shadow Lines, but he has done something that I have never seen in another book. He goes back and forth in time - in the same paragraph, just the way a person thinks with one thought hinging on something that happened before. I'm sorry to say that I didn't figure it out for a long time and was just confused. So, this wasn't my favorite of his books, but I can't wait to read anything he writes.

I found the jumping around between time and place a bit disrupting to my own involvement with the characters. On the other hand this was also a very interesting method of bringing those two elements of the story together - rather original, almost like a stream of consciousness.I will definitely recommend this book to my Bengali friends both sides of the Bengali divide.

Subtle. Thrilling. Masterful. One of the best pieces of post-colonial fiction that I’ve ever come across, and also a most artful narrative

The character and language is good, but it’s very hard to get a hold of the plot. I read it three times and still some things were lost. It’s kind of the point, but also frustrating.

Not the best of Ghosh, but an interesting read all the same. It consists largely of convoluted memories and relationships of an Indian family and an English family which become entwined through study abroad, exchanged visits, and eventually a marriage. Some of Ghosh's later novels are more engaging than this one.

Ghosh is an excellent writer. This book is set in Calcutta and London and weaves a very interesting story involving both of these locations. I recommend it.

great story well told. The characters are well developed and the plot interesting. I'm glad I don't have a grandmother like this one!

Not as good as 'River of Smoke' but enjoyable all the same. He's a fine writer and it's worth reading

Fascinating, but not as rivetting as the Sea of Poppies series.

an excellent read ... the fascinating characters really come to life as we journey through their joys and sorrows in this epic tale of fear, flight, love and death - brilliant!