Professor Chandra Follows His Bliss

by Rajeev Balasubramanyam, Ramon Tikaram (Narrator)

Take a trip with the completely infuriating, utterly charming Professor Chandra as he tries to answer to the biggest question of all: what makes us truly happy?

In the moments after the accident, Professor Chandra doesn’t see his life flash before his eyes, but his life’s work. He’s just narrowly missed the Nobel Prize (again) and even though he knows he should get straight back to his pie charts, his doctor has other ideas. All this work. All this success. All this stress. It’s killing him. He needs to take a break, start enjoying himself. In short, says his doctor (who is from California), Professor Chandra should just follow his bliss.

Meet Professor Chandra: internationally renowned economist; divorced father of three (quite frankly, baffling) children; recent victim of a bicycle hit-and-run; but much more than the sum of his parts. He doesn’t know it yet but he’s about to embark on the trip of a lifetime, in search of life’s most enigmatic skill: happiness.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Audiobook, Humor, Adult Fiction, Family, Book Club

Audiobook

First published March 26, 2019

About the author

Rajeev Balasubramanyam is the author of In Beautiful Disguises and PROFESSOR CHANDRA FOLLOWS HIS BLISS. His work has been awarded the Betty Trask Prize and the Clarissa Luard Award, and has been longlisted for the Guardian Fiction Prize and shortlisted for the BBC Asia Award. His writing has appeared in Vice, The Washington Post, The Economist, London Review of Books, McSweeney’s, The Paris Review, and other publications. He also writes a blog on spirituality and race called American Pilgrimage. He is a currently a fellow of the Hemera Foundation and has been writer in residence at Crestone Zen Mountain Center and the Zen Center of New York City. He currently lives in Berlin.

Reviews

[Jaline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Update: Happy Publication Date today, March 26, 2019

Professor P. R. Chandrasekhar has been leading the kind of life he prescribed for himself 45 years earlier when he left India at the age of 24. With a few alterations. He is 69 years old and although he is Professor Emeritus in Economics at a college in Oxford, the big prize, the one he has worked so hard for, has been elusive. His marriage fell apart a few years before when his wife left him for another man. They, and the Professor’s youngest daughter Jaz (Jasmine) live in Colorado which makes it difficult for regular physical contact.

His ex-wife calls him Charles, most people call him Chandra (or Professor Chandra), and sometimes Chandu. Chandra’s son, Sunny (Sunil) is in Hong Kong doing some kind of business seminars, and what’s worse, he is very successful at it and doesn’t hesitate to let his father know. Chandra is estranged from his eldest daughter, Rad (Radha), and with Jasmine so far away, Chandra assesses his life and finds it wanting. He works harder and believes that if he can reach his goal of ultimate success, the rest of his life will fall into place as well.

Then, he is in an accident. With a bicycle. He ends up in hospital because he also had a “silent” heart attack. His doctor is American and lets him know quite firmly that he is not to return to work for several months. He advises him to take a sabbatical, and cheerily suggests he “follow his bliss”.

This story has humour in it but it definitely isn’t comic. The humour is often dry – the kind where you blink and you might miss it, but you have a grin on your face anyway. It is also witty, and sometimes I could envision a winking emoji lurking somewhere in there.

For me, this novel is first and foremost about an older professional man who has an epiphany of sorts and begins to look at his life, and himself, with lenses that seem to be a stronger prescription than before.

His epiphany isn’t like a big light bulb going on over his head. It is more like a faulty set of Christmas lights with miniature bulbs that light up in a pattern – only the pattern seems to keep changing. The adventures that Chandra experiences in pursuit of the faulty little bulb (or bulbs) in the light string results in one of the most entertaining and engaging books I have read.

The author, Rajeev Balasubramanyam, is a hugely talented writer. To write about someone who is at a crossroad of crises in their life is not an easy undertaking. To do so with compassion, humour, deep insight, knowledge and wisdom is a glorious accomplishment.

With gratitude to Random House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of this novel. Its publication date is March 26, 2019.

[Angela M · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this because I was hoping for a lighter book. I routinely read so many books with heavy subject matter by choice, but I thought this would be a nice reprieve. While there is humor to be found here, it’s not what I would call a light read. There are some real issues to think about here - a broken family, a sad lonely man who has put himself and his career before his family and now feels like a failure in his career as well. I’m an outlier here since there are so many 4 and 5 star reviews. I can’t say I loved this story. The main theme - a older man reaches a point in his life where he does some soul searching and has regrets about the man he has been and is seeking to change and perhaps redeem himself for all of the things that he didn’t give his family. I didn’t find it to be original as there are so many stories covering the regrets people feel later in life about lost chances.

