SHANTARAM

This book has kept me awake for the past week, I couldn't do what I usually do, go to bed read a chapter or so then put it down. I have read this book until three in the morning, knowing that I have to be out of bed at 6am, it is truly the best book I have read for years, and one that I will be reading again. It has 1000 pages, available in paperback and kindle.

The story is based on the real life adventures of the author, Gregory David Roberts. As the book begins, he has escaped from prison in Australia and made his way to India. Later on we find out more about how he broke out from prison but it's testament to how enthralling the story is that this is not the most eventful part of the book. When he arrives in Mumbai (Bombay) he quickly immerses himself into the city, befriending the locals, learning the languages and even living in a slum. He also befriends a local mafioso and is drawn into the Indian crime world. The story twists and turns and would be unbelievable if it wasn't based so much on fact. Gun runners in Afghanistan, high class prostitutes, Bollywood movie sets and grim Indian prisons all make their appearances. It's a fascinating, suspenseful and exciting book.

Roberts has a gift for writing. He really captures the flavour of India - the smells, the sounds, the colours. After reading this book I felt like jumping on a plane to Mumbai and heading straight to Leopold's for a drink. Whilst you are reading the book you truly feel as though you are sitting in Leopolds with him, he describes the slums, and the areas around the Taj Hotel, Colaba, Crawfords market, all places that I have been to, he spends some time in Candolim, Calangute, Mapsua, and the way he describes it, you feel as though you are walking down the same streets with him a brilliant book.