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The Book of Secrets
In 1988, a retired schoolteacher named Pius Fernandes receives an old diary found in the back room of an East African shop. Written in 1913 by a British colonial administrator, the diary captivates Fernandes, who begins to research the coded history he encounters in its terse, laconic entries. What he uncovers is a story of forbidden liaisons and simmering vengeances, family secrets and cultural exiles--a story that leads him on an investigative journey through his own past and Africa's.
360 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1994
48 people are currently reading
1589 people want to read
About the author
M.G. Vassanji
28 books165 followersMoyez G. Vassanji was born in Kenya and raised in Tanzania. Before coming to Canada in 1978, he attended MIT and the University of Pennsylvania, where he specialized in theoretical nuclear physics. From 1978-1980 he was a postdoctoral fellow at the Atomic Energy of Canada, and from 1980 to 1989 he was a research associate at the University of Toronto. During this period he developed a keen interest in medieval Indian literature and history, co-founded and edited a literary magazine (The Toronto South Asian Review, later renamed The Toronto Review of Contemporary Writing Abroad), and began writing stories and a novel. In 1989, with the publication of his first novel, The Gunny Sack, he was invited to spend a season at the International Writing Program of the University of Iowa. That year ended his active career in nuclear physics. His contributions there he considers modest, in algebraic models and high spin states. The fact that he was never tenured he considers a blessing for it freed him to pursue his literary career.
Vassanji is the author of six novels and two collections of short stories. His work has appeared in various countries and several languages. His most recent novel, The Assassin's Song, was short-listed for both the Giller Prize and the Governor-General's Prize for best novel in Canada. It has appeared in the US (Knopf) and India (Penguin) and is scheduled to appear in the UK (Canongate).
His wife, Nurjehan, was born in Tanzania. They have two sons, Anil, and Kabir. He lives in Toronto, and visits Africa and India often.
Awards: Giller Prize, twice; Harbourfront Festival Prize; Commonwealth First Book Prize (Africa); Bressani Prize. Order of Canada.
Vassanji is the author of six novels and two collections of short stories. His work has appeared in various countries and several languages. His most recent novel, The Assassin's Song, was short-listed for both the Giller Prize and the Governor-General's Prize for best novel in Canada. It has appeared in the US (Knopf) and India (Penguin) and is scheduled to appear in the UK (Canongate).
His wife, Nurjehan, was born in Tanzania. They have two sons, Anil, and Kabir. He lives in Toronto, and visits Africa and India often.
Awards: Giller Prize, twice; Harbourfront Festival Prize; Commonwealth First Book Prize (Africa); Bressani Prize. Order of Canada.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 138 reviews
June 13, 2019
DNF
Life is too short to force oneself through a slog of a book. The first winner of the Giller Prize (and the first of my challenge to read every winner over the next few years) this story of Kenya under British rule during and after the first world war, I found the writing incredibly dull and the plot, which should be filled with intrigue was missing any sense of prepulsion. A whimpering start to my Giller challenge but thankfully Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance, a classic and one my all time favs.
Life is too short to force oneself through a slog of a book. The first winner of the Giller Prize (and the first of my challenge to read every winner over the next few years) this story of Kenya under British rule during and after the first world war, I found the writing incredibly dull and the plot, which should be filled with intrigue was missing any sense of prepulsion. A whimpering start to my Giller challenge but thankfully Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance, a classic and one my all time favs.
April 28, 2021
رواية جميلة ومميزة ومتعددة الأصوات والألوان أيضا.
تدور أحداثها في كينيا في عدة أزمنة متداخلة أيضاً.
ليست رواية مشوقة وليست رواية سحرية واقعية وليست رواية سردية أو تاريخية. هي خليط من كل تلك التقنيات الأدبية التي تضفي على العمل سحراً آسراً، متناغماً مع البيئة الملونة التي تدور بها أحداث الرواية.
فمن جبل كليمنجارو إلى غابات أفريقيا حيث القبائل البدائية إلى الحرب العالمية الأولى، ومن ثم المرحلة الكولونيالية، وما بعد الكولونيالية.
تدور أحداثها في كينيا في عدة أزمنة متداخلة أيضاً.
ليست رواية مشوقة وليست رواية سحرية واقعية وليست رواية سردية أو تاريخية. هي خليط من كل تلك التقنيات الأدبية التي تضفي على العمل سحراً آسراً، متناغماً مع البيئة الملونة التي تدور بها أحداث الرواية.
فمن جبل كليمنجارو إلى غابات أفريقيا حيث القبائل البدائية إلى الحرب العالمية الأولى، ومن ثم المرحلة الكولونيالية، وما بعد الكولونيالية.
November 21, 2019
This was completely unfamiliar territory for me. Set in what was then called British East Africa, now Kenya, the community is one of Indian immigrants. The premise of the novel is interesting. A retired schoolteacher, whose major was history, is presented with a partial diary written just before the outbreak of WWI. It was kept by the only white man in the village, the Assistant District Commissioner. The first part of the book follows the diary pretty closely, although some sections are expanded upon by the teacher. For the rest of the novel the teacher has researched the Indian characters of the village at the time, and extended their lives through both wars and to the present-day, that being when he first saw the diary in 1988.
