The Book of Chocolate Saints

Jeet Thayil's novel, The Book of Chocolate Saints, is an exquisite piece of literature that carries the reader on a dreamlike journey. Francis Newton Xavier, a man who has indulged in a life of excess, has gained recognition for his decadent and flamboyant paintings and poems that mirror the aesthetics of his idols such as Baudelaire. A new exhibition in Delhi is set to celebrate Xavier's talent and notoriety.

Despite his body being ravaged by years of hard living, Xavier embarks on a delirious voyage into his past when he leaves Manhattan after the 9/11 attacks with his young girlfriend. The journey back to India takes him through formative years spent with a notorious school of Bombay poets at the end of the century, as documented by his biographer Diswas in the pages of this novel. Xavier is forced to confront an uncertain future of either redemption or doom.

The Book of Chocolate Saints celebrates the artist's life as a final monument and is a masterpiece of contemporary Indian life, exploring the enigmatic fringes where art merges with the occult. The novel is superbly written, and Thayil's vivid prose carries Xavier's story with remarkable clarity and depth, capturing both the madness and strength of the artist's life.