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Original Prin
A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITOR'S CHOICE A GLOBE AND MAIL BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR Eight months before he became a suicide bomber, Prin went to the zoo with his family. Following a cancer diagnosis, forty-year old Prin vows to become a better man and a better Catholic. He’s going to spend more time with his kids and better time with his wife, care for his recently divorced and aging parents, and also expand his cutting-edge research into the symbolism of the seahorse in Canadian literature. But when his historic college in downtown Toronto faces a shutdown and he meets with the condominium developers ready to take it over―including a foul-mouthed young Chinese entrepreneur and Wende, his sexy ex-girlfriend from graduate school―Prin hears the voice of God. Bewildered and divinely inspired, he goes to the Middle East, hoping to save both his college and his soul. Wende is coming, too. The first book in a planned trilogy, Original Prin is an entertaining and essential novel about family life, faith, temptation, and fanaticism. It’s a timely story about timeless truths, told with wise insight and great humour, confirming Randy Boyagoda’s place as one of Canada’s funniest and most provocative writers.
223 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2018
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397 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
July 24, 2019
A good book in a lot of ways, very topical and clever. That said, the satire was overripe and the book's project is way too ambitious for its scope. While I like the beginning and the ending, the middle flounders. Boyagoda clearly has a keen eye for the world around him, and his book in many ways adequately depicts this cultural moment, albeit in exaggerated ways. I think that what really upset me about this book is that Boyagoda gets into such rich, heavy themes real early on in such clever and engaging ways that you expect him to build from that and reach some sort of fantastic crescendo, a la Wallace or Franzen, but instead he fails to even maintain the momentum. A good book to read for today, but not one I'll be recommending years down the road.
March 6, 2024
I would read this book for the same reason I would download Hinge: A little shock value. I would stop reading this book for the same reason I would delete Hinge: it’s terrible.
In all seriousness I’m not sure what I just read. A friend calls it outrageous. I call it cheap. We all know there’s something redemptive in there, I just can’t put my finger on it.
In all seriousness I’m not sure what I just read. A friend calls it outrageous. I call it cheap. We all know there’s something redemptive in there, I just can’t put my finger on it.
November 2, 2019
I was really enjoying this book until the last bit.
May 28, 2020
what did i just read
September 15, 2021
I read this book some time ago, but just reread the first few chapters and was, again, inspired by Boyagoda's wit, his amazing ability to find the funny in the serious, his portrayal of family, of marriage, of religion, of the human condition and how we cope with the everyday crisis of our lives. It's also a well told story that keeps you reading to find out what could happen next.
Original Prin has one of the best first sentences of any novel....
Original Prin has one of the best first sentences of any novel....
February 17, 2021
Original Prin provides a showcase for Canadian Randy Boyagoda’s clever, insightful, and timely humor, but the ambitious novelist does more than provoke outright laughter. Like other great satirists, Boyagoda manages the tricky task of leading readers through waters that are, well, seriously absurd and absurdly serious.
Reviews about satire frequently employ the verb “skewer,” and Original Prin does just that to academia, politics, and religion—which is to say, to the humans that make those institutions irresistible targets. It’s humor of the “Oh, no” school, as we wince and guffaw at our hapless protagonist’s struggle to live a faith-based life in a post-modern world.
Roman Catholic Prin is one fallen buckeroo, but is he on the order of those around him? In a publishing landscape that reflects the greater world’s slide into post-religion, post-everything, here is a book that trusts the reader to believe such a man might exist and might be worth watching. Fanaticism—hilarious here and deadly there—abounds in Prin’s world, and the novel’s climax follows fanaticism to its inevitable consequence. Where will Prin land in all of this? That should be answered in the next two parts of the planned trilogy.
Reviews about satire frequently employ the verb “skewer,” and Original Prin does just that to academia, politics, and religion—which is to say, to the humans that make those institutions irresistible targets. It’s humor of the “Oh, no” school, as we wince and guffaw at our hapless protagonist’s struggle to live a faith-based life in a post-modern world.