I am not a storyteller and know nothing about constructing a story, most especially not how to write a novel. With as much reading as I do, I am somewhat struck that I really never thought about how a novelist goes about his craft nor especially considered where the ideas come from. But early in this was the idea that novelists must start with a germ of something like "What if ...". In this case, obviously, what if a man finds an old diary by someone who is unrelated to him.
I liked the story and the premise and it kept me reading. However, I was unable to related to any of the characters or the setting. I did learn something, I think, as I had not realized that East Africa might have a considerable Indian population. I thought: sometimes it's helpful to look at a map, Elizabeth. There are many places Indians might emigrate, and East Africa would certainly be one of them. And so, I reveal here two missing pieces in my thought processes. It's never too late in life to learn, I guess.
This was my first taste of M.G. Vassanji. I have his The In-Between World of Vikram Lall, his other Scotiabank Giller winner, on my wishlist shelf. While I won't be rushing out to buy it, I will be glad to read it eventually. I think this one just skims the 3-/4-star line, but doesn't quite make the leap over.
I am not a storyteller and know nothing about constructing a story, most especially not how to write a novel. With as much reading as I do, I am somewhat struck that I really never thought about how a novelist goes about his craft nor especially considered where the ideas come from. But early in this was the idea that novelists must start with a germ of something like "What if ...". In this case, obviously, what if a man finds an old diary by someone who is unrelated to him.
I liked the story and the premise and it kept me reading. However, I was unable to related to any of the characters or the setting. I did learn something, I think, as I had not realized that East Africa might have a considerable Indian population. I thought: sometimes it's helpful to look at a map, Elizabeth. There are many places Indians might emigrate, and East Africa would certainly be one of them. And so, I reveal here two missing pieces in my thought processes. It's never too late in life to learn, I guess.
This was my first taste of M.G. Vassanji. I have his The In-Between World of Vikram Lall, his other Scotiabank Giller winner, on my wishlist shelf. While I won't be rushing out to buy it, I will be glad to read it eventually. I think this one just skims the 3-/4-star line, but doesn't quite make the leap over.
October 12, 2021
English Review Below.
رواية عميقة متعددة الجوانب، فهي ببساطة تتحدث عن علامة هندي يجد مذكرات رجل إنجليزي مستعمر في تنزانيا وخلال رحلته لمعرفة المزيد عن كاتب المذكرات ومصيره ومصير الشخصيات التي تحدث عنها في مذكراته، نرى صورة شاملة نوعا ما للاستعمار الأوروبي لإفريقيا والهند قبل وأثناء وبعد الحرب العالمية. تتغير وجهات النظر والشخصيات أحيانا من المستعمر الإنجليزي إلى شخصية هندية أو إفريقية، لتصبح الرواية زي اللوحة بترسم صورة عامة لواقع الحياة دون أن تحاول الإجابة على شيء محدد.
فهي ترسم صورة للمستعمر ومشاكل زي العبودية وصراع الديانات والثقافات وصراع المستعمرين وسكان البلد. كذلك الصراع بين الإسلام والمسيحية والصراع بين الأشخاص اللي تعرضوا للاستعمار أنفسهم. فأنا سعيدة أني قدرت أتجاوز الجزء الأول اللي كان ممل وبطئ شوية عشان أخوض الرحلة الكاملة الشاملة دي، رواية عميقة وبتوضح حاجات كتير عن منطقة بعينها في حقبة معينة بشكل بارع جدا.
This novel has so many layers, that I was putting off writing a review because of how multi-layered it is. It's a novel about an Indian scholar who finds the diary of an English colonial man in Tanzania, and through his quest to put together this diary and know more about its writer and what happens to all the people who were mentioned in it, we get an overall view of European colonialism in Africa and India before, during, and after World War.
It changes perspective and characters to give us an overall view, sometimes from the point of view of the English, sometimes the Indians, other times the Africans. This novel just draws a portrait, and it doesn't seek to give an answer or make grand endings, it just focuses on few characters and we follow their journeys and how colonials affected them. It tackles a lot of issues like slavery, queerness, conflict of religions and traditions, also the conflict of colonials and natives. It shows clashes between Islam and Christianity, between African and Indians, and between those and the English and Germans.
As I said, it's multi-layered, and I'm glad I pushed through the first part which was a bit boring, because this novel serves a great purpose, which is letting me know just a little bit more about a place I didn't know much about.
رواية عميقة متعددة الجوانب، فهي ببساطة تتحدث عن علامة هندي يجد مذكرات رجل إنجليزي مستعمر في تنزانيا وخلال رحلته لمعرفة المزيد عن كاتب المذكرات ومصيره ومصير الشخصيات التي تحدث عنها في مذكراته، نرى صورة شاملة نوعا ما للاستعمار الأوروبي لإفريقيا والهند قبل وأثناء وبعد الحرب العالمية. تتغير وجهات النظر والشخصيات أحيانا من المستعمر الإنجليزي إلى شخصية هندية أو إفريقية، لتصبح الرواية زي اللوحة بترسم صورة عامة لواقع الحياة دون أن تحاول الإجابة على شيء محدد.
