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Naipaul's protagonist is Willie Somerset Chandran, named after Somerset Maugham's encounter with Willie's father in the 1930s while traveling "to get material for a novel about spirituality." Willie travels to England for his education, where he becomes "part of the special, passing bohemian-immigrant life of London of the late 1950s." Willie soon realizes that his colonial background allows him to write short stories for well-meaning white liberals, and he begins "to understand that he was free to present himself as he wished" and that he could "remake himself and his past" through his writing. The effect is suffocating rather than liberating, and he marries a vaguely sketched "girl or young woman from an African country," who has read his one published book. Willie begins another "half life" in colonial Mozambique, where he soon tires of the domestic and sexual tedium of plantation life and flees to Germany, mournfully reflecting that "I have been hiding for too long."
This is classic Naipaul, with its effortless dissection of the damaging personal consequences of post-war decolonization, but its virtue seems its primary vice, as the novel feels like a conflation of several earlier Naipaul books, including The Mimic Men and the brilliant A Bend in the River. Consequently, some readers may well find that Half a Life reads more like half a novel. --Jerry Brotton, Amazon.co.uk
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Half a Life This book is in very good condition and will be shipped within 24 hours of ordering. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. This book has clearly been well maintained and looked after thus far. Money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. See all our books here, order more than 1 book and get discounted shipping. Seller Inventory # 7719-9780330485197
Book Description Soft cover. Condition: Very Good. HALF A LIFE Paperback Novel - 1st UK Paperback Edition - 2002 - Condition : Very Good. Seller Inventory # ABE-1700891857502
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. This book is in very good condition and will be shipped within 24 hours of ordering. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. This book has clearly been well maintained and looked after thus far. Money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. See all our books here, order more than 1 book and get discounted shipping. Seller Inventory # 6545-9780330485197
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Book Description Condition: Muy bueno. This is the default conversion keynote text and should be changed. EAN: 9780330485197 Tipo: Libros Categoría: Título: Half a Life Paperback NovelAutor: V.S.NAIPAUL Editorial: Picador Formato: Libro de bolsillo Información adicional: (v.s.naipaul - 1st Uk Paperback Edition - 2002). Seller Inventory # Happ-2023-12-20-4bb90ddd
Book Description Couverture souple. Condition: bon. RO60107978: 2001. In-12. Broché. Bon état, Couv. convenable, Dos satisfaisant, Intérieur acceptable. 226 pages. . . . Classification Dewey : 420-Langue anglaise. Anglo-saxon. Seller Inventory # RO60107978
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