Synopses & Reviews
Review
"In essence, it's a ripping yarn, the picaresque tale of a boy, half English and half Indian, and his adventures in his homeland and Britain in the early years of the 20th century....The pleasure in The Impressionist comes from the parade of supporting characters, each vibrantly drawn and often very funny....If The Impressionist isn't always such a convincing portrait of the many milieus it careers through (it's unlikely, for instance, that a turn-of-the-century Indian child would think of people as "making eye contact"), the novel's headlong narrative momentum will carry most readers cheerfully through to its enigmatic conclusion." Laura Miller, Salon.com (read the entire Salon review)
Review
"While the initial chapters are somewhat heavy-handed, and the plot stalls in its overfamiliar satire of the Oxford aesthetes, the African chapters exude a Paul Bowles-like power, and the seamlessly composed, vividly exotic set pieces exhibit an energy and density not usually found in debut fiction. London talents like Kunzru and Zadie Smith suggest that something like the Latin American boom of the '60s is happening in England." Publishers Weekly
Review
"Kunzru's novel is so rich that even as Pran desperately avoids examining his life, the reader will be busily pondering this wonderful, multilayered novel." Kristine Huntley, Booklist
Review
"British freelance editor and journalist Kunzru has written a novel of such remarkable eloquence and imagination that it is difficult to believe it is his first." Library Jounal
Review
"The Impressionist is smart, entertaining and engaging on many levels, an excellent first novel that deserves a wide readership." Dallas Morning News
Review
"...this audaciously playful novel as a mixed-breed chameleon looking for the great, unattainable essence at the heart of British rule." The New York Times
About the Author
Born in London and raised in Essex, Hari Kunzru is a freelance journalist and editor. He has written for a variety of English and international publications, including The Guardian, Daily Telegraph, The Economist, and Wired and was named "Young Travel Writer of the Year" by the Observer in 1999. This is his first novel.