فهي ترسم صورة للمستعمر ومشاكل زي العبودية وصراع الديانات والثقافات وصراع المستعمرين وسكان البلد. كذلك الصراع بين الإسلام والمسيحية والصراع بين الأشخاص اللي تعرضوا للاستعمار أنفسهم. فأنا سعيدة أني قدرت أتجاوز الجزء الأول اللي كان ممل وبطئ شوية عشان أخوض الرحلة الكاملة الشاملة دي، رواية عميقة وبتوضح حاجات كتير عن منطقة بعينها في حقبة معينة بشكل بارع جدا.
This novel has so many layers, that I was putting off writing a review because of how multi-layered it is. It's a novel about an Indian scholar who finds the diary of an English colonial man in Tanzania, and through his quest to put together this diary and know more about its writer and what happens to all the people who were mentioned in it, we get an overall view of European colonialism in Africa and India before, during, and after World War.
It changes perspective and characters to give us an overall view, sometimes from the point of view of the English, sometimes the Indians, other times the Africans. This novel just draws a portrait, and it doesn't seek to give an answer or make grand endings, it just focuses on few characters and we follow their journeys and how colonials affected them. It tackles a lot of issues like slavery, queerness, conflict of religions and traditions, also the conflict of colonials and natives. It shows clashes between Islam and Christianity, between African and Indians, and between those and the English and Germans.
As I said, it's multi-layered, and I'm glad I pushed through the first part which was a bit boring, because this novel serves a great purpose, which is letting me know just a little bit more about a place I didn't know much about.
February 14, 2016
The book focuses on a part of history that doesn't often get attention in fiction - the First World War in East Africa and the Gujarati Indian community in Kenya and Tanzania.
The plot is quite intricate and I like the fact that the author still retains some secrets at the end of the book for the reader to ponder.
The plot is quite intricate and I like the fact that the author still retains some secrets at the end of the book for the reader to ponder.
February 19, 2016
I read this book along with the Great African Reads group, as they focus on a different Kenyan author every month in 2016. I appreciated getting to read this book for several reasons:
-It won the Giller Prize in 1994, and I always want to expand my reading of Canadian authors
-I had not yet read or learned of how the European conflicts in World War I effected their African "colonies." This takes place in the Indian and British settlements in East Africa, as well as the German East Africa connected by rail.
A few things made the book not as enjoyable of a read:
-The ongoing battle of the desire to read native authors. This is a strange instance because Vassanji grew up in Africa, although now resides in Canada. But still the primary voice in the novel is the colonialist Corbin, and the actual Africans are spokes of his wheel.
-The storytelling pacing is sporadic and new characters were being introduced up until the end. The narrator once Corbin isn't as central, Fernandes, is so far removed from the time and place of the story being told, it's probably not the best way to tell the story!
-
-It won the Giller Prize in 1994, and I always want to expand my reading of Canadian authors
-I had not yet read or learned of how the European conflicts in World War I effected their African "colonies." This takes place in the Indian and British settlements in East Africa, as well as the German East Africa connected by rail.
A few things made the book not as enjoyable of a read:
-The ongoing battle of the desire to read native authors. This is a strange instance because Vassanji grew up in Africa, although now resides in Canada. But still the primary voice in the novel is the colonialist Corbin, and the actual Africans are spokes of his wheel.
-The storytelling pacing is sporadic and new characters were being introduced up until the end. The narrator once Corbin isn't as central, Fernandes, is so far removed from the time and place of the story being told, it's probably not the best way to tell the story!
-
August 29, 2023
This is quite a good book. It starts off with the diary of a colonial official in Africa, near Kilimanjaro, on the border between English and German occupied Africa, just before the second world war, in a predominantly Indian town. Then it follows some of the characters over the next few generations as a retired teacher finds the diary.
As with the other book I've read by the author, the setting is interesting and not one I encounter a lot (or really ever). I also think this is an exceptionally well written book in how it chooses to tell the story, with all the multiple perspectives. It is also deliberate in what it chooses to include and the number of ot threads never become overwhelming (unlike the other book I've read by the author). I think the ending is particularly strong - somewhat ambiguous while still a definite ending, and very effective.
I don't absolutely love it - the start felt a bit slow. But I really do think it's very good, and about a very interesting time and place ( or times and places, I suppose).
Very glad I finally got around to this one after it's been on my shelf for a decade
As with the other book I've read by the author, the setting is interesting and not one I encounter a lot (or really ever). I also think this is an exceptionally well written book in how it chooses to tell the story, with all the multiple perspectives. It is also deliberate in what it chooses to include and the number of ot threads never become overwhelming (unlike the other book I've read by the author). I think the ending is particularly strong - somewhat ambiguous while still a definite ending, and very effective.
I don't absolutely love it - the start felt a bit slow. But I really do think it's very good, and about a very interesting time and place ( or times and places, I suppose).
