By: James Hilton
Genre: Fiction
Stars: 4 out of 5
Set in the 1930s, four strangers are kidnapped on an
airplane and taken to a place they would never imagine. The plane crashes in a
part of the Himalayas that is brutal and the cold alone could kill. Scared and
alone, a party directed by a strange lamasery named Chang directs them to the
mystical Shangri-La. There our main character, Conway, quickly learns the
secrets of Shangri-La and he becomes tempted to stay in this paradise. But will
he choose to stay among those who live in peace or will the outside world
beckon to him once again?
This book as well as the notion of Shangri-La was mentioned
and played out in the book I read before this one
Tiger’s Quest. It intrigued me so I decided to read this book next.
It had been a while since I read a good literary fiction that wasn’t from
modern times and I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It’s about a place in our world
that you can attain peace and wisdom and essentially never die. Embedded in the
harshest Himalayan weather, Shangri-La is a dream place where it stays warm,
and fresh fruit and vegetables grow. The people are well fed and don’t think
about committing crimes amongst their neighbors and the lamaseries watch over
them. The language was excellent and even for being written many years ago the
theme is still relevant today. I am surprised this work isn’t taught more often
and one day when I have a class of my own I will definitely be teaching this
work. If you want a simple, old-fashioned literary read try to find this one –
it won’t disappoint you.
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