Roman Catholic Prin is one fallen buckeroo, but is he on the order of those around him? In a publishing landscape that reflects the greater world’s slide into post-religion, post-everything, here is a book that trusts the reader to believe such a man might exist and might be worth watching. Fanaticism—hilarious here and deadly there—abounds in Prin’s world, and the novel’s climax follows fanaticism to its inevitable consequence. Where will Prin land in all of this? That should be answered in the next two parts of the planned trilogy.
February 27, 2022
Just... fine? Average writing. Nothing terribly profound. I didn't find it engaging. There's several twists, particularly toward the end. I can sense the author was trying to do something big, but I don't think he got there.
July 17, 2024
I recently listened to a PEN Canada discussion between Randy Boyagoda and John Irving on the topic "Damned Funny: Faith, Fiction, and the Hilarity of Hell." When Irving commented on the opening sentence of Original Prin, I knew I had to read the book. ("Eight months before he became a suicide bomber, Prin went to the zoo with his family.") The book continues in that tone of wry humor and satire, but it also explores religious faith (and guilt). I understood why Boyagoda and Irving were paired for a discussion as both use humor as a way to reveal truth. But the ending of this book, especially the last paragraph, is abrupt. Which is why this is a 3 star review, not a 4 star.
April 4, 2022
I know you're trying to be careful and thoughtful....Only the plan's not working out the way you wanted it to. So do something else. p25
He'd always tried very hard. And he was...so sorry. Because what exactly had he tried so hard to do? p201
When his ex girlfriend, Wende (the only other significant other in his experience besides his wife) shows up again in his life, in a professional capacity that demands his co-operation, Prin is faced with a moral conundrum particular to his obsessive-compulsive, scrupulous nature. His patient and compliant wife seems to have accepted his eccentric behavior and his children are young enough to go along with it. Personally, I wasn't convinced but before I dismissed Prin as a garden variety narcissist with a spiritual kink and put the book aside, through the skillful machinations of Randy Boyagoda I began to grasp the pertinent implications.
* You really think it's that simple?
-No. But it's there.The question.
* Do you have any idea how ridiculous you are?
- Yeah, that's about it...at some point we all hear God asking us that question.
p159
The morally unmoored, lost without their firm convictions, may try to scurry back to the safety of the routines that allowed them to function, as if there were no other options. Prin is one prepared to take his faith to the ultimate test of absurdity. I am unsure why I ended the book laughing, or even if it is appropriate to admit it, but that's why I have have have upped 3.5 to 4/5 5/7 more reflects my response.
Does it make a difference in the end?
...never mind looking up. Look inside.
p158
November 12, 2019
A disjointed story. A waste of time to read.
April 30, 2024
Some humorous parts. A lot of religion. Quite a bit of satire (or social commentary through satire?).
I don't know what to make of the ending but it was a lil exciting. 🤷🏻♀️
I don't know what to make of the ending but it was a lil exciting. 🤷🏻♀️
November 18, 2018
I was ready to trash the book until I realized it's the first in a trilogy. I'll say no more on that front to avoid spoilers.
Our hero, Prin, is a professor at a Catholic university in downtown Toronto that's going through a financial crisis. He is charged with assessing the options available - both ridiculous, but beggars can't be choosers. To assess the options he must travel to the middle east with an old girl friend. He promises his wife that all will be well.
Along the way, we encounter terrorists in America and the middle east, an impatient priest hearing his confession, a church dedicated to the naked man who fled the soldiers in the Gospel of Mark, and a typical staff meeting of academics. All fodder for Boyagoda's sharp sense of humor.
Lots of fun along the way to who knows where. I look forward to the second book.
Our hero, Prin, is a professor at a Catholic university in downtown Toronto that's going through a financial crisis. He is charged with assessing the options available - both ridiculous, but beggars can't be choosers. To assess the options he must travel to the middle east with an old girl friend. He promises his wife that all will be well.
