L'ingénieux Mr Sampath

by R.K. Narayan, Daniel Bismuth (Traduction)

Weekly publications of The Banner is entirely due to two dedicated Malgudi inhabitants: Srinivas edits the newspaper, while Mr. Sampath prints it. They work night & day to satisfy the increasing demands of their clamoring public. In rare moments of relaxation, Srinivas occupies his mind puzzling over the futility of human existence, while Mr. Sampath good-naturedly shoulders all the financial burdens. Without warning, The Banner suddenly folds.
Never a character to be foiled for long, Mr. Sampath becomes involved with Sunrise Productions & ropes in Srinivas to write the film scripts. Unfortunately the glamorous life goes to Mr. Sampath's head & chaos ensues. At times amusing, unfailingly perspicacious, R.K.Narayan has written a story of great distinction & charm.

Genres: Fiction, India, Indian Literature, Classics, Literature, Drama, Novels

214 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1949

About the author

R. K. Narayan is among the best known and most widely read Indian novelists who wrote in English.

R.K. Narayan was born in Madras, South India, in 1906, and educated there and at Maharaja's College in Mysore. His first novel, Swami and Friends and its successor, The Bachelor of Arts, are both set in the enchanting fictional territory of Malgudi and are only two out of the twelve novels he based there. In 1958 Narayan's work The Guide won him the National Prize of the Indian Literary Academy, his country's highest literary honor.

In addition to his novels, Narayan has authored five collections of short stories, including A Horse and Two Goats, Malguidi Days, and Under the Banyan Tree, two travel books, two volumes of essays, a volume of memoirs, and the re-told legends Gods, Demons and Others, The Ramayana, and the Mahabharata. In 1980 he was awarded the A.C. Benson Medal by the Royal Society of Literature and in 1982 he was made an Honorary Member of the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters.

Most of Narayan's work, starting with his first novel Swami and Friends (1935), captures many Indian traits while retaining a unique identity of its own. He was sometimes compared to the American writer William Faulkner, whose novels were also grounded in a compassionate humanism and celebrated the humour and energy of ordinary life.

Narayan who lived till age of ninety-four, died in 2001. He wrote for more than fifty years, and published until he was eighty seven. He wrote fourteen novels, five volumes of short stories, a number of travelogues and collections of non-fiction, condensed versions of Indian epics in English, and the memoir My Days.

-Wikipedia & Amazon.co.uk

Reviews

[Fiza Pathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Mr Sampath: The Printer of Malgudi' is yet another charming & fascinating novel penned by R.K.Narayan based in the fictional South-Indian town of Malgudi. The novel is hilarious & a fast page turner & tells the reader about the lives of South-Indians living in a newly Independent India. Srinivas, Mr Sampath, Shanti, Ravi, Somu, Ramu etc., are some of the many quirky characters the reader will come across in this marvelous mid-20th century Indian novel. The book analyzes the troubles & setbacks one had to go through back in the mid-20th century in the process of printing a weekly newsletter or gazette. The trials & tribulations of Srinivas the editor of 'The Banner' is highlighted in the first part of the novel along with the shrewd, crafty & miserly characters he went on to befriend in his attempt to become a professional editor of Malgudi. However, what induced Srinivas to give up editing 'The Banner' to writing screen-plays for the South-Indian motion picture company funded by Mr. Sampath, Mr. Somu & many other shady characters? This is what the reader will find out to his or her delight in 'Mr Sampath' the tale of a big-talker & his fixation on doing everything flamboyantly & not logically. The book is rip-roaring hilarious, full of excellent subtle humor & paints an almost quintessential picture of Indians living in this part of the world. Subtle humor & satire is what R.K.Narayan is noted for & he does not disappoint. Narayan himself at a time used to be the editor & printer of his own newsletter before World War II & so therefore probably 'Mr Sampath' is a novel based on those trying experiences of the past. If a reader wants to get into the mind of an urban Indian in the 20th century, then this is a good book to start with. It will be delightful to encounter the moody Ravi who has a fixation on only portrait, Ramu who is Srinivas' only child who is more a husband to his poor mother than Srinivas himself & of course Mr. Sampath himself, the Printer of Malgudi who will be repeated in many more of Narayan's long as well as short fiction. I enjoyed the book thoroughly & especially loved the character of the miserly landlord who bathed under the public water tap meant for the poorer sections of Malgudi society. His character is graphically etched in my mind & will not leave me for a long time to come. This is true with all of Narayan's characters, they come alive beautifully & are endearing to the reader with every page turned. The best scene in this book which I loved was the final shot of the film Srinivas, Mr. Sampath & company were making. It was the icing on the cake & I had hearty belly laugh after a really long time. Trust R.K.Narayan always to give you something witty & cheerful even in the darkest times of our era. Once you read this book, you'll want to read all of Narayan's works. Grab your copy of this book today! R.K. Narayan gets 5 stars from me!

