Shantaram

A Novel

By: Gregory David Roberts

Narrated by: Humphrey Bower

Length: 42 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

Based on his own extraordinary life, Gregory David Roberts’ Shantaram is a mesmerizing novel about a man on the run who becomes entangled within the underworld of 1980s Bombay—the basis for the Apple + TV series starring Charlie Hunnam.

“It took me a long time and most of the world to learn what I know about love and fate and the choices we make, but the heart of it came to me in an instant, while I was chained to a wall and being tortured.”

An escaped convict with a false passport, Lin flees maximum security prison in Australia for the teeming streets of Bombay, where he can disappear. Accompanied by his guide and faithful friend, Prabaker, the two enter the city’s hidden society of beggars and gangsters, prostitutes and holy men, soldiers and actors, and Indians and exiles from other countries, who seek in this remarkable place what they cannot find elsewhere.

As a hunted man without a home, family, or identity, Lin searches for love and meaning while running a clinic in one of the city’s poorest slums, and serving his apprenticeship in the dark arts of the Bombay mafia. The search leads him to war, prison torture, murder, and a series of enigmatic and bloody betrayals. The keys to unlock the mysteries and intrigues that bind Lin are held by two people. The first is Khader Khan: mafia godfather, criminal-philosopher-saint, and mentor to Lin in the underworld of the Golden City. The second is Karla: elusive, dangerous, and beautiful, whose passions are driven by secrets that torment her and yet give her a terrible power.

Burning slums and five-star hotels, romantic love and prison agonies, criminal wars and Bollywood films, spiritual gurus and mujaheddin guerrillas—this huge novel has the world of human experience in its reach, and a passionate love for India at its heart.

©2003 Gregory David Roberts (P)2006 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"Shantaram is a novel of the first order, a work of extraordinary art, a thing of exceptional beauty. If someone asked me what the book was about, I would have to say everything, every thing in the world. Gregory David Roberts does for Bombay what Lawrence Durrell did for Alexandria, what Melville did for the South Seas, and what Thoreau did for Walden Pond: He makes it an eternal player in the literature of the world." (Pat Conroy)

"[A] sprawling, intelligent novel…full of vibrant characters…the exuberance of his prose is refreshing…Roberts brings us through Bombay's slums and opium houses, its prostitution dens and ex-pat bars, saying, You come now. And we follow." (The Washington Post)

"Few stand out quite like Shantaram …nothing if not entertaining. Sometimes a big story is its own best reward." (The New York Times)

Amazing journey

I enjoyed hearing / learning about Bombay India. The characters were very real & likable. A bit more violence than my preferences, but hearing is not as bad as seeing violence.

Timeless

Very good book. Novels of this magnitude are very few, and of those few this one is amongst the best.

long but so amazing

This may be the longest audio book I've listened to, I never wanted it to end. I wanted the story to never end. Love the story, and really enjoyed the narration

An epic and very personal tale

I intended to treat myself to bits of this story at the gym, but I just couldn’t stop listening and gobbled it up. Reading the author’s life story, you realize how very personal this piece of “fiction,“ really is. To think it almost got destroyed! Thank God, he persisted to give us this incredible look into a culture that most of us will never see. Humphrey Bower is by far the best reader I have ever listened to on Audible. He puts passion into his storytelling, and I love how he creates unique voices for each character. I have purchased the sequel, and I’m looking forward to diving into Roberts’ world once more.

Loved every minute

What an extraordinary performance. I loved this story and will recommend it to everyone. Thanks for the nudge Jesse Crosson!

Great Story and characters!

It was a little long but totally worth it, I’m not that in to philosophy, so some parts I just skipped them, but even with that I liked it a lot!

good listen, well performed.

stories is enthralling in the beginning however tends to grow flat over the hours of listen. there is plenty of redundancy. brings to mind east of Eden type commentary on the human state but not to that level. overall well performed and a good book.

Incredible story and narration

Now one of my favorite books ever. The story is amazing, heartwarming, heart wrenching, beautiful. I laughed out loud, teared up, contemplated a lot. Roberts' way of describing a sense of place is awe inspiring. I was enraptured from page one with his descriptions of sensory stimulating Bombay. Then I fell in love with the people. Bower's narration is the best I've ever listened to. His accents and voice inflections made the story even better. I wanted to slow down the book so it wouldn't end. I didn't want it to ever end. It was beautiful. I know I'll read it again one day, but there will never be a first time again.

Five stars? No, Six!

Just simply excellent! I just finished listening to Shantaram for the third time. It's full of heart, soul, and love. It's a long journey, and a good ride!

I found Shantaram while looking for books read by Humphry Bower, my favorite reader, whom I discovered reading "The Potato Factory" series.

Awesome story and narration

I love books about life in India and this is one of the best. I don’t find the philosophical musings as annoying as other reviewers. I appreciated the character’s struggle to find meaning.