Along the way, we encounter terrorists in America and the middle east, an impatient priest hearing his confession, a church dedicated to the naked man who fled the soldiers in the Gospel of Mark, and a typical staff meeting of academics. All fodder for Boyagoda's sharp sense of humor.
Lots of fun along the way to who knows where. I look forward to the second book.
January 12, 2022
Better than 3 stars but not as good as 4. It is ambitious, drawing from several influences. It concerns a minor university professor at a minor university with an obscure area of interest (marine animals in Canadian literature). Rendered impotent by a cancer operation, he is torn between his failing relationship with his loving wife and the rekindled flame of a long ago relationship which by necessity has no chance of being consummated. All of this is set against the background of his deep religious belief and a lecture he must give in an unstable middle eastern country.
I strange stew indeed.
For me, there were too many cheap one-liners and a bit too much absurdity.
As funny as the book is, there is a literary. Foundation and serious themes which got a bit lost. Nevertheless an enjoyable read which is the extra half star.
I strange stew indeed.
For me, there were too many cheap one-liners and a bit too much absurdity.
As funny as the book is, there is a literary. Foundation and serious themes which got a bit lost. Nevertheless an enjoyable read which is the extra half star.
May 11, 2019
Read 30 pgs. Not my kind of book.
July 26, 2020
Not my kind of humor.
February 15, 2023
Satire of all sorts. Catholic, divorced families, small university, Middle East, jihad (?!?) even.
June 28, 2019
Darkly amusing story about religion, academia and family.
"Eight months before he became a suicide bomber, Prin went to the zoo with his family." Quite an opening line. Especially when we learn that Prin is a Catholic, devoted father and husband, and now trying to tell his children about his cancer diagnosis. Just how will this opening translate into the 'eight months later' promise?
It takes the entire novel to reach that point, by which time I'd almost forgotten. Caught up in Prin's world of his academic work into seahorses in Canadian literature, the threat of unemployment after his college faces possible closure, and the emotional struggles of meeting an ex-lover as part of the team looking to shut down his workplace. The 'suicide bomber' plotline seemed to vanish until the very end.
As I was listening, I did find it quite amusing, but I couldn't tell you now much detail about why. The ending did strike a chord and was well-played, however. And I would want to know how that plays out in the next book, but the rest of the book didn't particularly stand out for me. I liked the 'seahorse academia' theme, a few funny scenes relating to this.
The narrator (Audible version) was quite slow in his reading, I had to speed it up quite a lot to keep interest and flow going, and this didn't affect the clarity at all.
For me, the idea had promise but it was slow in getting to the point I was interested in. The final chapters did come to life, however.
With thanks to Nudge Books for providing a sample reading copy.
"Eight months before he became a suicide bomber, Prin went to the zoo with his family." Quite an opening line. Especially when we learn that Prin is a Catholic, devoted father and husband, and now trying to tell his children about his cancer diagnosis. Just how will this opening translate into the 'eight months later' promise?
It takes the entire novel to reach that point, by which time I'd almost forgotten. Caught up in Prin's world of his academic work into seahorses in Canadian literature, the threat of unemployment after his college faces possible closure, and the emotional struggles of meeting an ex-lover as part of the team looking to shut down his workplace. The 'suicide bomber' plotline seemed to vanish until the very end.
As I was listening, I did find it quite amusing, but I couldn't tell you now much detail about why. The ending did strike a chord and was well-played, however. And I would want to know how that plays out in the next book, but the rest of the book didn't particularly stand out for me. I liked the 'seahorse academia' theme, a few funny scenes relating to this.
The narrator (Audible version) was quite slow in his reading, I had to speed it up quite a lot to keep interest and flow going, and this didn't affect the clarity at all.
For me, the idea had promise but it was slow in getting to the point I was interested in. The final chapters did come to life, however.
With thanks to Nudge Books for providing a sample reading copy.