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite its long history and ancient traditions, India has produced few novelists. In R.K. Narayan, however, India has produced a writer of stunning originality. His novels are set in the mythical region of Malgudi which he uses as a backdrop for the lives and adventures of his quintessential Indian characters. To me, he is India’s cousin to Sinclair Lewis.

Although titled Mr. Sampath: The Printer of Malgudi, this story mostly revolves around a young journalist, Srivinas, who does all the writing for weekly newspaper that loses money despite a small, devoted following. Mr. Sampath is one of his printers whose grandiose dreams lead to the creation of a movie production company that lives briefly on dubious dreams. Within this small world, Narayan provides insightful—at times humorous, at others tragic—portraits about caste, family relationships, hope and failure, death, mental illness, religion, and the futility of dreams. His writing is profound simplicity; a pleasure to read.

[Gorab]

DNF at Chapter 8 :(

This must be a critically acclaimed masterpiece!
Never ever imagined I'd DNF a book by my favorite author.

I didn't find the characters interesting, the narration was pretty dry, no signature humor, the plot was a mumble jumble of many things... and after a certain point, couldn't bear it any longer.

The only experiment I loved here was the way the protagonist was being introduced ;)

[Vikas Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book too, like his previous four books is autobiographical in nature. It deals period when he tried his hand at publishing journal Indian Thought. The book revolves around conflict between choosing own's own destiny or accepting societal norms. The book can be read to understand and appreciate the contrast between India in early 40s and India seventy years after independence. Overall average read

[Ashok Krishna · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is this special quality about the books of R.K. Narayan – each and every one of them feel like a journey. The initial enthusiasm before commencing one, the excitement once it is started, witnessing fresh and familiar scenery, meeting new characters, the lull of the monotony one slips into after a while, the subtle boredom that creeps in and makes one look forward to closure, the stir one feels as one nears the end, and the happy arrival at the destination – these are all emotions that one feels during the journey as well as while reading the works of R.K. Narayan.

There is no denying the fact that RKN is one of the geniuses to have graced the world of Indian literature. Imagine the fecundity that pervaded his mind and brought forth an entire town in fiction, which went on to serve as a beautiful backdrop for almost all his works. Apart from the town, his way of writing - capturing those Independence era habits and societal customs for posterity to relish - is another mark of his genius. The old-world charm of the pre-technology days flows out of these pages, sending the reader’s mind into a serene journey into that halcyon past.

‘Mr. Sampath’ is no exception, though this may not be the best of Mr. Narayan’s works. Srinivas arrives in Malgudi, trying to find his life’s purpose by venting out his thoughts through a journal, ‘The Banner’. As he stands almost on the verge of giving up the idea, with no printer forthcoming to print ‘The Banner’, Sampath the printer arrives in his life as a god-sent ray of hope. Leaving just the writing part to Srinivas, Sampath takes it upon himself to run the nitty-gritties of the journal. All seems to go well for Srinivas, when one day, without any warning, the printer shuts shop due to labour trouble. The resourceful Sampath quickly gets into a film production company, roping in Srinivas as the script writer. But all that glitz and glam of life under spotlights slowly gets into the head of Sampath. What transpired in the end forms the rest of the tale.

All the qualities mentioned in the first stanza are present in this book too, except the stir towards the end and the happy arrival – a meaningful closure. Normally Narayan’s novels end leaving one mystified and even pensive about some of the higher truths. Not this one. The end of the tale neither satisfies the reader nor makes much sense. It feels as if you started the journey hoping to arrive at a faraway, beautiful destination, but were yanked out midway through the journey, to be left behind on a barren, no-man’s land.

An OK read from RKN!

[Paul Bryant · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember this with warm affection and made a note years ago to read more of RK Narayan who - in retrospect - from the perspective of my woozy memory - is like Rohinton Mistry's benign old uncle. Back then I also read The Vendor of Sweets and The Painter of Signs which was my favourite because of a spiky back-chatty young woman called Daisy who was extremely charming. But these are all 3.5 star books. And I never did read any more. So that must change... while I wait for Mr Mistry's next 700-page slab (Mr Mistry, Jerker of Tears), I should eat up more RKN novels. Let that be one New Year Resolution I might actually enjoy doing.

