A story of achieving material progress at great moral and emotional cost, and of a changing country and global order, and the inequities of class and gender that map onto our most intimate relationships.
[Mishra's] view of modernism and its promises of global wealth, growth and fulfillment is skeptical, curious and almost uncomfortably piercing. In his new novel, Run and Hide, he sweeps globalization, populism, cultural upheaval and the crisis of modern masculinity into the story of a modernized India ... Colorful ... The novel is deeply Indian, and surely readers like this one who are less familiar with the subtleties of the history, culture and language of that country will miss a lot, despite Mishra’s thrilling specificity and description. But like most things in this 21st century world, the book does not stop at borders ... Mishra’s scenes of life among the modern elites of Delhi, London and New York...are so precise and well-observed they are almost embarrassing ... Mishra is a masterful eyewitness to the modern world, equally unafraid of nuance, earnestness and absurdity. Run and Hide...is not plot-driven. It is a slow, careful book about a fast and reckless world. This is not a destination novel; it is a journey novel. One well worth taking.
Run and Hide’s flashback narrative, which slowly reveals the story, is an impressive feat of craft, and the book rewards a second reading. In some places, its priorities skew toward political commentary rather than the complexity of characters or human relationships, but this is a moving novel that should assure Mishra’s standing as a writer of fiction as well as non-fiction.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay[/caption]