Very glad I finally got around to this one after it's been on my shelf for a decade
April 24, 2021
أحبب الرواية،والتقنيات التي استعملها الكاتب،فيها اصوات كثيرة متداخلة وكل صوت يحكي جزء من الحكاية التي تمتد على اجيال،لتعطي صورة بانورامية لواحدة من اجمل بقاع الأرض: دار السلام
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April 30, 2024هل أتحملُ نبشًا في ماضيّ؟ قراءة لرسائلي ودفاتر مذكراتي؟ ملفات تفتح بعد موتي، هل هذا ما أودّه؟! أسئلة حُرّضت داخلي بعد انتهائي من قراءة هذه الرواية أو كتاب الأسرار. أسئلة تصل وتتفرع إلى ما هو أكبر وأعمّ. فهل أنا أو نحن ميالين إلى النسيان أم نخافه؟ ونميل إلى خلود نودُّ تصديقهُ رغم حقيقة أنه لن يحصل؛ الحقيقة التي نعرف. لماذا الخلود يضمر في داخله شكل من أشكال المكانة للخالد؟ بينما النسيان يعتبر أقل قيمة على أقل تعبير.
كان من المهم أن أقرأ عن بلد كتنزانيا للمرة الأولى، والأهم هو مراقبة كل مراحل تغيراته، من الاستعمار إلى ما بعده، وصولًا إلى الاستقلال ونشوء الدولة وما تلاه من أسئلة وجدت الأمة نفسها أمامها.
ومريامو هذه الشخصية اللغز، تثير التأمل والتساؤلات، والأسى بكل تأكيد، فهي كما يقول وديع سعادة في وصفه لجمال العابر: عبرت سريعًا كلحظة انقصاف.. حيث أن مرورها كان هادئًا باردً حزينًا مُلغزًا، تختلط الوقائع والمشاعر حوله. وكانت مثال لمعنى أن يعيش الإنسان ويعبر دون كلمة واحدة.
كان من المهم أن أقرأ عن بلد كتنزانيا للمرة الأولى، والأهم هو مراقبة كل مراحل تغيراته، من الاستعمار إلى ما بعده، وصولًا إلى الاستقلال ونشوء الدولة وما تلاه من أسئلة وجدت الأمة نفسها أمامها.
ومريامو هذه الشخصية اللغز، تثير التأمل والتساؤلات، والأسى بكل تأكيد، فهي كما يقول وديع سعادة في وصفه لجمال العابر: عبرت سريعًا كلحظة انقصاف.. حيث أن مرورها كان هادئًا باردً حزينًا مُلغزًا، تختلط الوقائع والمشاعر حوله. وكانت مثال لمعنى أن يعيش الإنسان ويعبر دون كلمة واحدة.
July 1, 2015
First: what I liked about the Book of Secrets. I've never read a book set in this part of the world and so that was new to me. I know very little of the colonial history of Kenya and East Africa. Also, the women in the story, particularly Mariamu, were vivid compared to the male characters.
Sadly, I did not enjoy this book as much as I had hoped I would. I found the cast of characters somewhat confusing because of the past/present timelines. Perhaps my attention span is suffering so I won't blame the author--the writing was good--but I had a hard time getting through the novel at all.
Mariamu was the most interesting character to me and I was able to pay attention when the author described her and her relationships to her husband and to her son. When she died, I almost didn't want to finish the book. Her presence remains strong throughout the remaining pages and that was well done. But there were long sections devoted to the war (WWI) as it pertained to colonial Africa and to military intelligence etc. and that was not interesting to me.
The ending tied the various threads together in a way that was satisfying but the mysteries were not ultimately "solved," which is, I believe, the main theme of the novel: the unknowability of history.
Sadly, I did not enjoy this book as much as I had hoped I would. I found the cast of characters somewhat confusing because of the past/present timelines. Perhaps my attention span is suffering so I won't blame the author--the writing was good--but I had a hard time getting through the novel at all.
Mariamu was the most interesting character to me and I was able to pay attention when the author described her and her relationships to her husband and to her son. When she died, I almost didn't want to finish the book. Her presence remains strong throughout the remaining pages and that was well done. But there were long sections devoted to the war (WWI) as it pertained to colonial Africa and to military intelligence etc. and that was not interesting to me.
The ending tied the various threads together in a way that was satisfying but the mysteries were not ultimately "solved," which is, I believe, the main theme of the novel: the unknowability of history.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 28, 2012
I had such high expectations of this book. I wanted to love it but found it to be “lazily written”. Let me explain. I loved the prose, he spins a pretty sentence but as the story progressed I couldn’t suspend judgment about the coincidences that occurred and pushed the story forward. I mean really, what are the odds of the guy investigating the big mystery having been infatuated the girl at the centre of it all? The diary was from decades ago, found in a wall of a shop. Suddenly Rita is in the picture and lo and behold, she married Pipa’s son. Come on! It seemed to cheapen the plot and I never got over it. It was an easy out for the author, a plot device I considered a cheat. It also completely destroyed the tension in the book. The readers knew the characters had the answers but weren't sharing them and in the end they didn't. Kind of crummy in my opinion!
This coupled with the secrets untold at the end of the book left me feeling that the book tried to be something it wasn’t. I always read the Giller winners and it must have been a slow year when this book got the nod.
