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Summary: A novel rich in Indian heritage, yet universal in its themes
Review: Rich with cultural flavor, A River Sutra combines the River Narmada's myths and legends with human experience. Gita Mehta has woven the universality of love into the many stories in the novel. Each fable has the ironic charm and the twists of a bestseller. The portrait of the most sacred river in India enlightens the reader with its cultural heritage. Like so many writers of foreign cultures, she manages to find a slant on love that reaches out to all ages. Two thumbs up.
Rating: 
Summary: I like this book
Review: I'm probably a little biased because I am from India, but I like this book a lot. The imagery in this book was simply beautiful and it gave me a similar feeling one might experience when reading an epic poem. I feel this way, at least, when Mehta describes the majestic holines of the Narmada River. Even though I am of Indian heritage, this book offered many new perspectives to me on the lives that go on in India. The sheer number of stories that are shared in this book keep a feeling of freshness throughout the book and keep you from putting the book down, because you are in constant anticipation of another story. This book is different, and the book is written in such a way that it be just as good written in India as it would be written in Siberia.
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Summary: Explores the goodness of the human heart.
Review: This novel explores the journey of self-discovery of a retired bureaucrat. He encounters many individuals along the Narmada river from whom he learns about the human heart. The novel is slow and subtle in its developing stages but becomes engaging as the stories express its simple motif.
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Summary: It makes you want more (even if it doesn't give it)
Review: "A River Sutra" was a philosophical and knowledgable book. It gives many stories with contrasting and yet similar messages. However, during parts of the story, it became a little dull with all of the imagery. It contributes to the overall merit of the book, however, during the description of those sensory images, I could feel my mind wander. Another part of the book that frustrated me a little was it's lack of satisfying the reader. Many times the book would describe a story, and develop it, but not finish it. For example, they did not describe what hapenned to the Musician's daughter. They did not describe if the river had helped her. In another case, Tariq Mia describes how Master Mohan kills himself, but does not elaborate. Many times we are not satisfied with the information given, but maybe that's the lesson. That maybe in the search for fulfillment is impossible. We can always come closer, but never be fully fulfilled. Overall, this book provided me with an adequate amount of attention, but more importantly expanded my mind into understanding more about life (death, Love). It is a book that any avid reader would enjoy.
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Summary: find a book, find yourself.
Review: A River Sutra universalizes the human experience with its inclusion of various stories in one novel. Each story is tied together by the narrator, who is attempting to learn from the life stories of the various wanderers he meets. The reader follows along this learning process with the narrator as the theme becomes clear... Each story deals with the same lessons: the lessons of life and love. This book was an interestingly didactictic and often enlightening one because of the variety of stories included. If you don't like where a story is going, you continue to read because you know another, different story will soon follow. The most interesting aspect of this book is the fact that the reader is the deciding factor of the meaning of the text. Personal experience greatly effects what the reader can get out of this book. The stories told can relate to anyone in any way. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wishes to discover something not only about enlightenment, but also about themselves.
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Summary: The book was interesting but not great
Review: It was interesting because it included different stories from many different people. It was not great because it was composed of different short stories so I could not get into the book as I would have been able to if I were reading a novel. It had an interesting and fun writing style because it was narrated by a person, and in the narration he told the stories of people he met. Every other chapter is a story, and the ones in between are the narrators reflection on the story and what happens next in the narrators life, before he meets the next person whose story is told in the book. Overall it was a very good book, especially for one assigned for my english class.
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Summary: Denial of the world or Acceptance of all things
Review: This is a beautiful novel about the search for the enlightenment of the human heart. The main character is a hotel manager who had recently left the business world to run a small rest house near the Narmada River. During that time he runs across others who are also looking for the same inner peace. From their stories he learns more about himself and his search for self satisfaction. My personal favorite character is the Naga Baba, an ascetic to the god Vishnu. His own personal quest for enlightenment leads him to both isolation from and acceptance to the civilized world. All the while the river runs through as a constant symbol of the human search for truth and happiness and trying to find a balance of the two.
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Summary: Amazing Story
Review: My teacher for AP Literature suggested that I read this book, and I'm thrilled that I did. The story takes place on the Narmada River, which is quite possibly believed to be the holiest place on Earth. The main character encounters various travelers who share their stories with him, and although every story is beautiful, unique, and often surprising, they are bound together through love, faith, and almost always music. Gita Mehta explores the different forms of love, the connecting force of faith, and highlights much of this with music. One of the questions I have to answerwhen responding to this book for class is what type of reader is needed to enjoy this book. This is the only book I've ever read where the only answer I can give is "a pulse." This book combines eloquent writing with fascinating stories, and there is nobody that I wouldn't encourage to read it.
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Summary: Don't miss this book!
