Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
Reader-supported journalism that doesn’t just report problems, it helps solve them.
support today
Books

Sojourn by Amit Chaudhuri review: Brief encounters with the eclectic life of a city

A novel about a lecturer visiting Berlin and the overwhelming effect of its history, that ultimately fails to leave an impression on the reader.

Berlin cityscape

Berlin cityscape Image: wal_172619 from Pixabay

Sojourn by Amit Chaudhuri
Sojourn by Amit Chaudhuri is out now (Faber & Faber, £14.99)

For his novella Sojourn, Amit Chaudhuri has picked on a theme of the fate of Berlin and the sometimes overwhelming power of a city over those who visit it. As a visiting lecturer, the anonymous narrator captures brief encounters with the eclectic life of the city, becoming dramatically aware of the geography and history that shapes his visit and its visitors. The novel’s aims are worthy, but its short length and, more importantly, a lack of definition in description, mean it doesn’t leave a mark on the imagination.  


You can buy Sojourn from The Big Issue shop on Bookshop.org, which helps to support The Big Issue and independent bookshops.

This article is taken from The Big Issue magazine, which exists to give homeless, long-term unemployed and marginalised people the opportunity to earn an income.To support our work buy a copy! If you cannot reach your local vendor, you can still click HERE to subscribe to The Big Issue today or give a gift subscription to a friend or family member. You can also purchase one-off issues from The Big Issue Shop or The Big Issue app, available now from the App Store or Google Play.

Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

READER-SUPPORTED SINCE 1991

Reader-supported journalism that doesn’t just report problems, it helps solve them.

Recommended for you

View all
Top 5 historical novels, chosen by best-selling author Lana Kortchik
Books

Top 5 historical novels, chosen by best-selling author Lana Kortchik

Robert Shaw, An Actor's Life on the Set of Jaws… by Christopher Shaw Myers review – a vivid family saga
Books

Robert Shaw, An Actor's Life on the Set of Jaws… by Christopher Shaw Myers review – a vivid family saga

Breaking by Mic Wright review – insider insights into the grubby world of right-wing media
Books

Breaking by Mic Wright review – insider insights into the grubby world of right-wing media

Top 5 books on Scandinavia, chosen by polar geopolitics expert Elizabeth Buchanan
Books

Top 5 books on Scandinavia, chosen by polar geopolitics expert Elizabeth Buchanan

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Cost of living payments: Where to get help in 2025 now the scheme is over
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Cost of living payments: Where to get help in 2025 now the scheme is over

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know
4.

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know