While there were times when I felt sorry for Professor Chandra, I didn’t like him very much. He tries to figure out how he has failed with his children. Truth be known, they weren’t perfect and I didn’t like them very much either. Chandra has an accident which is the impetus for him to begin thinking about his life. He ends up attending a retreat at the recommendation of his ex wife’s husband called “Being Yourself in the Summer Solstice”. The group sessions where you bare your soul and get advice from others who are having issues of their own and where you actually bare your body sitting naked in the hot tubs having discussions felt contrived . He leaves after three days and is enlightened, but this self-help meditation, group thing just didn’t work for me. A way too predictable ending . As I said, even though the story didn’t feel new to me, there are some real family issues that a lot of readers will relate to. You should read the 4 and 5 star reviews.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Random House/The Dial Press through NetGalley.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for books about cranky individuals, curmudgeons, grumpy souls, if you will. Maybe I feel a kindred spirit. Professor Chandra is a professor emeritus in economics at Cambridge. He's just been passed over for the Novel Prize for the umpteenth time. His life is falling apart. He's wondering whether his life has any meaning. His wife divorced him three years ago and moved to Colorado. He has major differences with two of his three children. After he is injured in an accident it is strongly suggested he take a sabbatical. He heads to the US to see his youngest daughter.
Because of the title, I was expecting a humorous book. And there is some humor. But in truth, this is a heartfelt novel about losing and finding family, about the mistakes parents make with their children and how hard it can be to let them be themselves.
The characters are fully formed. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses, though it takes them a while to willingly show their weaknesses. Even those that could be painted a clichés are given redeeming traits.
While this wasn't what I expected, I truly enjoyed it. Curmudgeon that I am, it took me by surprise that the author didn't make a stay at Esalen into a punch line.
My thanks to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.

[Diane Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
This book was much better than I thought it would be, which is a strange comment, I suppose. I had signed up for it at my library, it came in, so I started reading what I thought would be a light, funny book about a curmudgeon. If it was no good, or too light and fluffy, I could just send It back to the library, no harm, no foul. It turned out to be much more than that, which delighted me; a complex story about a complex man trying to find himself after a lifetime of thinking he was always the smartest man in the room. A 69 year old Cambridge professor in Economics, an almost Nobelist, with an ex-wife and 3 children, 2 of them grown and estranged, the youngest still a teen-ager trying to find her purpose in the world, he's also a man who has worked hard for what he's achieved, and does not suffer fools gladly. He has an analytical mind and a sharp tongue, which does not bode well for either his students or his family, but gives this book a lot of humor.
After being hit by a bike and suffering a heart attack, he is strongly urged to take a sabbatical, which he does by arranging a visiting professorship in California. Hence the bliss. This sets off quite a change of events, as Professor Chandra is forced to come face to face with himself, and doesn't really like what he sees.

My biggest problem with this book is its title, which I think gives a potential reader the idea that this book is exactly what I first thought; a light, funny book about a curmudgeon. So those who do indeed want to read that kind of book are going to be disappointed that it goes into much deeper psychological territory. And those who want something more complex are never going to read it at all.

Just so you know, this book is not what you think it is. It's better.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Professor Chandra Follows His Bliss" is a much more complex and textured book than the title and cover make it seem. Chandra is 69, a prestigious professor of economics at Kings College, respected worldwide, who as the book opens has once again been passed over for the Nobel Prize. He's disappointed. He's also a burnt-out, impatient, wise-cracking curmudgeon who's been taken to task by the school's Master for, among other things, calling a student an imbecile. He's told he must take a break. Then he gets hit by a bicycle and has a heart attack. Something has to change and it won't be easy for him since this is the only life he's known for a long time. His personal life is nil.

Chandra has family issues. His relationship with his ex-wife isn't good. Her second husband, Steve, is a pompous ass whose interactions with Chandra provide some of the book's funniest moments. They live in Colorado. One daughter has been estranged from him for years; he doesn't even know where she lives and the others are forbidden to discuss her with him. His son, who lives in Hong Kong, is distant and condescending and the younger daughter is having typical teenage problems. Chandra goes to America to see her and Steve corners him into taking a course at the Esalen Institute, a spiritual center in Big Sur. The three days he spends there, whether he likes it or not and whether he knows it or not, are transformative.

Once you know what to expect there's a lot to like here. Chandra is a very well-written and interesting character: full of contradictions and with plenty of room to grow. He's brilliant, insecure, sarcastic and somewhat clueless, someone the reader will root for. The family members are all well-written and the story is engaging throughout.

