Rating: 
Summary: Bollywood mirth meets Hindu myths
Review: Humorous, humane, mythical, and ultimately poignant, "The Death of Vishnu" describes one chaotic day in the lives of the inhabitants of a Bombay apartment building. The novel begins with a series of comic sketches revolving around two bickering wives, their submissive husbands, and who is going to take care of Vishnu--the homeless drunk lying near death on the landing in the stairwell. The tensions in the building escalate when a young Hindu woman elopes with a neighboring Muslim son. To describe the plot of the novel any further is to risk making it sound like the Indian version of "Melrose Place"; the plot is much more carefully nuanced and the protagonists are too fully realized for this novel to resemble a mere soap opera. Suri weaves together several strands of Indian society: religious themes, Bollywood influences (although the characters don't break out in song), social pretensions, Hindu-Muslim hostilities. Although he often mocks his characters' aspirations and delusions, his portrayals are more loving than derisive. And don't let the Hindu allusions that abound in the book scare you away from the joy of reading it; most readers should find the religious elements both accessible and entertaining. Although the novel is beautifully written, I often found his choice of when to use non-English terms perplexing. I can understand why the author would use words that are not readily translatable: "dharma" (sacred duty), "sadhu" (Hindu holy man), ghungroo (a bell-adorned anklet). But why "bandar" (monkey), or pista ("pistachio"), "masjid" (mosque), or "tamasha" (spectacle)? Or, more to the point, why make non-Indian readers flip back to the glossary for words such as these but not similar words that are rendered simply in English (dog, walnut, temple, mob)? This is a minor complaint, however; after a while, the reader is able to figure out the meaning of many words from their context, and I ended up ignoring the glossary for most of the last half of this enchanting book.
Rating: 
Summary: Superlative writing and a reading to match
Review: This is a dazzling novel, rich in humor, imagination, insight into the human condition, and wonderful detail about life in Bombay. I'm sure it makes marvelous reading. However, John Lee's performance--and it is pure theater--brings each character uniquely to life. Unless you have the sounds of Indian-English in your head, do listen to this book on tape.
Rating: 
Summary: A Disjointed Comic and Cosmic Debut
Review: I've hardly read any of the deluge of fiction that seems to have burst forth from Indian writers in recent years, so I'm in no position to compare Suri's debut to other books of the same ilk. On its own merits however, this first in a projected trilogy (The Life of Shiva and The Birth of Brahma are its intended successors) is a decent comic, cosmic, and ultimately tragic look at a microcosm of contemporary India. The story revolves around an apartment building in Bombay, zooming in on the myriad events of a single day. The title character is an alcoholic who sleeps on one of the building's landings, and over the course of the day moves from coma to death. Throughout the book, his life's memories are displayed and intertwined with the real and imagined melodramas of the families in the building. Vishnu's moments of brief happiness and joy (prominent in these is his relationship with a self-absorbed prostitute) drift by in increasingly dreamlike sequences which grow less interesting as they get more hallucinogenic. More entertaining and compelling are the families around him, including the two Hindu women (and their long-suffering husbands) who bicker about who's responsible for Vishnu and who's stealing water and ghee from the kitchen they share. Above them is a Muslim family whose son elopes with the shallow, movie-obsessed daughter of one of the Hindu families. At the same time, his father, a harmless intellectual who has turned into a fanatic in his quest for spiritual enlightenment has a vision. And above them lives a widower whose story emerges rather late in the scheme of things. Bit characters include a crafty servant woman, local street vendors, and a women's card circle. It's hard to escape the feeling that if I knew more than a smattering of Hindu mythology, other layers of meaning might reveal themselves. Indeed, readers with a copy of the Bhagavad-Gita might want to skim through it to refresh themselves before starting Suri's novel. In any event, the comic elements of the book work better than the cosmic ones. Unfortunately, Suri seems to have intentionally employed melodrama (star-crossed lovers, internecine tragedy) to help the comic part of the book have a larger meaning. This strategy doesn't mesh very well with the more cosmic side of the equation, with a somewhat disjointed narrative resulting. It's altogether decent and enjoyable, but not the masterpiece I'd been told to expect.
Rating:
Summary: Everyone ascends in one way or another....