This coupled with the secrets untold at the end of the book left me feeling that the book tried to be something it wasn’t. I always read the Giller winners and it must have been a slow year when this book got the nod.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 17, 2024
(كانوا يدعونه: كتاب الأسرار، وكانوا يقولون عن كاتبه: لقد سرق أرواحنا وحبسها)..
أبهرتني هذه الرواية وأخذتني في رحلة جميلة ساحرة إلى كينيا وتانزانيا في أفريقيا،
تبدأ الرواية عنندما يتم العثور في العام 1988 على مذكرات لضابط بريطاني عاش في كينيا في العام 1913
ويتم تسليمها إلى أستاذ متقاعد ليبدأ بقراءتها والعودة إلى الماضي وذلك العالم القديم
وما كان فيه من أحداث مر بها الضابط، والأشخاص الذين عرفهم في تلك الفترة وتقاطعت مسيراتهم..
ولكن المذكرات تتوقف عند تاريخ معين ولا تكتمل .. لذلك يقوم الإستاذ الذي حصل عليها
بالبحث على من يكمل له الأحداث، ليجد نفسه مرتبطا فيها ويتفاجأ بأنه هو أحد شخصيات كتاب الأسرار..
عمل ساحر ومؤثر جدا جدا..
فهو يجمع ما بين الرواية والتاريخ وأدب المذكرات وأدب الرحلات.. ويتنقل بنا بين الأزمنة..
لنرى عوالما مختلفة وأزمنة متباعدة وأشخاصا تتلاقى مصائرهم بطريقة غريبة..
فذكريات الماضي عادة تسرق الأرواح وتحبسها بين الأسطر المكتوبة..
ولكن إن حاولت استعادة الأرواح والأسرار من الماضي، فلا بد أن تدفع الثمن وتنال العقوبة..
فكرة الرواية مختلفة ومميزة.. والترجمة واضحة جدا وممتازة..
وأختم باقتباس:
(ما أشدّ ظلم هذه التخمينات التي يكون موضوعها أناس يعيشون بعمق أكثر قليلاً من جيرانهم، أناس يكشفون على الملأ قدراً من أنفسهم أكبر قليلاً مما يكشفه غيرهم! ماذا عن احترام أسرارهم؟ وماذا عن احترام بشريتهم ؟ إن للماضي أهمية بالتأكيد؛ وهذا هو السبب الذي يوجب علينا دفنه أحياناً، علينا أن ننسى حتى نستطيع البدء من جديد..
نعم، لماذا نجعل ماضينا مباحاً للجميع، ونُصغر أنفسنا، بعد أن مضينا بعيداً إلى هذا الحد؟)..
أبهرتني هذه الرواية وأخذتني في رحلة جميلة ساحرة إلى كينيا وتانزانيا في أفريقيا،
تبدأ الرواية عنندما يتم العثور في العام 1988 على مذكرات لضابط بريطاني عاش في كينيا في العام 1913
ويتم تسليمها إلى أستاذ متقاعد ليبدأ بقراءتها والعودة إلى الماضي وذلك العالم القديم
وما كان فيه من أحداث مر بها الضابط، والأشخاص الذين عرفهم في تلك الفترة وتقاطعت مسيراتهم..
ولكن المذكرات تتوقف عند تاريخ معين ولا تكتمل .. لذلك يقوم الإستاذ الذي حصل عليها
بالبحث على من يكمل له الأحداث، ليجد نفسه مرتبطا فيها ويتفاجأ بأنه هو أحد شخصيات كتاب الأسرار..
عمل ساحر ومؤثر جدا جدا..
فهو يجمع ما بين الرواية والتاريخ وأدب المذكرات وأدب الرحلات.. ويتنقل بنا بين الأزمنة..
لنرى عوالما مختلفة وأزمنة متباعدة وأشخاصا تتلاقى مصائرهم بطريقة غريبة..
فذكريات الماضي عادة تسرق الأرواح وتحبسها بين الأسطر المكتوبة..
ولكن إن حاولت استعادة الأرواح والأسرار من الماضي، فلا بد أن تدفع الثمن وتنال العقوبة..
فكرة الرواية مختلفة ومميزة.. والترجمة واضحة جدا وممتازة..
وأختم باقتباس:
(ما أشدّ ظلم هذه التخمينات التي يكون موضوعها أناس يعيشون بعمق أكثر قليلاً من جيرانهم، أناس يكشفون على الملأ قدراً من أنفسهم أكبر قليلاً مما يكشفه غيرهم! ماذا عن احترام أسرارهم؟ وماذا عن احترام بشريتهم ؟ إن للماضي أهمية بالتأكيد؛ وهذا هو السبب الذي يوجب علينا دفنه أحياناً، علينا أن ننسى حتى نستطيع البدء من جديد..
نعم، لماذا نجعل ماضينا مباحاً للجميع، ونُصغر أنفسنا، بعد أن مضينا بعيداً إلى هذا الحد؟)..