My other criticism besides the misleading title and cover is that the author sometimes gets bogged down in nonessential details. It's not enough to know someone is traveling; we're told the makes of the cars they're driving and the routes they travel, have to take the taxi rides and go on the walks. Sometimes it seems like we're told what the characters wear every day, what they eat at every meal and each drink they down. It's a bit much; a tighter edit would have made this a five-star book for me. This is a very good book with a great protagonist and an absorbing story.

[Bianca · Rating 3 out of 5]

As you can tell from my rating, this was only an okay read for me.

I don't know if it's the because of the title and/or the cover, but I was expecting something light, charming and whimsy.

I usually like books about changing one's ways, finding one's bliss, although I roll my eyes at some of the pseudo-spiritual stuff some people get up to, while also being in the camp of if it makes them happy and doesn't hurt anyone ...

But I don't know, I went with the flow but I always wanted to get out and do something else. If you don't care for the characters it's difficult to get invested in what happens to them. That's not to say the novel was bad, I just didn't quite feel it.

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chandra is a 69 year old economics professor at Cambridge.
He’s been shortlisted for the Nobel Prize several times and his most recent failure to be selected is weighing on him. Other sources of stress are his divorce from ex wife Jean and separation from his children. Seventeen year old Jasmine lives with her mother and step father in Boulder, Colorado. Her older brother Sunny owns a successful business institute in Hong Kong based on the concept of “capitalist mysticism” (basically greed is good and you can get whatever you want through positive thinking). Eldest daughter Radha is an activist who has been estranged from her father for the last two years. Since his divorce Chandra sees himself as “...an Indian Miss Havisham with an Emeritus Professorship and a takeaway menu.” After a health scare, he is advised by his doctor to take some time off and follow his bliss, so he heads for the warm climate of Los Angeles for a sabbatical.

I thought Chandra was a great character, pompous and arrogant but also loving and insecure. There was a little too much navel gazing in this book for me, but I enjoyed reading about Chandra’s search for self knowledge. Although every conversation Chandra had with his ex wife or children seemed to be fraught, the book also had a lot of wit and sharp observations. There is no way I could not love a book that refers to Trump as “the oaf who wouldn’t know a demand curve if it wrapped itself around his pizza-laden stomach“. I liked the author’s writing style and would be happy to read more by him.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story has humor in it but it definitely isn’t comic. The humor is often dry – the kind where you blink and you might miss it, but you have a grin on your face anyway.

And...

It is also witty, and sometimes I could envision a winking emoji lurking somewhere in there. 😉

For me...

This novel is first and foremost about an older professional man who has an epiphany of sorts and begins to look at his life, and himself, with lenses that seem to be a stronger prescription than before.

And...

His epiphany isn’t like a big light bulb going on over his head. It is more like a faulty set of Christmas lights with miniature bulbs that light up in a pattern – only the pattern seems to keep changing.

The author is a talented writer. To write about someone who is at a crossroads in their life, and still make it an enjoyable read, is not an easy undertaking. To do so with compassion, humor, deep insight, knowledge and wisdom is glorious.

[K.J. Charles]

I enjoyed this massively. Chandra is a Cambridge economics professor with a failed marriage and estranged or troubled adult kids, who has failed to win the Nobel prize again and is just waking up to the realisation that he might have made a mess of his life.

This is not, let me say, a book about a middle aged academic discovering himself with the aid of a sexy manic pixie much younger woman. Nobody needs that book. Chandra is 70 and his main issue is the rising awareness that he hasn't actually done well by his wife and kids, and perhaps might not have been completely right about everything all along. The book is basically him opening up to understanding himself, trying to do a bit better and break out of toxic patterns, and understanding that he isn't the centre of the world and his changed feelings don't necessarily matter to other people.

Which sounds a bit tiresome but isn't, because Chandra is a fantastic character--centre-right, tendency to be opinionated battling with a general decency, spectacularly grumpy attitude to students that's hilarious till you see how he turned it on his kids, and a very funny narration.

He "follows his bliss" in large part by going to a Californian hippy bullshit retreat (for complicated but hilarious reasons). This is treated as both funny and serious--pampered self-indulgent Americans talking about their feelings is never not mockable, but the book also identifies real pain and emptiness, and Chandra's back and forth with the experience is fascinating because it does give him something he needs.

It's not a plot driven story, it's very much about this fractured, unhappy family who've hurt each other finding ways to get past that, which is quite enough. I cared intensely about them doing that, and basically went through this like a buzz saw.

Perfect summer reading--funny, sharp, kind hearted. I laughed out loud several times and had a little cry at the end. Can't ask for much more.