March 6, 2019
Original Prin opens with a snapshot into main character’s life: Prin, a Canadian literature professor, husband, and father of two, is going to eventually become a suicide bomber. We quickly start to learn why he might be headed down this path after he receives a devastating diagnosis and learns of the near-demise of his institution, which puts him in direct contact with an old and anxiety-inducing love interest. After hearing the voice of God, Prin embarks on a religious pilgrimage to the Middle East in the hopes of finding a new purpose and, hopefully, some answers for his mounting uncertainties. If the circumstances of the plot sound dire, Boyagoda tempers the subject matter with deftly cunning and witty prose, pinning classical literary references alongside the mundane beauty of office supplies. If its possible to create a sympathetic character in a potential suicide bomber, Boyagoda has done it: Prin is a complex yet relatable man searching for, above all, a reason to live.
May 10, 2022
I'm going to keep this brief. I really enjoyed the beginning of this book. Although some of the caricatures of certain "types" of people (specifically Americans) are a little overwrought, the humor was, for the most part, well done. The premise of the book felt very original. The prose was pretty straightforward, and I enjoyed it.
My suspension of disbelief became harder to sustain towards the end of the book. The main character was pretty much a doormat for the first three-quarters of the book (with the exception of some name-calling during a game of pickle-ball). Seemingly out of nowhere he becomes a much more forthcoming, tell-you-like-it-is character in the final act which I didn't find consistent with his character up till then nor could I find a justification for his shift in attitude.
All that being said, I will likely read the next book to see where the story goes from here.
My suspension of disbelief became harder to sustain towards the end of the book. The main character was pretty much a doormat for the first three-quarters of the book (with the exception of some name-calling during a game of pickle-ball). Seemingly out of nowhere he becomes a much more forthcoming, tell-you-like-it-is character in the final act which I didn't find consistent with his character up till then nor could I find a justification for his shift in attitude.
All that being said, I will likely read the next book to see where the story goes from here.
December 5, 2021
It's well-written, funny, interesting and engaging, but not quite rewarding. Ultimately, Boyagoda does a lot of things well but it never becomes clear what he's trying to accomplish in Original Prin. At times it's wryly funny, satirically cutting, and exhilarating. And there are interesting passages on religious and moral quandaries.
However, the reader waits for a resolution, for an insight, for an integration of these different themes, ideas and threads, and doesn't receive it. Like much contemporary fiction, we are left with ambiguity which simply isn't very satisfying. Five stars because Boyagoda does a great deal very well within the scope of his ambitions. But the themes might have led to a greater novel, a more transformative climax, a more significant statement, and one is left wanting something more until the last page.
However, the reader waits for a resolution, for an insight, for an integration of these different themes, ideas and threads, and doesn't receive it. Like much contemporary fiction, we are left with ambiguity which simply isn't very satisfying. Five stars because Boyagoda does a great deal very well within the scope of his ambitions. But the themes might have led to a greater novel, a more transformative climax, a more significant statement, and one is left wanting something more until the last page.
January 8, 2022
"Eight months before he became a suicide bomber, Prin went to the zoo with his family."
This is the opening line of the book. I had to read it over a few times before I decided, yes, I read it properly.
I supposed you could call this a religious-academic Canadian farce. An English professor--a specialist in the marine metaphors in Canadian literature--faces his ex-girlfriend, his Catholic faith, a cancer diagnoses, looming unemployment and his waning attachment to his wife, all culminating in his academic mission to a violent Middle-Eastern country with his ex-girlfriend.
I'm still not sure what to make of it. It was an entertaining read, I suppose, and it pokes fun at the religious and academic worlds, which is a healthy thing. I may peek into the next instalment, hoping to see more of what the author is intending to accomplish.
This is the opening line of the book. I had to read it over a few times before I decided, yes, I read it properly.
I supposed you could call this a religious-academic Canadian farce. An English professor--a specialist in the marine metaphors in Canadian literature--faces his ex-girlfriend, his Catholic faith, a cancer diagnoses, looming unemployment and his waning attachment to his wife, all culminating in his academic mission to a violent Middle-Eastern country with his ex-girlfriend.