[Meghana · Rating 5 out of 5]

What i love about RK's books is his ability to delve deep into the very nature of human and quite simply hold a mirror to the reader.
This book does that in a very gradual and nuanced way.
It almost creeps up on you when you least expect it, how each and every one of the characters in the book is relatable :
They are all in their own personal turmoil and I for one thoroughly enjoyed this potpourri of human emotions.

The story is - about Sampath : an unassuming man in the fictional town of Malgudi,
- as told by Srinivas: a hopeful writer and activist, and together they meet for 'The Banner' a weekly publication which addresses civil and philosophical questions which Srinivas has taken upon himself to answer and which he believes will uplift his readers.

Srinivas leaves behind his wife and son to do this, not being very domestic in the first place, a stark contrast to Sampath - who with his friendly wife and 5 daughters and a son is the very epitome of a family man.

But a spanner is thrown in the works (quite literally in the printing press) when all of a sudden 'The Banner' folds and in a whirlwind of events,
Srinivas finds himself writing a script for a 'romantic' mythological movie
that his best friend and business partner is producing.

Between his demanding family , his neighbour Ravi- a lovesick man who longs for a dame he's seen but fleetingly, his landlord- an aging man who claims to have forgone worldly desires yet is never late to pick up rent, old traditionalists who would rather starve and die than bear the shame of working for the film industry, and 'Mr' Sampath himself, who takes a few wrong turns and loses himself along the way,

Srinivas finds himself in the thick of it all - all the things he was trying to run away from.
Will he ever make it out? Read the book to find out!

[Govind Sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Masterly narration by RK Narayan, though the reader is left wondering what happened to Ravi after he was sent to a temple for faith healing.

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

In short, the novel is the story of Mr. Sampath, a cunning and intrepid rogue, who can face even the most problematic situations with poise. He is one of the most memorable characters in the annals of Indo-Anglian fiction. And curiously, though the novel is called Mr. Sampath, in the first 64 pages out of a total of 219, his name is not mentioned. Though the man exists and is going in and out of the pages, a rather awkward evocation lets the reader know the dramatic manner in which Srinivas, who seems till now to be the hero of the story, got acquainted with his future printer. Enjoyable.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a strainful read for me. There were times more than once when I was tempted to abandon it but persisted as it was a paperback... Halfway through it became interesting and the last quarter went really fast.. But what and whom was the story about? "The title is rather misleading considering the fact that it is Srinivass story and not Sampaths entirely. The various mind ramblings and philosophical musings of Srinivas begot little interest in me..

[Rishi Prakash · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am just amazed at his consistency in getting it right again and again; every single book is different and still so nicely written. This book is no different where he comes with another set up in Malgudi and creates another great story. It is another delightful piece of writing by the creator of Malgudi. Funny, dramatic and filled with the finer emotions of human nature, Mr. Sampath made me smile all through and laugh out loudly at a few places.

It is about a newspaper "The Banner" which comes up in Malgudi and the two main chracters who are responsible in bringing it out and the turn of events around them. It has many other chracters which helps in setting it up and everyone is just perfect. It has many small small stories which have been woven intricately to set up the big story and that is what makes it an absolute gem. The entire movie making angle and the set up of the studio in that time is so fascinating that you have to just read it to enjoy it :-)

[Sailaja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though I have owned this book for a little over a decade, haven't read it in a while. Honestly I don't remember what I felt the first time I read it 10 yrs ago.

This time around I was just hoping that Srinivas doesn't lose his head and doesn't ruin his family. At every juncture I read with curiosity to find out what Srinivas thinks. His inner struggle to maintain composure in face of the myriad of different situations he finds himself in, is beautifully portrayed.

Each major character in the story is well conceived that you cannot help feeling for them..

[Rajath Moodithaya · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's so refreshing to read of a time not too long ago about people whose lives weren't too different from yours, just different enough to keep it interesting. The perspective was new enough to look back at your own life and see the humour in it. The reflections in The Banner was the most fun part of it all.

Found the pacing to be slow and the storyline meandering. If it weren't for the characters and finding the humour in everyday life, this would've been a solid 3 star book.

Side note: managed to 'finish' 2 books in a single day. A new high!

