Burmese Days by George Orwell

In the twilight years of the British Empire in Burma, bigotry and corruption are the order of the day. When the timber merchant John Flory befriends the Indian doctor Veraswami, he soon finds himself alienated from his British compatriots - and even from the woman he hopes will become his wife - as they cannot countenance the idea of racial equality. Meanwhile, the unscrupulous official U Po Kyin does everything to advance his own station - no matter who he may hurt in the process. Based on Orwell's own experiences as a policeman in Burma in the 1920s, it presents a shocking and revealing portrait of British colonial society and the terrible effects of empire on both the colonisers and the colonised. ABOUT THE SERIES: Arcturus Essential Orwell presents George Orwell's most acclaimed fiction and non-fiction titles with striking contemporary cover-designs. These unique paperback editions are wonderful collectibles which celebrate one of the most important voices of the 20th century.

Av mange regnet som Orwells dårligste bok. For meg den boken som gjorde mest inntrykk og som fugerte mest som en trigger til reiselyst og nysgjerighet. Leste den for mange år siden, så vurderingen foregår nok i minnenes rosenrøde skjær.

Transportive yet mildewed purple prose.

My second reading of Orwells Burmese Days. I read it originally in 2007, when I picked up a copy in a second hand bookshop / barbershop (I have a feeling it was Mandalay, but I am not sure). I didn't recall much from it, and a middling 3 stars was where it sat when I was backfilling some books read upon joining Goodreads. Having read a few reviews by other readers lately I decided to embark on a rare (for me) re-read.

Set in a small town in Burma (Myanmar now), in the 1920s, while a part of the British Empire, Orwell's first book explores the relationship of the sahib and the native. The few white men in the town regularly frequent the ‘club' where natives are not permitted as members, al though they have been instructed by the powers that be, that they must elect one native member.

Flory, who runs a timber extraction operation, is one of the least popular white men, is far too appreciative of the native culture, and is even friends with a native doctor, the anglophile Dr Veraswami. But his is weak willed, and will not support the doctor as a member, for fear of the scorn of his fellow members. U Po Kyin, the other man in a position of power who aches to become a member is a manipulator and plotter, and sets about to undermine Veraswami and also Flory in an attempt to become the only suitable candidate.

As well as this, the niece of another British couple has arrived, and while her uncle is desperate to take advantage of her, her aunt is equally desperate to marry her off. Circumstances send her Flory's way, and he falls hopelessly in love with her, but stumbles through each opportunity and eventually a rival appears.

The book successfully shows the British to be loathsome, full of superiority and racial prejudice. The exception being Flory, who is a weak and for the most unwilling to stand up to his peers. Orwell, born in India, and later having spent five and a half years as a policeman in various parts of Burma, displays a deep understanding of the colonial situation in this novel. With the overtly racist characters it is a jarring read, but then I rather suspect Orwell set out to achieve that. It certainly captures a cynical and negative view of colonialism.

With the re-read it gains a star - easily 4 star, but perhaps lacking a little rounding out of the characters that might have gained 5 stars.