January 14, 2013
This is a book that will stick with me. Mr. Vassanji is one of my favourite authors. This book was the first to win the prestigious Giller Prize and it is the last one in my quest to read all the Giller Prize winners which I undertook about a year ago. I really enjoyed this book, both for the history and for the people that Mr. Vassanji has created. The book is about the changes experienced in an East African nation-from a Commonwealth Country, through a war and onto independence. Of course there are growing pains, both for the nation and for the people, but this nation does manage to come through all of that. This book is a book of generations that lived through all these tumultuous times. The story stretches from 1918 to 1988 and is connected by a diary left by a young British Commissioner from the time that he served in a small town called Kikono. A retired schoolteacher is given the diary in the 1980's and he sets out on a personal quest to ferret out the secrets that are exposed by this diary. Vassenji easily slips from one era to another in this book. And all from the perspective of one town in East Africa called Dar. That is where the schoolteacher is and that is where the diary has eventually turned up (in a storage room in an old shop). The book paints such vivid pictures of a time and place that I felt that I was there. Excellent book. The only place where it fell down a bit for me was in the fact that many of the mysteries were left unexplained. But that is really not so different from real life after all.
February 12, 2015
1 STARS
"The Book of Secrets is a spellbinding novel of generations and the sweep of history that begins in 1988 in Dar es Salaam, when the 1913 diary of a British colonial officer is found in a shopkeeper's back room. The diary enflames the curiosity of a retired schoolteacher, Pius Fernandes, whose obsession with the stories it contains gradually connects the past with the present. Inhabiting the story is a memorable cast of characters, part of an Asian community in East Africa, whose lives and fates we follow over the course of seven decades. Rich in detail and description, M. G. Vassanji's award-winning novel magnificently conjures setting and the realm of eras past as it explores the state of living in exile from one's home and from oneself." (From Amazon)
I could not get into the story and found myself just flipping thru the pages.
"The Book of Secrets is a spellbinding novel of generations and the sweep of history that begins in 1988 in Dar es Salaam, when the 1913 diary of a British colonial officer is found in a shopkeeper's back room. The diary enflames the curiosity of a retired schoolteacher, Pius Fernandes, whose obsession with the stories it contains gradually connects the past with the present. Inhabiting the story is a memorable cast of characters, part of an Asian community in East Africa, whose lives and fates we follow over the course of seven decades. Rich in detail and description, M. G. Vassanji's award-winning novel magnificently conjures setting and the realm of eras past as it explores the state of living in exile from one's home and from oneself." (From Amazon)
I could not get into the story and found myself just flipping thru the pages.
September 29, 2013
Amazing multi-generation fictional story about Ismailis in East Africa, starting from the period before WWI, when they had just converted to Islam and therefore preserved Hindu customs, something which would conflict with successively Arabised future generations.
August 26, 2007
This book had some interesting history about East Africa in it. I found it kind of confusing and hard to follow at times.
November 1, 2012
Amazing book! But it has such an inconclusive ending, so many unanswered questions, that I really have no idea what I should talk about in my presentation tomorrow ...
September 30, 2016
Loved this one. This was the first Vassanji I read, and enjoyed it more than a few of his following works.
May 29, 2016
They meant no harm; everyone always mean know harm. Harm was never meant, but harm was done. Colonialism, first contact, exploration, imperialism. All of it, for greed, religion, power, whatever. Harm was done. How is it every repaired? However, Corbin was a very small cog in a big wheel. Is he responsible? Who is? All of us?
"Appendices
(1) 'Many are the conditions of life we met that would sound unbelievable today, many customs we saw that have disappeared from the face of the earth. Today the word Empire is taboo and colonialism is discredited. We do not have subject races but underdeveloped nations. A chapter of world history has therewith been closed. We went with the best of intentions, to give of our best...'
From the conclusion of Heart and Soul (1966)
the memories of Sir Alfred Corbin, KCMG, OBE."
I do understand this, and I fear it also. Very well expressed.
"I have felt alone for a good many years, now; alone and lonely. The admission doesn't come easily. I suppose I could have left after Gregory died. But where, and to what end? Only filial duty would have taken me to India, but by then both my parents were dead. And the loneliness of old age can come upon one anywhere. This city where I first landed forty years ago has so grown on me, it is like an extension of my self. I will never shed it."
Being in other places allows us to see the world in a larger way. I do like that, although I don't like a lot in this book.
"But levity aside--and surely there are those who will blame our problems precisely on the presence of a Gregory in Dar, Lagos, and Khartoum--just to see the world from somewhere else, out there, was exciting. To be exposed to new ideas, to be made to read and understand so much, was a privilege. In my mind I thanked the shopkeeper-administrator many times over for having given me leave."
Culture and explanation. There's a lot of telling, not much showing though.
"He yearned for the stability of a home, the embrace and warmth of a marriage bed; he hoped he would make a good father. Marriage put a successful end to youth: the religion proclaimed that, the community acknowledged that. With marriage you were finally accepted: the women came and talked to you, called you 'bhai'--brother--and men treated you as one of them."
Some little gems.
"How do the little people fare in a war between big powers? In answer, the Swahili proverb says, 'When two elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers.'"
This is beautiful, an example of great evocative description. Corbin discovers paradise, or something like it, but is it? And is it enough? No.