[Smitha Murthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got an early edition of this book and read the tattered brown pages with unwavering interest. As always, RK Narayan knows how to weave a story. Mirthful and philosophical, Mr. Sampath is a portrait of a man who embodies our struggles to survive in life.

[Suchitpr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book to read

[Kanchan Mandanekar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A yet another refreshingly nostalgic read beautifully crafted by Narayan. Straight from the banks of Sarayu, nestled near Memphi forest, woven with the modest family life that best describes the common Indian. Lovvved it!

[Shivangi Tiwari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful, simple, witty writing! Narayan is an enchanting writer, he does not need fancy words or complex characters to write an enjoyable story. He weaves a good plot from the commonplace aspects of humanity itself, and perhaps it is that his setting is familiar, or perhaps that his style is superior. His wit becomes apparent from the very first Chapter, wherein he says about the Banner, "Within twelve pages of foolscap it attempted to set the world right." Among my favorite lines are, "He felt, with an extravagant seriousness, that a whole civilization had come to an abrupt stalemate because its men had no better basis of living than public opinion.", " What great human forces meet and come to grips with each other between every sunrise and sunset!" and others. "It saves me postage to forget her" made me tremble, "..a girl in flesh ought to be worth a dozen on paper" amused me, "They had all along wished they could gag him, but it was not an easy thing to choke off a district judge, particularly when he was the president of the occasion" made me laugh. I felt particularly impressed by "It's all nonsense to say that she does all this only to attract men. That is a self-compliment Man concocts for himself. She spends her day doing all this to herself because she can't help it, any more than the full moon can help being round and lustrous". Narayan carries on through the whole book with relentless wit as in " Mankind has not yet learned to react to beauty properly".
A good thought is quoted in the from of the landlord, surprisingly: "When I become a handful of ash what do I care who takes my purse, Who counts my coins and who locks the door of my safe, When my bones lie bleaching, what matter if the door of my house is left unlocked?". Incisive remarks into human nature flow through the book, such as " He blesses with his hand, and kicks with his feet". A tragedy somewhat, made not just bearable but enjoyable by having a central character one can easily sympathize with, and Narayan's charming wit.

[Ajay · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is one common thread that I always find in all the RK Narayan books, which I have read so far. Well, the characters like daisy(The painter of Signs), rosy (The guide) followed by shanti here in this book , are the best instances to talk about. I could construe that these characters represent the modern day woman. They have their free flow of thoughts. It is not pertinent to think about the past or the future to sacrifice the present moment for them. Personally speaking, looking at the outline of these characters, I have the deepest anger and contempt to the life they live for. But again putting myself in their shoes, i felt it needs a lot of courage to live such a life.

All a whole , this is one another master piece of RK NARAYAN,

[Satya Krishna · Rating 5 out of 5]

"By R K Narayan" is all it takes for me to decide how good a book is. I might sound like a fanatic to some, but so far I have not come across a single literary work of R K Narayan that has not left me amazed. Mr. Sampath, is a story of simple human beings full of all their follies and idiosyncracies. Every single character is very well fleshed out and very easily relatable (at least for me). At no time in the plot do you feel lost or feel that a plot point is unnecessary. A definite must read.

[Anie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicely written. It's based on four characters Mr. Sampath, Ravi, Mr. Somu and Srinivas. The novel is a dramatic page-turner and unpredictable in the beginning. It's the humor that pushes the story further. The dialogues are a great fun. The story is concluded in a nice way and many readers will adore this masterpiece for a long time.

[Shalini · Rating 4 out of 5]

A master writer, mesmerizes you with his subjects and the intricately woven prose around them! In just 200 pages the book circumvents many characters, emotions, scenes and so on with such ease of flow and language; it does captivate you till the end! A must read for all R. K. Narayan fans!

[latner3 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very very good. Beautiful writing full of humour and compassion. A real gem.

[Ben · Rating 2 out of 5]

The novel is almost incoherent, but I enjoyed the gentle humor and some beautiful passages and turns of phrase.

[Roma Dar · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read another of Narayan's books before. It was during my course at the University. 'The Guide', which I felt had a similar plot to 'MR. Sampath',
Was in my humble opinion a more taut composition. The plots of the two were comparably similar, starring rogue protagonists who get waylaid with glamour and women. Mr Sampath was a drag at places, but it picked up in the last three chapters.

