- Paperback: 224 pages
- Publisher: University of Chicago Press; 2 edition (1 Oct 1981)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0226568415
- ISBN-13: 978-0226568416
- Product Dimensions: 21.2 x 14.1 x 2.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,581,319 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Book Description
Keynote/Publisher's Comments'The novelist I admire most in the English language' Graham Greene
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
In The Financial Expert, R. K. Narayan once again transports readers to the southern Indian town of Malgudi. This story centers around the life and pursuits of Margayya, a man of many hopes but few resources, who spends his time under the banyan tree offering expert financial advice to those willing to pay for his knowledge. Margayya's rags-to-riches story brings forth the rich imagery of Indian life with the absorbing details and vivid storytelling that are Narayan's trademarks. "The novels of R. K. Narayan are the best I have read in any language for a long time."--Amit Roy, Daily Telegraph "The experience of reading one of his novels is ...comparable to one's first reaction to the great Russian novels: the fresh realization of the common humanity of all peoples."--Margaret Parton, New York Herald Tribune Book Review "The hardest of all things for a novelist to communicate is the extraordinary ordinariness of most human happiness...Jane Austen, Soseki, Chekhov: a few bring it off. Narayan is one of them."--Francis King, Spectator
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FROM time immemorial people seemed to have been calling him "Margayya". Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
FROM time immemorial people seemed to have been calling him "Margayya". Read the first page
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
It is through this book that I began my love affair with Mr. Narayan's writing. His characters are wry and ironic and clear. One is transported and thoroughly engaged. Best of all, Mr. Narayan delivers the heart of a story without the glitter and glare of literary cleverness and intellectual showing-off. The gift is so simply and honestly packaged that one is amazed and gratified by its depth.
"The Financial Expert" takes place in the made-up city of Malgudi in southern India. It centers around the life and pursuits of a man named Margaya who daily sits in a public park and offers expert advice--to those willing to pay for it--on matters of financial import. As you follow along, it seems as if Margaya's life has finally taken a turn for the better, but in reality all is unraveling. The book is rich in imagery of life in India, and one's ease in absorbing these details is due to Mr. Narayan's ability to present the unfamiliar in such a familiar light.
I hope that many more people are lucky enough to discover Mr. Narayan's work.
Format:Paperback
Being interested in financial services for poor people, I heard about this book at a microfinance conference. People said it gives a real insight into the way moneylenders work (or used to work) in India. So it does, but it is also a wonderful read. The style is eccentric, both in language and in the story telling. The story makes sudden leaps and the dialogue is often rather disjointed, but these disjunctions give the whole novel a surreal atmosphere that I found very seductive. Well worth a read.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
5 reviews
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Completely Satisfying.
2 Dec 1998
Format:Paperback
It is through this book that I began my love affair with Mr. Narayan's writing. His characters are wry and ironic and clear. One is transported and thoroughly engaged. Best of all, Mr. Narayan delivers the heart of a story without the glitter and glare of literary cleverness and intellectual showing-off. The gift is so simply and honestly packaged that one is amazed and gratified by its depth.
"The Financial Expert" takes place in the made-up city of Malgudi in southern India. It centers around the life and pursuits of a man named Margaya who daily sits in a public park and offers expert advice--to those willing to pay for it--on matters of financial import. As you follow along, it seems as if Margaya's life has finally taken a turn for the better, but in reality all is unraveling. The book is rich in imagery of life in India, and one's ease in absorbing these details is due to Mr. Narayan's ability to present the unfamiliar in such a familiar light.
I hope that many more people are lucky enough to discover Mr. Narayan's work.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Delightful
8 Dec 2001
Format:Paperback
If you haven't yet discovered the pleasures of R.K. Narayan, I highly recommend The Financial Expert. It is nothing less than a classic. Superbly written, with humorously human characters and a well observed story. We follow the successes and of Margayya, the "financial expert" who lives in Narayan's fictional Malgudi. His story is amusing and entertaining. Narayan is a wonderful writer. Enjoy.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Financial Expert Gets His Return on Investment
31 Jan 2006
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The Financial Expert By R. K. Narayan.
Set in the mythical town of Malgudi, The Financial Expert is a cautionary tale about the evils of the love of money. Margayva, the protagonist of this tale, is a self-made man who has a knack for taking advantage of the poor rustic souls in his community. He lends easily but not freely, wheedling his neighbors out of their assets. He is entirely unsympathetic as a boorish and petty man, so completely concerned with "status" and appearances that he develops little else. He dotes on his piggish, stroppy son, with predictable results. He is evil to his brother and sister-in-law who live as strangers next door. He is so consumed with acquisition of money that he cannot for a moment enjoy its benefits, either by spending it, or by giving it away. Ultimately, when a Ponzi scheme he has developed fails, he is reduced to his humble origins.
But for the wonderful, illuminating descriptions of the teeming life in that part of world, and, I suspect, clear insight into the small minds and hearts of some bureaucratic types in India, the book would be a disappointment. It is a short book, thankfully, predictable, but not charmless. Three stars and perhaps I am being generous.
Set in the mythical town of Malgudi, The Financial Expert is a cautionary tale about the evils of the love of money. Margayva, the protagonist of this tale, is a self-made man who has a knack for taking advantage of the poor rustic souls in his community. He lends easily but not freely, wheedling his neighbors out of their assets. He is entirely unsympathetic as a boorish and petty man, so completely concerned with "status" and appearances that he develops little else. He dotes on his piggish, stroppy son, with predictable results. He is evil to his brother and sister-in-law who live as strangers next door. He is so consumed with acquisition of money that he cannot for a moment enjoy its benefits, either by spending it, or by giving it away. Ultimately, when a Ponzi scheme he has developed fails, he is reduced to his humble origins.
But for the wonderful, illuminating descriptions of the teeming life in that part of world, and, I suspect, clear insight into the small minds and hearts of some bureaucratic types in India, the book would be a disappointment. It is a short book, thankfully, predictable, but not charmless. Three stars and perhaps I am being generous.
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