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Claire Harris
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THE YOGA OF MAX'S DISCONTENT

Karan Bajaj

In this captivating and surprising novel of spiritual discovery—a No. 1 bestseller in India—a young American travels to India and finds himself tested physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
Max Pzoras is the poster child for the American Dream. The child of Greek immigrants who grew up in a dangerous New York housing project, he triumphed over his upbringing and became a successful Wall Street analyst. Yet on the frigid December night he’s involved in a violent street scuffle, Max begins to confront questions about suffering and mortality that have dogged him since his mother’s death.

His search takes him to the farthest reaches of India, where he encounters a mysterious night market, almost freezes to death on a hike up the Himalayas, and finds himself in an ashram in a drought-stricken village in South India. As Max seeks answers to questions that have bedeviled him—can yogis walk on water and live for 200 years without aging? Can a flesh-and-blood man ever achieve nirvana?—he struggles to overcome his skepticism and the pull of family tugging him home. In an ultimate bid for answers, he embarks on a dangerous solitary meditation in a freezing Himalayan cave, where his physical and spiritual endurance is put to its most extreme test.

By turns a gripping adventure story and a journey of tremendous inner transformation, The Yoga of Max's Discontent is a contemporary take on man's classic quest for transcendence.

Karan Bajaj is a bestselling novelist and striving yogi. Born and raised in India, he has trained as a Hatha Yoga teacher in the Sivananda ashram in South India and learned meditation in the Himalayas. He is the author of the novels Johnny Gone Down and Keep off the Grass, both of which were No. 1 bestsellers in India. He’s been named one of India Today’s Top 35 Under 35. He lives in New York City.
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Book

Published 2016-05-03 by Riverhead

Book

Published 2016-05-03 by Riverhead

Comments

An amazing journey. Wonderful characters who keep you hooked until the very end.

Shortlisted for the Golden Quill Award Shortlisted for the Teacher's Achievement Award Shortlist for the Crossword Book Pick of the Year

A racy and entertaining account of a romp through an ever-changing yet timeless India…Wild, witty and wicket!

To the world, Max Pzoras is a winner—driven and successful. But the outward trappings of success can no longer hide his lack of inner grace. Max knows it, so he goes in search of his true purpose in India, where secrets are revealed and awe awaits. In elegant prose, with an energy that sustains and inspires, Karan Bajaj has written a novel to treasure. The characters and story he spins will leave you breathless, along with the knowledge that the spiritual journey of a lifetime begins with a single question.

An instant bestseller. One man’s epic quest to merge with the universal oneness.

The podcast on Literary Roadhouse also ran and sounds great. As Literary Roadhouse puts it, it’s “a wonderfully interesting discussion on writing, reading and life.” Read more...

A special story. Engaging, convincing, and highly readable. Keeps the readers engrossed till the very last page.

Upon finishing this novel, you will likely find yourself asking the big questions. You may also find yourself selling your possessions, dusting off your passport, quitting your job, and buying a one-way ticket to the end of the earth. Karan Bajaj has written a compelling adventure, with vivid settings, meaty themes, and a satisfying conclusion.

A Literary Conversation with Karan Bajaj, author of The Yoga of Max’s Discontent. Read more...

Yoga has become a thing people talk about over brunch mimosas, rather than a part of my religion and culture. I don’t begrudge its popularity, but it is nice to see it placed within its proper context, especially considering how easy-to-read and interesting Bajaj makes it... Bajaj’s descriptions are just incredible here; you can picture every scene in this book vividly. I would call the prose in this novel lush, except that would be incongruent; the entire novel is spare, almost to the point of agony. The only extravagant thing about it is Bajaj’s beautiful prose.

India: Penguin Random House India

In a literary market flooded with shallow yogic adventure stories both fact and fiction that promise little more than sensationalism or entertainment, here comes an important, authentic, believable, riveting account on the level of Hermann Hesse or Victor Frankl. This is a superbly written meditation on effort and grace, a do-or-die quest for spiritual transformation, a journey from darkness to light, and a psychological thriller, which strips away artifice in a relentless quest to discover meaning and shows us how the lotus can rise from the muck of a Bronx sewer to blossom calmly in the cool Himalayan moonlight.

Karan Bajaj weaves a modern day epic you simply will not forget. He writes clean, simple prose that zips so fast you'll forget you're reading. He transcends his outlet and sends his creative heart directly into yours. Incredible.

Karan Bajaj recently authored a piece in The New York Times, titled “A Hard-Driving Executive’s Year of Learning to Let Go.” Read more...

New York Times Magazine published an article by Karan Bajaj on Looking for Enlightenment in the Himalayas Read more...

Filled with adventure and excitement. A quest for answers that bother all of us at some level.

A great article written by Karan Bajaj, author of THE YOGA OF MAX’S DISCONTENT. It was published in The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/inspired-life/wp/2016/04/26/heres-what-happened-when-i-traded-my-corporate-job-for-a-technology-free-life-on-an-ashram/ Read more...

Q & A published in the Chicago Tribune - The piece also ran on the Baltimore Sun. Read more...