The Root and the Flower

by L.H. Myers, Penelope Fitzgerald (Introduction)

Set in the war-torn world of Mughal India and first published in the gathering darkness of the 1930s, the three novels collected in The Root and the Flower are stories of intrigue, murder, and romance; of Tantric abandonment and Buddhist renunciation; of emotional delirium and spiritual adventure. This enthralling visionary trilogy is, as Penelope Fitzgerald remarks in her introduction, a "strange masterpiece," and one of the unsung glories of modern literature.

Genres: Fiction, India, Historical Fiction, Literature, 20th Century, British Literature, English Literature

640 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1935

About the author

Leo (Leopold) Hamilton Myers was born in Leckhampton House, Cambridge into a cultured family; his father was the writer Frederic William Henry Myers (1843-1901) and his mother the photographer Eveleen Tennant (1856-1937). He was named after his godfather, Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany. He was educated at Eton College and Trinity College, Cambridge. His trilogy/tetralogy The Root and the Flower, set in India at the time of Akbar, is his major work and was recognised by the award of the 1935 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction.

Reviews

[Julianne Davidow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exquisite. Impossible to compare with any other book or writer I have read, The Root and the Flower by L.H. Myers, written in the ‘30s (Introduction by Penelope Fitzgerald in 1985) is in a class by itself. A sweeping epic made up of three separate sections—each a novel unto itself—The Root and the Flower is set in 16th century India and told from three separate viewpoints. The writing is dreamlike and intricate. The author creates a mythical world of incredible beauty but fills it with realistic characters, both good and evil, who are experiencing intense conflicts and emotions. The depth and breadth of the philosophic ideas is astounding, with various characters of differing religious persuasions struggling to make sense of their world. A masterpiece.

[Renee · Rating 1 out of 5]

NYRB has a way of describing their books as overlooked or revived classics. This is not always true. Sometimes there is a reason that a book did not become a classic.

The tone of this book was seated in a dreamy place with very little substance, like a recording of the screening of an old movie. Flimsy and overblown.

A few of my very favorite books are from NYRB, and then a few of the worst are from them too. It’s okay, though. I will try another one of theirs again. It’s worth the small risk of time, money, and attention.

[Dennis Callaghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This proved to be much better than I had anticipated. Against a background of Mughal India, Myers develops themes regarding spirituality and the nature of a moral life. There is a focus on a handful of characters who become almost accidentally brought into great affairs of state. Their personal intimate struggles which seem of little importance except to themselves become entangled with those of Princes and government ministers and with themes of moral corruption. At times the novel did not seem to be leading to any eventful climax but the ending actually had a moving resonance.

[Daniel Polansky]

Dostoevskian intrigues in a dreamlike, deliberately inaccurate depiction of the early Mughal empire. Lots of conversations about religion, and long passages depicting characters emotional state. This is probably not my favorite subgenre of novel, so I can't say I loved it, but I could recognize the craft, and I enjoyed the aesthetic and some of the subtler flourishes.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had to work my way along, buoyed by recommendation from someone else about this forgotten classic. Good picture painted of (I think it was Akbar's) court. My wife liked the book so much she named our new puppy Jali after we had read the book in aprox 2002.

[Matthew White · Rating 1 out of 5]

Shit

[Kumari de Silva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published as the sequel, the second of the three novels that were later bound together and published as "The Root and The Flower" Prince Jali is a continuation of "The Near and the Far" more than a sequel. I mean the first book doesn't stand alone at all - it ends with a cliff hanger that is not addressed until the last 20 pages of book two.

This story, which reads with a fairy tale like quality, was written at the same time George Orwell was preparing "Burmese Days" for publication. Orwell reads so modern, so 20th century while this book is a throwback to earlier times. It's more a cousin to something written by a 19th century author. While the book is full of political intrigues they don't seem to be analogies to anything going on in the 1930s. There is a stab at making this story mysterious "oriental" and vaguely theosophist but in truth it's a soap opera.

So many love triangles! It's as if there is no one else on earth to sleep with except the characters associated with Rajah Amar's family. At times I got a little frustrated, as one generally does with soap operatic characters, who feel ever so passionately one day and an hour later feel neutral, dull or interested in someone else. But overall I found this to be an enjoyable indulgence.

I'm going to plow on and read the third novel, "Rajah Amar" because I do want to know what happens, although given the mercurial twists I am willing to accept that it may not be a conclusion so much as the further adventures of these particular characters.

[Laura Aguirre · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought that the book was very dreamy at the beginning the scenery seemed to contain a lot of incandescent sunsets. It was somehow passionate with a lot of love triangles going on. It had a mysterious field which was captivating in the second part of the novel which kind of reeled me in but that somehow got really dark. I could appreciate the ordeal of Jali growing up and going through motions and making mistakes as we all do. But all of the gruesome details of some sect I cannot say I appreciated. I pass.

[Norman Singfield · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not good

Not my cup of tea. Way heady and not that profound IMO. And here are eight more words to post,

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Parts of it are pretty. Parts of it are pretty boring.

[Reece Willis · Rating 5 out of 5]

If ever there was a book to burn the brightest light over India written by a western author, it's The Root and the Flower by L.H. Myers. From the moment I turned the first page I was standing alongside young Jali looking out from an intricate palace balcony across sixteenth-century Mughal India, feeling the warm desert breeze upon my face. For me, this is one of the greatest books written. Not only has it held its age so well, having been published in 1935, but the descriptive nature of Leo Myers’ work is beyond belief. Never have I been so enthralled by such magnetic, majestic and romantic prose, to the point I could hear, smell and taste all that he wrote so beautifully as the backdrops to such significant characters. When later reading about the author, I was in a state of disbelief that he had never even visited India. And this alone is such a testament to an incredibly important piece of literature that our imagination alone is all we need to transport us anywhere.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intrigue is the word that stands out in my mind after reading this book. Many pages are spent reading about the thoughts the various characters are having about the others or events that may or may not happen. Time is also spent relating what happens inside houses or rooms as the character watches from the shadows to find out what is being done or said without the person knowing. True friendship as I've come to know it is rare in this novel; there is constant questioning as to whether or not a relationship exists. Throughout the book there are comparisons of the various religions practiced by the characters, some of them way out in left field. There's a dreamy quality, too, as much of the musing takes place against vividly described, pastoral backgrounds so don't expect resolution of any of the conflicts.

[Jess Nauright · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an unabashed theosophical-orientalist historical-fantasy novel. It's fun and trashy and unnecessarily long. I think it would be an excellent book to read on a long flight. (Though I read it in my house and quite enjoyed it.)

(The NYRB blurbs and copy make it sound much more intellectual than it actually is.)

[Meakin Armstrong · Rating 3 out of 5]

This started so well. It was dreamy and vivid, a fantasy of Mughal India, written by an Englishman who'd never even been there — but shortly after it reached a fantastic height, it slid right into the abyss and became remarkably tedious.