[Betsy Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Until I read Diane Barnes’s review of this book, I’d not been drawn to it. But Diane directly addressed my assumptions: that it was fluffy—a light read. She said it was a better book than she’d assumed it was.

The cover, cover blurb, and title seem to misrepresent it, conveying light fluffiness and fun, inevitably disappointing readers who want that and turning off those who want something substantive. But now that I’ve read and enjoyed this book, I understand the marketing conundrum. (More on that in a second.)

This is an easily readable, straight-forward account of a man, Professor Chandra, forced to admit his real feelings and soften his judgments in order to preserve the relationships with his beloved children. This is not inspired literary writing. It is occasionally laugh-out-loud funny, but as Jaline said in her review, “The story has humor but it definitely isn’t comic,” (so ignore the “searingly funny” cover blurb). The writing is almost simplistic in tone with dialogue that plays like the slow volley of a badminton game. For the longest time I thought it was a self-help book disguised as a novel—as Chandra negotiates a self-acceptance workshop at Esalen, gags at the psychobabble of his ex-wife’s shrink husband, and is aghast at the fantastically false teachings of his ambitious son—who calls himself doctor but has never earned the credential (Don’t get me started on lies of self-proclaimed gurus).

The territory of self-actualization workshops and the pervasiveness of group-think and group-talk among New Agers are familiar to me. But Chandra persists despite it because he is ready to change and rescue his family. Add to that the fact that he is so easy to identify with that I found myself working on myself as he worked on himself, and I finally concluded that the book is a secretly sophisticated “poke”—a nudge, a push, an invitation to think deeply and get underneath your own conditioning.

So back to the cover and the title: The title is accurate and right out of the text, representing the book’s tone. So too is the fluffy cover art. The problem is that although the book is conveyed simplistically, it is not at all simple. A dark literary cover would completely misrepresent it, as would a more poetic title, but you can only understand the cover art as a metaphor (joining the ocean of consciousness) after you’ve read the book. So how do you convey that this really simple-sounding story conveys an invitation to work on yourself and possibly contemplate things you’ve not dealt with? I have no idea, which leaves me reiterating Diane Barnes’s message: this book is much better than one might assume from its cosmetics.

[Ivonne Rovira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pity poor Cambridge don P.C. Chandrasekhar — an internationally renowned economist and arrogant curmudgeon shortlisted for the Nobel Prize who goes by Professor Chandra. His wife Jean left him for a shallow child psychologist, whom she followed to Colorado; unfortunately, Jean also took Chandra’s teenaged daughter Jasmine in tow. His workaholic son Sunny has become “the brown face of global corporatism,” while his daughter Radha has become the argumentative comic-book version of a Marxist revolutionary. Needless to say, Chandra doesn’t have a good relationship with any of them; in fact, Radha has refused to see or even speak to her father in years. But it’s only after he’s hospitalized because of a collision with a cyclist that the 69-year-old Chandra begins to realize that he’s on the wrong track:

Sometimes he wondered if it wasn’t all a giant con, the gaggle of letters after his name, the dinners with Angela Merkel and Narendra Modi, the notes from Gordon Brown and Larry Summers. They were like those fake Oscar statues bought at pound shops and given to employees inscribed with “World’s Greatest Photocopier” or “Best Lightbulb Changer in the Galaxy.” When he died only his writing would remain, until it was rendered obsolete when oil and coal ran out and the species established its first settlement on Mars.

Professor Chandra was the foremost trade economist in the world, could phone any finance minister in any country at any time and have them take his call. And yet, what if he had only convinced himself that the world envied him? What if, in reality, they felt sorry for him with his swollen ego and his Savile Row suits and his sculpted tri-continental accent?

Pushed into attending a New Age seminar on the California seaside, Chandra begins to realize that it’s never too late to change course. This feel-good story, loaded with insight and humor, could easily have felt contrived, twee or manipulative, but author Rajeev Balasubramanyam never makes a false move. I could hardly pull myself away from its pages. The ending was satisfying without ever being hectoring or implausible. I cannot wait to read Balasubramanyam’s earlier work, In Beautiful Disguises.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received this book from NetGalley, Random House and The Dial Press in exchange for an honest review.

[Marjorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Professor Chandra was sure he would win the Nobel Prize as an economist, but no, he misses it yet again. Winning this prize has become a necessity for his happiness in his mind. He’ll need to work harder next time. But when he’s the victim of a bicycle hit and run, he begins to re-assess his life and work. He focuses on his relationships with his children and ex-wife. He’s been estranged from his oldest daughter for years. He rarely sees his son who lives in Hong Kong. His youngest daughter lives with the professor’s ex-wife Jean and her present husband Steve in Colorado. So Professor Chandra embarks on a self-awareness journey.

