'The best of R.K. Narayan's enchanting novels'-The New Yorker

Railway Raju is a disarmingly corrupt tour guide with a sketchy past. After a series of misadventures, he is released from a jail term and makes his way back into the world. When he seeks refuge in an abandoned temple, he is mistaken for a holy man - a part he plays so well that God himself intervenes to put Raju's newfound sanctity to the test. First published in 1958, The Guide went on to be adapted for film in 1965. Now, sixty years since its first publication, it remains a perennial favourite among nostalgics and new readers alike.

'A brilliant accomplishment ... Narayan is the compassionate man who can write of human life as comedy'-The New York Times Book Review
'Narayan is such a natural writer, so true to his experience and emotions'-V.S. Naipaul