"For a long moment he [Corbin] crouched on his haunches at the lake's surface, under a clear sky, watching the clean, irregular edge of the water with the land rising steeply all around it, breathing the cool air, feeling it play on his skin, oblivious to anything else, so unviolated, he felt he had come to the site of Creation itself."
Many books include calls for prayers, but this is a great scene.
"...He had heart of spirits resident if mbuyu trees and naturally had ridiculed the idea, but in this menace-filled darkness, in this loneliness, all one's scientific objectivism seemed vulnerable. He knew it to be four o'clock when the rich and rising cry of the brave muezzin rallied against the thick darkness. Such a desolate cry of the human soul in the vast universe. Was there an answer, a response? And then the Shamsis preparing for their mosque. They were a hard lot, who could match the early Christians in their zealousness. First the mosque caretaker got up and went around the village knocking on doors. Gradually those who felt inclined would make their way to the mosque. Then for a space of half an hour there would be silence -- while they meditated, so he was told."
More important information, at the beginning, which could be missed by an inattentive (me) reader.
"In the weeks that followed I discovered the dark, passionate secret of a simple man whose life became painfully and inextricably linked with that of an English colonial officer. I saw that the ephemeral tie between them--the tragic young woman Mariamu--would become the most tenacious bond of all. I saw an old uncertain world give birth to a new, no less fragile one, and I followed the trail of this book, from the pen of a lonely man to the obsession of another, from ancient lives caught up in imperial enterprise and a world war to these, our times: and finally to myself, and the hidden longings of my past. At the end of it all, I too lie exposed to my own inquiry, also captive to the book."
This is the premise, but the actual recounting is much more convoluted.
"Because it has no end, this book, it ingests us and carries us with it, and so it grows.
But it began simply, the story of this book, an unusual discovery put into the hands of an out-of-work schoolteacher, who at last found his calling and began to work with an industry and enthusiasm he had not mustered since his apprentice days."
And so it BEGINS (and the title), secretive and mysterious, and then continues. What does it mean? Already, it means more than when I read it. Does that mean I need to go back and go back and go back?
"7 July, 1988
They called it the book of secrets, kitabu cha siri zetu. Of its writer they said: He steals our souls and locks them away; it is a magic bottle, this book, full of captured spirits; see how he keeps his eyes skinned, this mzungu, observing everything we do; look how meticulously this magician with the hat writes in it, attending to it more regularly than he does to nature, with more passion than he expends on a woman. He takes it with him into forest and on mountain, in war and in peace, hunting a lion or sitting in judgement, and when he sleeps he places one eye upon it, shuts the other. Yes, we should steal this book, if we could, take back our souls, our secrets from him. But the punishment for stealing such a book is harsh--ai!--we have seen it."
February 17, 2019
I loved the atmosphere in this story; languid, slow-moving, hot and dusty; a snapshot into a past that is gone. Then there were pops of activity, some of it worrisome, even scary. The story asks a lot of questions and pretty much answers none of them. As a reader that didn't please me, but I just decided to enjoy the atmosphere of the book and if no question was ever answered that was OK.
I did find it a bit on the depressing side because it goes on for a long time and people's lives seem so futile as they are born, raised, matter to others, make their mark (or not) in the world, grow old and irrelevant, then die; and the world just goes on.
I did find it a bit on the depressing side because it goes on for a long time and people's lives seem so futile as they are born, raised, matter to others, make their mark (or not) in the world, grow old and irrelevant, then die; and the world just goes on.
June 14, 2020
Kind of eclectic but interesting and realistic -- this is NOT the book for those who like all the loose ends neatly tied up. This book intentionally and explicitly leaves most of the strings untied. It's a bit of history and family saga in Dar es Salaam, where British colonials, Indians, and Africans co-exist (though not necessarily peacefully). It's not about death and destruction though war happens. It's a novel about people's lives in a culture and time period different from any in North America or Europe. A good read, but not one that you want to pick and put down repeatedly or drag out; if you do that you'll lose the threads and not appreciate the narrative.
January 28, 2019
Forced myself to finish this book. The African history was interesting but I did not enjoy and learn how to follow the thread of personalities in the story. It all seemed contrived and overly complicated
February 3, 2022
hmmmmm
great premise, some very interesting plot points and character relations but again. The Prose. Someone save me.
had potential - picked up a lottt by about 100 pages in but those first 100 pages being such a slog really made me want to quit lol but Uni Reading TM
more accurate rating would be 3.5 again
great premise, some very interesting plot points and character relations but again. The Prose. Someone save me.
had potential - picked up a lottt by about 100 pages in but those first 100 pages being such a slog really made me want to quit lol but Uni Reading TM
more accurate rating would be 3.5 again
October 29, 2018
Boring. Did not finish.
February 12, 2025
This book was not for me. Boring. I would read a page and have to reread it. I don’t recall ever finding out the answer to the burning question that was a central part of the book.
December 26, 2023
A Giller prize winner but moved slowly and was confusing at times.