This is a very humorous, delightful book that takes a look at some quite deep issues. It’s not a laugh-out-loud type of book but rather prompts a chuckle now and then. I found the Professor and his adventures to be very realistic and there were many times throughout the book that I just wanted to give him a hug. For the past couple of years, I’ve been on a spiritual journey myself, leading me to the law of attraction, meditation, Reiki and qi-gong so I was very receptive of this author’s message. Regardless of that, it’s quite an entertaining book.

Recommended – take a journey with Professor Chandra to make some uplifting discoveries for yourself.

This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.

[Janet Newport · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this arc.

I usually read mysteries / thrillers / action adventure stories..... usually much faster paced books. But I found this to be a very nice slow read. First though, I must comment that the reader have at least fifty years under their belt so they can properly enjoy it. This is an adventure story of sorts. Professor Chandra has reached the acme of his professional life and has to reconcile with himself that he may never attain all of his earlier professional dreams and aspirations (the Nobel Prize). This book is the story of his reassessment of his life, his world, his place in that world, his family and where he fits into all of it. Fortunately, he has opened his mind and his story forward is very engaging.

[Aga Durka · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a slow moving, character driven, family drama. There is no action, twist and turns, so for all the thriller/suspense/mystery book lovers this may be a monotonous read. But there is a really good message that I have taken away from this book: that no matter how busy and ambitious we are in our lives, we always need to take time for our loved ones. We really need to hear them out, and try to understand their ways, because if we don’t, one day we may find ourselves very much alone.

Professor Chandra is a 69-year old economics professor at Cambridge. He is a workaholic and he has no time for his family. His wife left him for another man and his children barely talk to him. In fact, he’s been estranged from his older daughter for years. He is judgmental, controlling, and he constantly argues with his kids. But then one day an accident happens, and Professor Chandra realizes that perhaps he is the problem and not his kids, and maybe he’s the one that needs to make some changes in his life to regain the love and respect of his children.

I wanted to quit reading this novel at 20%. I could not connect with Professor Chandra's character and his story. He is not a likable character, and his eccentric and arrogant personality was getting on my nerves. I did not like the way he treated his children and I was put-off by his narrow-minded thinking. But then I though, why not give him a chance to redeem himself? And good thing I did, because at the end of the story I really enjoyed Professor Chandra’s character, and now I have a special spot for him in my heart :)

Thank you Netgalley, Random House Publishing, and the author, Rajeev Balasubramanyam, for giving me an opportunity to read an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Emeritus Professor P.R. Chandrasekhar misses out on the Nobel Prize for Economics (again), it really doesn't improve his mood. Faced with complaints from his students, an unfortunate run-in with a bicycle and a silent heart attack, the Cambridge Don takes heed of his College Master's advice that it might be a good time to take a sabbatical. So he organises a gig as Distinguished Visiting Professor at UC Bella Vista in California. Apart from the health benefits of spending time in the sun, he looks forward to being just a short flight away from his youngest daughter, the teenaged Jasmine, who lives with her mother in Colorado.

It all goes well until Chandra visits Boulder for Jasmine's graduation and he finds himself landing an entirely uncharacteristic punch on the nose of his ex-wife's smarmy psychologist husband, Steve. To keep the embarrassing secret from Jean, Chandra allows himself to be coerced into attending a workshop - Being Yourself in the Summer Solstice - at a spiritual retreat in California where Steve has connections. Of course, it's really not his thing, but he goes along and finds himself starting to question and understand his own happiness.

This is really just the start of what is essentially a different kind of family dramedy. I loved the character of Chandra. He's clearly from the curmudgeon mould, but he's frighteningly relatable and his desire to improve himself and his relationships makes you just want to cheer him on. He actually has three children in total (2 older than Jasmine) and different problems with each of them, which he slowly but clumsily starts to unravel as his self-awareness grows. This leads to various comic and/or touching moments.

In terms of plot, I really liked that Chandra's turning point came from attending a spiritual workshop, because, let's face it, characters like this don't just magically wake up enlightened one day! And although this is nothing like a self-help book masquerading as a novel, there was stuff in that workshop that really made me stop and think - not just about Chandra, but about myself as well. It wasn't groundbreaking, but for me it was certainly thought-provoking. Partly for this reason, as soon as I finished reading this book I thought I'd probably be happy to re-read it at some point in the future.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy to read and review.

