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Christopher Isherwood
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A Meeting by the River Paperback – November 1, 1999

by Christopher Isherwood (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 30 ratings
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Two English brothers meet, after a long separation, in India. Oliver, the idealistic younger brother, prepares to take his final vows as a Hindu monk. Patrick, a successful publisher with a wife and children in London and a male lover in California, has publicly admired his brother's convictions while privately criticizing his choices. First published in 1967, A Meeting by the River delicately depicts the complexity of sibling relationships - the resentment and competitiveness as well as the love and respect.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    192 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Univ Of Minnesota Press
  4. Publication date
    November 1, 1999
  5. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.6 x 8.25 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0816633681
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0816633685
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Univ Of Minnesota Press; First Edition (November 1, 1999)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0816633681
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0816633685
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.6 x 8.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 30 ratings

About the author

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Christopher Isherwood

Christopher Isherwood

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Christopher Isherwood (1904–1986) was one of the most prominent writers of his generation. He is the author of many works of fiction, including All the Conspirators, The Memorial, Mr. Norris Changes Trains, and Goodbye to Berlin, on which the musical Cabaret was based, as well as works of nonfiction and biography.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
30 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Lachmi Khemlani
5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite book
Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2020
Verified Purchase
This is one of my all-time favorite books. I still have my original copy, but I buy it to give to family and friends.
One person found this helpful
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penelope hilsdon
4.0 out of 5 stars coming clear
Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2013
Verified Purchase
this is a book good enough to earn a second reading which is just what I did. It is written in letters and entries in diaries. It is always in the first person, but the person changes depending on who is writing. At the center of the tale is of a man who has entered a monastery unbeknownst to his family. They have always known him to be on some form of soul searching quest. They accept him in a way, but not completely. At the beginning of the book he is to be taking his final vows (sannyas) to become a hindu monk. He writes to his brother requesting that he inform their mother in an acceptable way of his choices. At this point, the dilemma unfolds. Oliver, the monk, must deal with a profound dislike of his brother. His brother is a self-serving and cheerful pathological liar. Since he is passing through the orient, he decides to take a detour and meet with his brother. His take on the up coming vows changes depending on who he is writing to. He writes to his mother, his wife, and a young male lover. All reports are tailored to suit the impression he chooses to give each recipient. Oliver finds that he loathes his brother and cannot see his way to his final vows of complete ego loss while he detests his him.

The letters from the brother are flabbergasting for their shiftiness and at the same time are wholly plausible. The diary entries from Oliver are frustrated and the reader is frustrated along with him. At the heart of this book is a tale of a man whose relatives do not understand, but at the same time are secretly in awe of. Once he has taken his sannyas, he will love them, but be beyond their reach.
3 people found this helpful
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Lulu
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on April 30, 2015
Verified Purchase
Beautifully written story on the shores of the Ganges in letter-diary format about 2 brothers and their relationship.
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RNJ
3.0 out of 5 stars Isherwood's Final Reckoning with Religion
Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2016
Isherwood’s final novel, Meeting is both enjoyable and frustrating to read. The story of two brothers—told mostly in an epistolary fashion—holds one’s attention most of the time. The prose, as always, is seductive, leading a reader from one sentence to the next, one letter to the next. The author’s grasp of his material, that one of the brothers, Oliver, is planning to become a Hindu monk, is quite adequate—based on his own extensive study of and participation in the religion.

But the storytelling seems facile at times. The plot becomes a bit more complex when the other brother, Patrick, is married but is having an affair with a young man named Tom. Oliver finds out rather by accident and is unmoved by it, stating that from the standpoint of being Hindu, he doesn’t care. What is odd and a bit disconcerting is that none of the letters that Patrick or Oliver writes is ever answered directly. They both dutifully write their mother, and Patrick writes his wife. However, except for very rare indirect references to their responses, all of the information is outgoing—limiting the scope of the narrative, no doubt Isherwood’s intent. But why?

I located his thoughts concerning the novel from the second volume of his Diaries: “Yesterday I finished the first draft of A Meeting by the River; it has taken me exactly three months, to the day! I have just finished reading it through. There is something in it. But it seems quite boring in parts. Perhaps it needs cutting down to a long short story. It’s now 110 pages—let’s say a bit over 35,000 words” (367). I believe his instincts are headed in the wrong direction. He must add to it!

Isherwood also receives a response to a third draft from friend and writer, Edward Upward: “Obviously the reader isn’t meant to accept Patrick’s view that Oliver is becoming a monk in order to escape the ambitiousness which is natural to him but which he knows their mother wouldn’t approve of in him . . . . On the other hand the reader can’t quite believe that Oliver becomes a monk solely because the social work he’s been doing doesn’t seem ‘real’ enough to him” (400). Diaries.

I believe this observation is what makes the novel not as strong as it might be: one is never convinced of either character’s viability. One doesn’t learn enough about Oliver’s former social work to be able to compare it to what he might accomplish as a monk. One doesn’t quite believe that Patrick works in Hollywood, that he either loves his wife and children, or that he loves Tom, his paramour. And both characters, because of the similarities in their prose, might as well be two manifestations of the same character! Though Isherwood talks himself and his editor into publishing the book in this condition, there seems to be a lot missing. It, like A Single Man, is only about 50,000 words. If Isherwood could have added at least 30,000 words and developed both characters to their fullest, if he could have used the letter writing to its fullest capabilities, the reader might have become a bit more compelled to care about either brother and what happens to him.
2 people found this helpful
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Francislstillings
5.0 out of 5 stars good job
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2010
Verified Purchase
Such a good book. Not only did I love the book but it arrived a day before scheduled,in great condition and I appreciated it very much. Thanks for doing such a good job.
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Miguel Ibáñez Belloso
5.0 out of 5 stars Solo te vas a poder dedicar a la relación de los protagonistas.
Reviewed in Spain on February 1, 2020
Verified Purchase
Aunque para entender este libro necesites un nivel de inglés moderado, merece la pena leerlo en la versión original. NO obstante, leerlo en nuestra lengua también debe ser objeto de disfrute. Es una novela que desarrolla en profundidad a los protagonistas y su relación. Además, su estructura lo hace muy cómodo de leer.
Lo leí después de terminar "A Single Man", también de Isherwood, y también me ha encantado. Lo recomiendo al cien por cien.
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