Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction by Roshan Ali
Ib navigates life with his psychotic father and his “lovely” mother while being pushed around by pushy people and uncaring winds. Ib walks the streets, bewildered, lonely, and alone, thinking about his situation as he goes from one thing to another, from his slimy, unmiraculous birth to the heartbreaking death of a loved one. He must overcome a number of challenges in his quest for something—what he does not yet know—including challenges from his family, his faith, his love life, and ultimately his impending mortality. Will “this debris of modern existence” be able to vanquish him? Will an enigmatic woman be able to free him from the “cement” inside of him?
Ib's Endless Search for Satisfaction by Roshan Ali
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Ib transforms from an ordinary youngster to an ordinary man during this sorrowful and introspective journey, and while doing so, he strives to make sense of life and come to terms with himself.
Roshan Ali’s use of words is masterful in this bold debut that is perceptive, unique, and extremely unsettling. He effectively conveys the arrogance and lack of ambition in contemporary life, showing how we continue to portray ourselves as enlightened by knowing and engaging with the world with a blasé attitude.
The book is set in Bangalore, Roshan’s hometown, and it deals with issues that many young, middle-class people in Indian cities face, including a sense of being a little orphaned, a lack of understanding from their parents or other members of the older generation, and a search for a fresh perspective on what life is all about.
the titling Ib, a young man, has unhappy parents. His mother doesn’t really have much of an impact on things, and his father suffers from a mental illness. As a result, he begins to withdraw even further within himself, and his life begins to take on weird new directions. Eventually, he decides to follow a kind of hermit into the Himalayas. His portrayal of contemporary Indian kids living in metropolitan areas is what I find to be most captivating about this book.