[Clif Hostetler · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the first chapter we are introduced to Professor Chandra, an academic at the top of his field and aspirant to receiving the Nobel Prize in Economics. But alas, he seems to be a failure. Not only is he not selected for the coveted prize, he is divorced from his wife, estranged from two adult children, and his teenage daughter is rebelling against his expectations of her to attend college.

He puts on a brave face and insists that he’s OK, but of course he's not. Through a complicated series of events he ends up agreeing to attend—forced against his real wishes— to attend a new age sort of class called “Being Yourself in the Summer Solstice” at California’s famed Esalen Institute. It’s comical how the Professor with a personality and disposition completely non-compatible with such a group therapy setting manages to live through the experience.

The story continues through a variety of encounters with his children, ex-spouse, and his ex-spouse’s new husband, and climaxes in a reunion of sorts in which Professor Chandra’s fraught family relationships are dealt with in a mostly satisfactory way. The title “…follows his bliss” is a hint that the book’s conclusion will be mostly happy.

The book’s plot includes a heavy dose of psychology and relationship issues as part of its narrative. Readers of this book who are on speaking terms with their children will feel thankful for not being in the same position as Professor Chandra.

[Jonathan K (Max Outlier) · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the summary seemed interesting the story failed to engage. Characters are mediocre, plot is predictable and dialog repetitive. I'd hoped for more but after reading nearly half it wasn't going anywhere. DNF!

[Krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3 stars

Oh Professor Chandra, I had such high hopes that we’d go on a wonderful, humorous, light-hearted journey together. Alas, it did not turn out that way for me. You made me feel your angst about the disconnectedness you had from your children, and your annual disappointment about not winning the Nobel Prize in Economics. But the journey you embarked on to reach out to the family, and the forks in the road you took along the way turned out to be not all that interesting to me. Sadly, I think that I may have been misled by some of the comments on the book blurb, and early reviews. I liked the journey, but I was just not *that* in to it.

I met 69-year-old, irascible, Professor Chandra in Oxford, England. He is a renowned Economics professor and author. As we meet, he has yet again gotten his hopes up about winning the Nobel Prize, only to have them come crashing down when some upstart economist wins instead. He’s worked so hard all his life to attain this final pinnacle of his career. He eventually lost his marriage and three his children due to his devotion to his work. He almost lost his life too due to this singular focus. After his accident, his doctor strongly suggests that he change his ways and try to follow ‘his bliss’. He has no idea what that means.

So begins Chandra’s journey . First he teaches college for a semester in Los Angeles. He tries to help his 17-year-old daughter in Colorado. In the process, he is challenged by his ex-wife’s rather too smarmy new husband to attend a new-age seminar at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California. Amazingly, he does go to the Esalen retreat. Then the story moves to Hong Kong to visit with his adult son, and finally on to a monastery in Colorado where he tries to bring all the family together including his adult daughter, Radha, who hasn’t spoken to him in years.

I felt like there were too many pages spent on the group workshop at Esalen. Each new experience opens him up to the world, and his children in a different way. But there was too much time devoted to the navel gazing of this group of strangers at Esalen. Maybe there was just too much angst, and family drama, to live up what I believed the book had been billed as.

The writing was good, but as I said, some of the segments were just too long for me. I was looking for more humor and levity in this book. For those readers looking for a book about a self-awareness journey with some funny lines and observations sprinkled here and there, this could be the perfect book for you. For me it was a 3 star read.

‘Thank-You’ to NetGalley; the publisher, The Dial Press (Random House Publishing Group); and the author, Rajeev Balasubramanyam; for providing a free e-ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Jules The Book Junkie Reviews · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for Professor Chandra Follows His Bliss, but I was disappointed. What I thought would be a humorous, relatively light-hearted book was really a satire where author Ravjeev Balasubramanyam mocks American culture and perhaps empirically proves you can't teach an old dog a new trick.

Chandra is not a lovable curmudgeon like those found in A Man Called Ove or The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper. He is self-centered and pompous. He alienated his wife and children with his singular focus on his aspirations for world recognition of his belief in his brilliance. His ex-wife, Jean, and their children aren’t any more likable. Steve—Jean’s new husband—is the tool through which author Balasubramanyam pokes fun of what he perceives to be modern America. While Steve and his compatriots at the Esalen Institute are accepting and somewhat likable characters, Chandra and his estranged family are a mess of judgment and self-absorption.