Review: This book was a real surprise. I cdn't imagine liking a book about a man dying on the steps of an apartment building in Bombay -- but I was so wrong. This book is about that, yes, but it's also about people and how they are in circumstances that are alternately funny, painful, poignant, stressful, strange. The neighbors in this apartment house are all memorable characters and the various images of life in this lower middle class millieu will stay with you. The book is also rich with dreamy stories taken from Hindu mythology -- of which I knew basically nothing; I found these legends not only accessible but intriguing and touching. And, as if all that weren't enough, the story packs a more than satisfying punch at the end. I laughed out loud. Very readable and even rereadable. I hope you'll like it, too.
Rating: 
Summary: Starts strong but a HUGE LET DOWN!
Review: I found myself going through this book very quickly, mostly becasue it started out strong, but I am not one for a ridiculous amount of flashbacks and fantasy. I noticed I began to basically speed read the last 1/3 of this book because I just wanted to put it away already! Read something else.
Rating:
Summary: Fabulous
Review: The Death of Vishnu has become one of my absolute favorite novels. Although some reviews have called its characters a representative microcosm of India, I believe the message is much simpler and much broader than that. This is a book about human nature, in all its ugliness and glory. The characters are superbly well drawn--sometimes they come across as despicable, other times sympathetic, but they are always heartbreakingly real. Watch how all thier seemingly altruistic acts have selfish human motives behind them and you will recognize yourself. One of the nicest things about this book is the odd little quirks that Manil Suri gives his characters. Mr. Jalal (my favorite) trying to burn himself with pink candles in order to achieve spiritual enlightment, Mrs. Pathak serving kraft cheese as a foreign delicacy, Kavita's obsession with Hindi films, Sheetal's dying wish to make it into the Guiness Book of World Records...and of course Vishnu, who starts to wonder if he might be god. It's a rich tapestry, and so very different from anything I've ever read before...Despite the aimless nature of the plot, the novel still built up a great deal of suspense at the end, and unlike most supposedly "suspenseful" stories I honestly had no idea how everything was going to turn out. And when I finally finished it I was left with a greater understanding of how human beings can be so horrible in so many little ways. I believe this is a book everyone would benefit from reading, not just people specifically interested in India or Indian fiction. However, it should be noted that there is a great deal of Hindu mythology in this book. Being Indian myself I was familiar with most of it, but other readers might want to get a little background information beforehand.
Rating:
Summary: The Spiritual and the Mundane
Review: This is a wonderful first novel which expertly mixes the material and spiritual, using characters which are comical yet all too human. Mr. Suri writes with a style and understanding that is subtle and nuanced, yet achieves great depth. Despite its complexity, The Death of Vishnu is like a delicate perfume, light and provocative. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Witty and subtle
Review: Manil Suri has written this book with a wonderful sense of humor. Each character has their own imperfections and self doubts which are brought into light by Suri's amusing descriptions. There are the feuding women, fed up husbands, socialites, want to be socialites, dreamers, and philosophers. And together they make a web of characters that will amuse you, sadden you, and enlighten you. The foundation of the story is Vishnu, a homeless man who, as the title indicates, is dead. And in the aftermath, confusions and delusions abound resulting in chaos and further sorrow. It is a perfect summer read.
Rating:
Summary: Vishnu, Where are you?
Review: I was fascinated by this book. Vishnu was a character of many colors, as were all of the characters in the book. There was no one in the story who did not exhibit many sides of human nature. In so many instances, each character shows his goodness as well as his darker side. Human nature is what this book is about.
I was also intrigued by the death of Vishnu- as he lay comatose his life unfolded for us, and I think for him as well. If anyone reading this has ever sat with a dieing loved one- it is comforting to see that perhaps thier last days and hours are filled with memories of years gone by, and in the end- when we think that Vishnu's life is over we find that in fact a new journey begins. I found this story somehow comforting. Not all of the characters althogher likeable - but interesting none the less. A great read!
Rating:
Summary: Most enjoyable
Review: I really enjoyed this book. I've never read anything about India, honestly I was just never that interested. This book changed that for me, now I want to learn more. The writing was beautiful, the characters where engaging, and the subject just a little strange, really. I loved this book and can't say enough good things about it.
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