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A House for Mr Biswas
All he wanted was a house. Not a mansion. Just walls that were his. If you've ever lived under someone else's roof and rules, you'll get Mr Biswas. 🏠
Who it's for
Mr Biswas is an ordinary, often ridiculous man, born under an unlucky prophecy, who spends his whole life trying to escape the domineering Tulsi family he married into and to own a house.
Feelings it meets
What it is
V. S. Naipaul's 1961 novel is set among Indo-Trinidadian Hindu communities in Trinidad and follows Mohun Biswas from an unlucky birth: a pundit predicts he will bring ruin to his parents, and his father later drowns. After failed apprenticeships, he drifts into marrying Shama of the powerful Tulsi family and finds himself trapped in their crowded, controlling household at Hanuman House.
Where to find it
In print (Picador / Vintage), in libraries (Libby/Hoopla) and as an audiobook. Not public domain.
Before you start
Heads up: Children beaten and domestic violence.
Age: Ages 16+
The mind, sharp but not broad, sticks at every point but does not move.Rabindranath Tagore, Stray Birds, no. 50