From the synopsis, I thought this book would be funny, but it wasn’t. I was looking forward to quirky characters and a madcap journey to enlightenment. Instead I got stiff characters and flat "adventures". There were bits that were mildly amusing, but they didn't really grabbed me. Chandra is too pedantic to ever find “his bliss”. Yet the author wants his readers to believe that a few days spent at Esalen in hot tub therapy leads his stereotypical main character to enlightenment. However, Chandra shows little in the way of epiphanic metamorphosis. The inadequate exploration of Chandra’s relationships with his offspring and their continuing discord was dissatisfying.

Professor Chandra Follows His Bliss shows off the author’s knowledge--or research--of the study of economics, and the book seemingly reflects the author’s view of Americans. It did present some meaty family issues, but the story fell flat in terms of addressing those familial conflicts. Perhaps that is more realistic, but it wasn’t particularly satisfying. Sadly, unsatisfying is probably the best descriptor for this book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from The Dial Press/Random House Publishing via NetGalley. For more reading recommendations, visit Book Junkie Reviews at www.abookjunkiereviews.wordpress.com

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Professor Chandra, soon to be seventy, has once again not won the Pulitzer Prize in Economics. His career was built on theories now unpopular--as unpopular as the Professor himself!

His kids won't talk with him, his ex married a male bimbo, his coworkers are sick of him. He has some nagging doubts about his whole life. Has he valued the wrong things?

Professor Chandra Follows His Bliss had me laughing out loud through the first half. Chandra's struggles with the world and his family are presented with humor.

Chandra takes up the challenge of spending time "seeking his bliss" at Esalen. He takes in stride new experiences like meditation and nude hot tub conversations. He uses what he learns and tries to reconnect with his alienated children. All Chandra's problems don't disappear like magic, but what he learns and absorbs does bring him to a place where healing can begin to happen.

I enjoyed the novel and felt invested in Chandra and his family. But...Halfway through the book, I felt like there was a secret agenda. Like the author was proselytizing! Was the novel just one big sales pitch for a certain experience and lifestyle? The author, I discovered, practices Zen meditation.

Can we solve our issues with better self-talk, claiming responsibility for myself, opening up about my repressed feelings? Would spending time at a Zen monastery change our life? Do self-help gurus really help? Maybe. I mean, this is all very good advice. Maybe we all need a spiritual journey now and then. Reevaluate our goals and values.

So decide for yourself. If you are seeking a role model for change, Chandra might be your guy.

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

[Joel]

DNFing on page 86.

I really dislike DNFing ARCs, but this one doesn't seem to live up to its blurb. While there are some amusing parts, the plot drags on and on, and none of the characters are particularly likable. It feels a lot like Johnathan Franzen's The Corrections to me, and I loathed everything about that book. Fortunately, I no longer feel obligated to finish a book I'm not enjoying. I wish the professor the best in his search for bliss, and I am off to seek my own in a different book.

[Karen R · Rating 3 out of 5]

Opinionated and self-important 69-year old professor Chandra, a Nobel prize nominee (who loses yet again) is told to take a sabbatical from his university for calling a student an ‘imbecile’. Estranged from his family, spiraling downward, and recovering from a silent heart attack, his doctor advises Chandra to take it easy and chill for two months. “You gotta follow your bliss, man. That’s all there is to it”, he advises. So Chandra sets off on a journey to do just that, enrolling at a retreat center to find his bliss. Can he unlock his spirit, refresh and rebuild relationships and find happiness? A slow yet satisfying unconventional odyssey that teaches some lessons about transformation and restoring optimism.

[Kelly Coyle-Crivelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story about a father that loves his children, even though they sometimes don't see it that way. Chandra is a character to love and in all of his imperfections, he's still gets the important things right- and isn't that what life is all about?

[Siv30 · Rating 3 out of 5]

לסקירה מפורטת בעברית, קישור לבלוג שלי -

https://sivi-the-avid-reader.com/פרופ...

[SueKich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Welcome to the Hotel California.

Every year, Professor Emeritus P. R. Chandrasekhar is hotly tipped to win the Nobel Prize for Economics. The professor expects it too – and yet each year he is disappointed. He’s now past caring (or so he at least claims). As Chandra recovers after being injured in a traffic accident, he knows it’s time to reassess his life, his career and his relationships with his three children. When his ex-wife’s new partner manipulates him into visiting a Californian retreat, Chandra reluctantly agrees to give this ‘new-age nonsense’ a go.

Rajeev Balasubramanyam explores the dynamics of a distinguished and highly successful man on the rest of his family. The writing is eminently readable and there are moments of insight: “mediocrity was a great leveller” as well as some welcome humour like Chandra’s fall-back economist joke: “the one about the woman whose doctor tells her she has six months to live and advises her to marry an economist and move to Kansas. ‘Why?’ says the woman. ‘Will this cure my illness?’ ‘No,’ says the doctor, ‘but those six months will feel like a lifetime’.”