Review: I will first say that as a first generation Indian in America who has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge of the Indian culture, I may hold a bias as to my opinion of this book. I found the way Gita Mehta set up her stories all to be woven by together by so many common threads (the Narmada, trying to understand one another, finding love) to be amazing. She shows how a country in the 20th century still tries so hard to preserve their culture and traditions and place emphasis on the spiritual life, instead of just diving into the world of technology that has captivated so many of us. Through stories which evoke empathy for the main characters, the reader feels as if they can truly relate to the characters. Mehta shows true talent through her writing in this book, but her real strength lies in her ability to paint such clear images using only words. As a reader, you can see the gentle current of the Narmada and you can hear the soothing chants of meditating monks. I lost myself in the words on the pages and found myself again sitting somewhere between the Jain monk and the Naga Baba. Mehta succeeds in taking her readers to a place far from the real world, where they can reach a certain degree of clarity. As a reader, you will like the places Mehta will take you with words, and how she makes you question what you put emphasis on in life. Nothing about this book left me unsatisfied, although the continuous change of scenery often left me a little confused. By clearly separating story scenes from the "present day" scenes with the narrator, the book as a whole would have gelled together more smoothly. For the reader with a passion for the Indian culture and who is able to recognize the beauty in simplicity, this book is a
must-read.
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Summary: Floating in A River Sutra?s Valuable Insights
Review: - A Positive Analysis of Mehta's Masterpiece Gita Mehta's A River Sutra touches upon the subjects that truly affect people's lives. Through her varying characters and collage of colorful tales, she evokes themes about emotion, desire and finding one's true self. Mehta proposes these heartfelt themes, by utilizing simple diction. This simplicity, however, still creates intricate, and descriptive ideas. For instance, one of Mehta's characters, Nitin Bose, states, "the extraordinary thing about inventing a persona is that one is loathe to give it up, especially if the fiction sits comfortably."(Pg. 118) Nitin Bose's statement offers good advice and a sophisticated insight, without being muddled by ornamented diction. Mehta even uses a favorable format in her novel, which enhances individual parts of the book, yet ties them altogether. Mehta writes multiple short stories, however connects them to one central theme. Mehta arrives at her theme by using characters that have different backgrounds in a sense, (profession, gender, family etc...) yet all undergo major life changes, which shape their very existence. Thus, the main theme of A River Sutra stems from the many different lifestyles and experiences the characters in the story embrace. This theme evokes the insight that each person has a destiny, which they will discover through life-changing events. I believe that such a strong central theme displays the deep meaning and insightful philosophies A River Sutra offers. I personally revere this aspect of offering expedient advice to readers. Too often in books, one reads for plot and objective analyzing. A reader experiences very little self-fulfillment or growth in such books. A River Sutra, however, not only gave readers insights into the complicated lives of diverse characters, yet it also used these character's experiences to present the dos and don'ts of life. Mehta's character the musician, for example, exemplified the idea that one should not take what they possess for granted. She wanted to marry like all the other young, beautiful women. She, however, did not initially see fault in desiring a traditional marriage to a man. She thus took for granted her stronger "marriage to music." (Pg. 224) This foolish pursuit has now left her "dead inside." (Pg. 226) Through the musician's misfortune, readers have gained knowledge about choosing life's pursuits carefully. A reader can also expect this same idea, or a similar idea in another one or several of Mehta's short stories. This expectation defines the beauty of the book format. Then surrounding the short stories, a narrator speaks about his reflections and reactions about the other character's tales. The narrator's reflections display the closest A River Sutra comes to achieving a solid plot. Thus, one can define the plot as a man who listens to the struggles and experiences of different people, and learns from his newfound perspectives on life. Despite the lack of one plot, but rather the triumph of many short story plots, A River Sutra delivers a great read for a person to learn and love.
A River Sutra did possess, however, some trivial flaws. Considering its creative style of combining short stories, Mehta had to sacrifice some clarity and cohesion in the book. Sometimes you feel engrossed in a story, like that of the courtesan's daughter, and then find that a new story has suddenly changed the book's focus. Also, although Mehta connects all the stories to a central theme, each story possessed its own lessons, which sometimes muddle Mehta's central focus. One, however, can overcome this sporadic confusion by simply keeping in mind the elements of past stories while reading. Another aspect of A River Sutra that one may find challenging to understand and follow comes with the terms used. Although Mehta uses clear diction, she often refers to Indian terms like, "Kama" or "aesthetic" and expects a reader to know them. Although the reader can find a definition of these terms at the end of the book, I doubt any involved reader would want to leave the reading in order to look up ambiguous references. Therefore, some ambiguity defines Mehta's only mistake in A River Sutra. Most readers would agree that Mehta's novel does indeed have some ambiguity. Readers would also agree, however, that this book presents great philosophies and ideas, which every person should embrace. This opinion stems from the fact that most readers will experience some frustration and possible boredom when reading A River Sutra, however, when looking back on the novel, they will find an enlightening read that shared new knowledge, and new insights. - RAMI
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