I felt that the novel could be called a bildungsroman of sorts. Of the two notable characters Mr sampath and srinivas, the point of view focused more on the philosophical conundrums of Srinivas' daily existence and the world around him. He slowly gets to know the printer, Mr Sampath, and is lead astray from his philosophical meditations due to Mr Sampath's flamboyant ways. Srinivas learns his lesson in the end, maturing even more as an adult than he was before. Mr Sampath, in a way, exists to misguide our misguided Srinivas, and as a result reflects all our lives at some point or the other, when we meet people due to whom we learn a lesson or two in life. The novel is so much about Srinivas learning how to be less emotional, more assertive, more responsible and knowing what he wants from life. He learns to stop being naive, he learns how to be diplomatic as well as kind. The irony is that although he has learnt his lesson, unfortunately it results in him hardening up to an extent to the miseries and misfortunes of others. Ultimately, I felt that the message Narayan may have wanted to convey is that though having experiences makes us smarter in dealing with people and protecting ourselves, one negative side effect of that is that we almost always end up being less sensitive to the plights of others due to this sudden maturity. Call it apathy if you see it that way. Mr. Sampath was a means to Srinivas' end.

Among other things, The vivid word picture of Malgudi doesn't fail to stun the imagination. You can imagine yourself roaming around Market Road, Kabir Lane, sunrise pictures studios and the river bank. The characters are vividly portrayed and each has its own individuality, though they are not as endearing and likeable as other characters from other novels may be.

It's a subtle novel. Pomposity is not a weapon in Mr. R. K. Narayan's arsenal.

[Bhuprakash · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual, this novel represents Narayan’s unique story telling style. Characters are simple as well as the situations are. We often meet such persons or situations in our daily lives. In fact, a reader tend to visualise the characters as s/he passes through the pages and predict their action and feelings nearly accurately.
Though novel set in 1938, but still relevant to the present generation. The writer conveys his powerful message through simple characters, natural actions and ubiquitous feelings. A great reading
Summary
Mr Sampath is a person who gets things done, either way – legally or illegally, habitually. In the fictional town of Malgudi, almost everybody knows him and he could influence anybody by his eloquence. He has an exceptional personality and extraordinary management and negotiation skill which he uses to get rid of tricky situations. A highly ambitious person, but meets his doom by his unrestrained lust and instincts.
Srinivas comes to the town to start his weekly publication The Banner and happens to meet the printer, Sampath. The latter agrees to print the former’s publication. Srinivas, is an ordinary man full of ethical values and human conscience. With Sampath’s ability to manage situations and finances, the press runs smoothly, without much botheration for Srinivas. Within a short span of time, the Banner becomes one of the most popular weekly publication with a sizeable subscriber base.
For some reasons, they had to discontinue the press for certain time. Meanwhile, they get involved in film production and things get complicated. Sampath falls in love with the main actress, despite having a family of his own. Blinded by the love for the girl, he forgets his social and familial responsibility. Things moved an awkward turn when the meek art director showed the same feeling for the actress and the film production faced huge losses. This was the end of the film shooting chapter and Srinivas found himself in his favourite occupation once again. He feels the absence of Sampath when he realised the need of funds.
Srinivas meets Sampath later. But this time he become stoic and reserved, does not show much interest in Sampath’s whereabouts and departs. He becomes rather selfish, and considers it irreverent to dig further.

[Abhishek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mr. Sampath is probably not one of R.K.Narayan's most-loved books. This is because one doesn't connect with the characters, the plot, or the setting it is in, even though it is in the familiar fictional world of Malgudi. However, it does have a few highlights, which made it an interesting read.

For one, the titular character Sampath is introduced through the lens of another character named Srinivas. Sampath is the editor Srinivas stumbles upon to help print his journal "The Banner" and pulls through various obstacles to keep the journal afloat. Srinivas's thoughts and echoes form the reader's perspective throughout the book, not Sampath's.

We trace the camaraderie between them, their families' backgrounds, their meetings, and eventually "The Banner" being shut down due to unforeseen circumstances. While Srinivas is lost on how to revive his journal, Sampath pivots to the grand vision of setting up a studio and directing a film. How Sampath's character slowly unravels over time and how Srinivas realizes truths about the way of life make up the rest of the story.

There are familiar character sketches, as always. We have an old man set in his ways, a friend of Srinivas lost in thoughts of a dame he saw many years ago, a wife annoyed with her husband's lack of attention, and their kid who's oblivious to the family's distresses. But while they all individually have depth, the story itself lacks it. And, of course, Narayan's inimitable English writing style shines through regardless.

