Man on Fire
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Published:16th Jun '16
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An unforgettable story of faith, forgiveness and second chances, Man on Fire is a powerful and touching novel from the Booker and Guardian-shortlisted author of Pigeon English
A powerful and touching novel from the Booker-shortlisted author of Pigeon English 'A writer of considerable talent' Financial Times I was beating the life out of Bibhuti with a baseball bat when my first monsoon broke… John Lock has come to India to meet his destiny. He has fled the quiet desperation of his life in England to offer his help to a man who has learned to conquer pain, a world record breaker who specialises in feats of extreme endurance and ill-advised masochism. In answering Bibhuti’s call for assistance, John hopes to rewrite a brave end to a life poorly lived. But as they take their leap of faith together, and John is welcomed into Bibhuti’s family, and into the colour and chaos of Mumbai, he learns more about life, and death, and everything in between than he could ever have bargained for.
Man on Fire is astonishingly moving in its heartbreak and humour … Man on Fire does what a novel at its best can do; underneath the humour and pathos and Bibhuti’s hopes and dreams, we find an account of India itself. Out of this unlikely material, Stephen Kelman has written a book of profound beauty and deep empathy * Justin Cartwright, Observer *
An original tale about faith, friendship and determination … An enthralling novel by a writer of considerable talent * Financial Times *
A revelatory and very touching book * Observer, Books of the Year 2015 *
A glorious opening monologue that manages to be hilarious and sympathetic ... Bibhuti is certainly a wonderful creation who resists prat-falling into reductive buffoonery thanks to Kelman’s nicely measured portrait … Man on Fire is a strange, arresting novel that is borne aloft by two vivid protagonists, and threaded together by a delicate chain of imagery … A salutary meditation on time: how we fill it, how we waste is and the tricky challenge of telling the difference * Independent *
Kelman gives an intoxicating picture of Mumbai in all its chaos * Sunday Times Ireland *
Man on Fire, in essence, is like a buddy movie with a spiritual bent; that this spirituality comes from the most unlikely source is its strength * Guardian *
An enthralling fictionalised part-biography of Bibhuti, is Kelman’s moving tribute to the Times of India journalist … Kelman – no relation to James, although he shares the great Glaswegian’s ability to write dark, gut-wrenching books full of life and energy, and that are often very funny * Sunday Herald *
This confirms his ability to evoke deep emotion ... Those who venture will be richly rewarded * Daily Mail *
He has a fine eye for sketching delightful scenes: a shipment of snow globes saves during the monsoon; a group of monks dedicated to table tennis * Irish Mail on Sunday *
ISBN: 9781408843178
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 226g
320 pages