A Bend in the River

Set in an unnamed African country, V. S. Naipaul''s A Bend in the River is narrated by Salim, a young man from an Indian family of traders long resident on the coast. He believes The world is what it is; men who are nothing, who allow themselves to become nothing, have no place in it. So he has taken the initiative; left the coast; acquired his own shop in a small, growing city in the continent''s remote interior and is selling sundries - little more than this and that, really - to the natives. This spot, this ''bend in the river'', is a microcosm of post-colonial Africa at the time of Independence: a scene of chaos, violent change, warring tribes, ignorance, isolation and poverty. And from this rich landscape emerges one of the author''s most potent works - a truly moving story of historical upheaval and social breakdown.