Narayan touches upon aspects of the early post-Independence era very pleasingly, and one does get enchanted by the life and times of people then. He also showcases the caste system, religion, dynamics of relationships, and even mental health through his characters. The simplicity and calmness with which they express themselves do make one thoughtful.

[sam✿ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is the first time I'm reading RK Narayan in its full glory because I haven't really read his stories seriously. We only read him in primary or middle school and that was it but this was a full blown novel and safe to say I liked it, despite its open ending. Or was it open ending? I'm not entirely sure. The copy of the book I had was brought in 1995 by one of my family members and it has that old book smell and texture and feel. More than the story I liked reading it from this particular copy. As for the story, it was an easy read, a page turner with subtle humour here and there. It hit home because the protagonist was a writer who started his own journal, writing about the society, state and the government and that's something I so want to do. It didn't actually go into the complexities of the whole process that goes behind publishing a journal although I would have liked to know it for obvious reasons. The open ending kept me really perturbed and i audibly went wtf as I finished it only to find no other page after it. It doesn't really conclude anything, we don't know what came about of the printer but like the protagonist also says, to ask him will be to remove the grain from the chaff and after everything, nobody really wants to get into that. I did feel a little bad as I saw the printer being left on its own after he did so much for Srivinas but he brought all of it on himself so nothing could be done anyway. However, i did want to know what happened with Ravi but gonna take it for the obvious too. I obviously liked the little psychological insightful stupor the protagonist went into every now and then. This was my first visit to Narayan's fictional town and care to say I liked it's people.

[Meghna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel is mainly about the life of ' The Banner' a weekly newspaper and the hands behind this newspaper; it's editor Srinivas and it's printer Sampath. They both were very dedicated and worked day and night. Srinivas is of a spiritual type and he got answers to many of his questions by writing articles in this paper. One fine day, the whole staff of Sampath went on strike and ' The Banner' has to be closed down indefinitely. This made them get involve in a film production company ' Sunrise productions'. Srinivas wrote scripts for the film but the way in which his script is handled made him disappointed and he wished for the revival of ' The Banner'. Meanwhile the glamorous life that film gave got into Sampath's head and he began to forget his family and go after another lady, the actress in that movie. All this Srinivas couldn't digest. The encouragement for the revival of ' The Banner' came from an unexpected place; a police station, when Srinivas went to get his neighbour Ravi out of jail, as he has messed up things in the same studio as they both worked, he was arrested. Srinivas explained his condition of not having a printer and press and with the help of the Inspector he was able to revive his newspaper. Meanwhile the lady with which Sampath had an affair left him, and he was totally disappointed. They had to drop the film in the end. At the end Srinivas's life turn out to be happy. He lived happily ever after with his family. But Sampath has not fully recovered from the glamorous life he led but he had learned a lesson.

[Kieran Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

V.S. Naipaul's analysis, in his book India: a Wounded Civilization, of this short comic novel as typically Hindu in its outlook was what prompted me to finally read my first R.K. Narayan. I found it surprising and rather charming. We follow Srinivas, an unworldly 37 year-old with a wife and son, as he tries to make something of his life by setting up a one-man weekly journal of political, social and artistic comment. The title character, who is the only printer in Malgudi willing to take on such politically sensitive work, is introduced early on, but we don't get his name or the circumstances of their meeting until chapter 4, a third of the way through the book. So although the larger than life, boundlessly ambitious and optimistic Sampath is the main character, he's not the point-of-view character, which makes for an interesting dynamic as the odd-couple relationship of him and Srinivas develops. Then at the halfway point, when the journal is forced to close due to a wildcat strike by Sampath's workers and he ropes Srinivas into scripting an epic film based on a Hindu legend, film-industry chaos and farce quickly ensues. It's a strangely comforting novel about muddling through, or, as Naipaul picks up on, about how life's eddies, no matter how energetically navigated, tend not to any great end but to the same backwaters we started in.

[Louis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading Mr. Sampath, my main criticism is that the story line is a little loose. The story starts with Srinivas, the main character, starting his newspaper, The Banner. The printer is of course Mr. Sampath. Later in the book the printer becomes more central in the narrative when he starts a movie studio where Srinivas joins him.

What I enjoyed was the description of family and street life in Malgudi, the fictional city where the characters live a life. The author describes the ordinary Indians with respect and affection, their small town views, their food and how they deal with often throttling poverty, that is accepted as part of life. The writing style is easy to read.