The Guide  (English, Paperback, Narayan R. K.)

An Indian novel in English,The Guide explains the change in the character of Raju, the protagonist, from a tourist guide to a spiritual guide, and then how he becomes a deity God of India.

Summary Of The Book

The Guide, set in Malgudi, the fictitious town in South India, begins as a comedic look into the life of a rogue, but evolves into something quite different. This is the story of Raju, an ordinary middle class man in South India, who vicariously rose to the height of fame, had a plunging fall, then again rose up like the phoenix to become a swamiji, a demi-god.

In the middle of the story is a flashback to Raju's life prior to being incarcerated. He is a tourist guide and he cheats his customers. Then comes his love affair with a dancer Rosie, who is married to Marco. Marco ridicules her dancing constantly. Rosie falls in love with Raju because he supports her passion and they live together, after which she becomes a star. Raju lives on her money and gets involved in a crime that leads to his imprisonment.

One could empathise with Rosie whose passion is dancing, and who has the misfortune of falling in love with men who do not appreciate her. Despite leaving Marco for Raju and becoming famous, she still keeps the picture of her husband Marco in her wallet.

Thus one can see that Raju, the central character in this novel, is a guide in several respects, a tourist guide, a guide to his lover's new career as a dancer, a guide to the inmates in the prison where he serves, and finally and most significantly, a spiritual guide.

The use of shifting timeline as the scenes are presented back and forth makes up for the simple story. Narayan has superstitious beliefs and art as his side dishes.

A 1958 novel, The Guide received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1960. The movie Guide took its adaptations from the novel and got released in 1965.

About R.K.Narayan

Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswami is an Indian English author and a well-known novelist who belongs to the trio of Mulk Raj Anand and Raja Rao.

His works include My Days, Swami and Friends, The Dark Room, Mr. Sampath, The English Teacher, The Vendor of Sweets, Waiting for The Mahatma, My Dateless Diary, and Malgudi Days.

Narayan is a perfectionist while writing. With the simple presentation, a soul-stirring narration, and humour, a reader can find himself/herself transported to his fictional world.

Born in Madras in the year 1906, R. K. Narayan had the nickname Kunjappa. His father was a school headmaster and Narayan studied there for a period of time. Narayan studied in different number of schools in Madras, including the Lutheran Mission School, Christian College High School, and l. C.R.C. High School. He received many awards including the Padma Vibhushan.