The title and cover art might lead one to expect a frivolous read but in fact this novel has some important things to say even though, sadly, it runs out of steam towards the end. 3.5*

My thanks to Chatto & Windus for the review copy via NetGalley.

[Maine Colonial · Rating 1 out of 5]

Marian Keyes wrote a blurb for this book, calling it “tender and compassionate, written with exquisite care and verve, and so so SO funny.” I want to track her down and give her a good whack upside the head. Largely because of that blurb, I spent a Kobo audiobook credit on this, and it’s none of the adjectives Keyes assigns to it.

This is just one long, senseless argument. Chandra arguing with his ex-wife, each of his three kids, some of the people at Esalen, where he is persuaded to go after his heart attack. The worst aspect of the arguing is that so much of it is psychobabble.

The author wants us to see Chandra as being in the wrong and then straightening himself out reconciling with his family. But his family members and the people at Esalen are jerks. I suspect that the author relates to Chandra and pulls his punches with his character, and gets in some passive-aggressive shots at the family. Maybe my suspicion is wrong and psychobabble-y too, but that’s what I felt like as I was reading.

The narrator, Ramon Tikaram, does a very good job with Professor Chandra, but not well at all with some of the other characters. Inexplicably, he gives heavy New York-ish accents to a teacher at Esalen and Chandra’s ex-wife’s husband Steve.

[Mayda · Rating 5 out of 5]

If there were a coming-of-retirement-age genre, this book would undoubtedly be on the short list. Chandra is close to 70 years of age, still teaching and publishing, and still hoping to win a Nobel prize. He is a successful professor, but he doesn’t see himself that way. His personal life is a disappointment, from his failed marriage to his troubled children. But fate - or something -intervenes, and Chandra finds himself at a new-age retreat of sorts. And slowly but most decidedly, Chandra finds his bliss without really looking for it. This character-driven tale is novel in its approach that, like old dogs, old curmudgeons can be taught new tricks. Well written with delightful characters, this story is sprinkled with humor and woven together with the inspiring idea that it is never too late to find the bliss that you may be missing.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's summer, and sometimes you want to read something light; Professor Chandra Follows His Bliss is light. Chandra is a professor at a prestigious university and he is that-close to something he has wanted all his life, a Nobel Prize in Economics. And then, once again, he doesn't get the prize and he has an accident, and he realizes he's almost seventy, divorced, estranged from his kids, and alone.

In a crazy move, Chandra heads to Esalen and suddenly everything starts to shift and change.

An ideal little summer read.

[Jon Stout · Rating 4 out of 5]

Professor Chandra is a South Indian economics professor at Cambridge University, just turning seventy, who is estranged from his wife and alienated from his three grown children. The story moves between Cambridge and California, and consists of Chandra’s trying to come to terms with his life, to reconcile with his family and to be happier than he usually is. It’s a charming story, one I can connect with, and one that brings back memories of similar situations.

I especially enjoyed Chandra’s going to the Esalen Institute in California, where he is challenged in a trendy session called “Being Yourself in the Summer Solstice,” involving something like group therapy and meditation. The hippy style of Esalen is completely contrary to the stuffy and pedantic style of a Cambridge don, but Professor Chandra takes to it and begins to change his life.

I remember fifty-odd years ago, when I was in Peace Corps training in California, in close proximity to Esalen, there were lots of people who were influenced by Esalen, and who brought their style of therapy groups into our training. People were encouraged to say what they really felt, and to set aside pretense. Sometimes the sessions were rather harsh, with candor to the point of being hurtful, or of making the recipient react in anger. Nonetheless, it was new to us, and it was a challenging and stimulating experience.

Professor Chandra’s group is encouraged to find their “strings… the beliefs we have about ourselves that hold us back.” In the process of offering these vulnerabilities to each other, and responding in a supportive way, the group members open up about themselves, and unlock some of the rigid patterns that have made them unhappy.

I can’t recount the entire process of Chandra’s opening up, both in the sessions and as a consequence of them, but the process is convincing and charming. Chandra’s interactions with his college age daughters and his entrepreneur son are heartening and familiar. The scenes bounce (in flashbacks) from Hong Kong commercialism, to Indian post-colonial ambition, to Cambridge academia, to New-Age California chic. It had resonances enough to make the story entertaining and gratifying to me. I will have to live it out in my own style and in my own life.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

a middle life novel of Chandra who re discovers his life and like the essence of the plot and the writing and the good feel faction