June 8, 2015
Quite a fascinating angle of storytelling with an unique style providing an insight into two Colonial East African countries and its select inhabitants. The story centers on settlements around the Mount Kilimanzaro of the British East Africa (Kenya) and the German East Africa (Tanganyika). Pius Fernandes, an ex-school teacher comes across a personal diary (The Book of Secrets) of Alfred Corbin, a colonial administrator, with the entries from 1913 that’s sketchy and apparently incomplete
What follows is a multilayer investigative narration indulging various sources - covers mysteries, historical events, intrigues, settlers’ daily life and such, in a time span up to 1988 spiked with metaphors, aphorisms and allegories. Corbin losses his diary (stolen) and Pipa (one of the major protagonists) once reflects on this diary thus - “That it had value to its previous owner he had no doubt – someone who had meticulously written in the book time and again, whose comfort he had sought like woman, was bound to it by his memories...”. Other major protagonists include mysterious Mariamu (a wild beauty; married to Pipa), her charismatic son Aku (for Akbar; controversy surrounds him); dreaded Frank Maynard (Native & lion killer); the albino and few other interesting characters. Many characters invite you to its own mystery along with the time and places that come vividly alive.
My only discomfort was in Pipa’s interaction with an apparition that was beyond delusional, granted his grieving was partly to blame. Also, the frequent use of some native terms (one could refer in the back of the book), for me, made the narration a bit choppy (although the intent of an authentic flavor is appreciated). But what I liked most of this book is that important plots or episodes and characters, in some sense remain unfinished, challenging the reader to ponder upon the clues provided!
What follows is a multilayer investigative narration indulging various sources - covers mysteries, historical events, intrigues, settlers’ daily life and such, in a time span up to 1988 spiked with metaphors, aphorisms and allegories. Corbin losses his diary (stolen) and Pipa (one of the major protagonists) once reflects on this diary thus - “That it had value to its previous owner he had no doubt – someone who had meticulously written in the book time and again, whose comfort he had sought like woman, was bound to it by his memories...”. Other major protagonists include mysterious Mariamu (a wild beauty; married to Pipa), her charismatic son Aku (for Akbar; controversy surrounds him); dreaded Frank Maynard (Native & lion killer); the albino and few other interesting characters. Many characters invite you to its own mystery along with the time and places that come vividly alive.
My only discomfort was in Pipa’s interaction with an apparition that was beyond delusional, granted his grieving was partly to blame. Also, the frequent use of some native terms (one could refer in the back of the book), for me, made the narration a bit choppy (although the intent of an authentic flavor is appreciated). But what I liked most of this book is that important plots or episodes and characters, in some sense remain unfinished, challenging the reader to ponder upon the clues provided!
October 23, 2008
A nice, fine novel set mostly in Kenya and Tanganyika (largely during the colonial period from the early twentieth century to about 1990). The story is told by an Indian teacher who is given a diary that compels him to uncover the intertwined history of a colonial British administrator, a young (and tragically murdered) bride and her merchant husband, and their son, who will later marry a woman for whom the teacher had feelings. It provides an interesting glimpse into the life of muslim Indians who immigrated to the region and served largely as the merchant class, though it avoids the trap that some novels hit the reader with---namely a detailed description of even the most minute local custom. To a degree one feels that the stories are not completely told, left dangling, so to speak, but it also seems intentional. There are side stories as well, such as the relationship among three teachers at a private boys' school. Anyone interested in southeast Africa will find it a good read, if they don't mind the gradual unfolding of a story.
January 10, 2008
As you can see from my rating, this book just did not capture me at all. I was not drawn into the story, I was unable to keep track of the characters, there were too many foreign words that I wasn’t interested enough to try to keep track of, and all of these things combined made it more and more difficult to maintain my focus as the pages crawled by. By the time the story got rolling, I was already starting to wish it was over and wondering what I should read next. I do have a quote to share though, from the very first page. Sigh. I had such high hopes. This is very similar to how I felt when I got my first glimpse of the landscape of Malawi as my plane descended to Lilongwe Airport in 1997. I want to go back….
FAVOURITE QUOTE: “How fitting, he thought then of this sight of Africa, that it should greet you so gently; how melodramatic and unaffecting if it were to show you straight away its power and wildness, its strong colours, the pulling force.” [p. 11]
FAVOURITE QUOTE: “How fitting, he thought then of this sight of Africa, that it should greet you so gently; how melodramatic and unaffecting if it were to show you straight away its power and wildness, its strong colours, the pulling force.” [p. 11]
February 20, 2010
I recommend starting this book on page 50. You really wouldn't miss much because at page 200 I still had no real solid idea of what was going on. This book jumps around and at times I thought maybe a new character was being introduced. To be fair maybe I just took too long to read this book and then I would forget what was going on although the book was just to easy to skim read or put down. I even lost it once and not on purpose(maybe I should have taken that as a sign). I really can't put my finger on what was wrong with this book. Too many words that were put in for filling, too much jumping around......???????? I still couldn't tell you. There were some good story plots amongst all the hummdrumm but... All in all I wouldn't read this book again but will definitely keep it (without the dust cover) because it looks cool and old. What do they always say "never judge a book by it's cover". I definitely think that they might be right about this one.
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