I'm still not sure what to make of it. It was an entertaining read, I suppose, and it pokes fun at the religious and academic worlds, which is a healthy thing. I may peek into the next instalment, hoping to see more of what the author is intending to accomplish.
October 12, 2022
I would give this work five stars for Part one and three stars for Part Two. Prin is an Indian-Canadian Professor who teaches literature at a university that was once known as Holy Family University but as it has slowly lost its Catholic identify has undergone many name changes and is now known as University of the Family Universal, do the initials for yourself. Recovery from prostate cancer and rendered impotent, he meets an old girlfriend of his, who he was mildly obsessed with.
She has come up with a wildly imaginative way to save the University, essentially turning it into a retirement home and has selected Prin to accompany her to the Middle East to get financing. That's where things get crazy and go off the rails. It was just too unbelievable without being sufficiently absurdist.
Still an enjoyable read.
She has come up with a wildly imaginative way to save the University, essentially turning it into a retirement home and has selected Prin to accompany her to the Middle East to get financing. That's where things get crazy and go off the rails. It was just too unbelievable without being sufficiently absurdist.
Still an enjoyable read.
March 4, 2021
Not a book that needed to be written. Not a fan. I didn’t really ever get in to the story or the plot and just wanted it to end. I didn’t enjoy the satirization of many plot points in the story, I found them dull and forced eg, the falling a second time playing father/son pickle-ball or the veneration of the “Holy Seat” for atonement.
I didn’t see any likability in the protagonist, I found him shallow and hypocritical. I didn’t care about what happened to him and the last 15+ pages and what did seems to hit you across the face like a palm slap juxtaposing the snails pace of the majority of the book. The ending seemed farcical and incredibly out of place.
Wouldn’t recommend and will not read the rest of the trilogy.
I didn’t see any likability in the protagonist, I found him shallow and hypocritical. I didn’t care about what happened to him and the last 15+ pages and what did seems to hit you across the face like a palm slap juxtaposing the snails pace of the majority of the book. The ending seemed farcical and incredibly out of place.
Wouldn’t recommend and will not read the rest of the trilogy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 16, 2021
Pretty thin stuff. I want to praise what's praiseworthy, namely a very good first act, some sharp and poignant thematic material from the get-go, and a character who is enjoyably flawed trying to navigate it. The satire is constantly moving its crosshairs, from the bland but tolerable (critique of modern education as a business) to the befuddling (a fictional parody of early Christian shrines reborn as tourist traps), such that an eleventh hour turn into violence and terror rings completely hollow. Honestly, this is a mess; the only thing that can save it is the prospect that the finished trilogy will function as one novel - in which case, given its brevity, why even bother sectioning this into its own volume?
March 21, 2022
I have read both Original Prin and Dante’s Indiana (the second book in the trilogy), so I will roll both up into one review:
First, I hardly EVER laugh out loud when reading anymore, and both books got me laughing. The humor, I think, originates mostly in the fearlessness of the author. There are many times when Boyagoda and his characters say what we are all thinking but aren’t allowed to say anymore. (Kudos to the publisher— Biblioasis— for that as well.) It is also this candidness that made me root for both author and protagonist. Prin is imperfect, bumbling, and even immoral at times, but throughout both books, there is an undeniable feeling that God is searching for him.
Can’t wait to read the third.
First, I hardly EVER laugh out loud when reading anymore, and both books got me laughing. The humor, I think, originates mostly in the fearlessness of the author. There are many times when Boyagoda and his characters say what we are all thinking but aren’t allowed to say anymore. (Kudos to the publisher— Biblioasis— for that as well.) It is also this candidness that made me root for both author and protagonist. Prin is imperfect, bumbling, and even immoral at times, but throughout both books, there is an undeniable feeling that God is searching for him.
Can’t wait to read the third.
March 7, 2019
I liked this book right from the beginning even though I hadn't expect to. I only read it because there was noting else int he house and I had seen him speak at a book festival. I didn't really take to him but my husband did so we owned the book.
Maybe having low expectation helped. All my recent choices have let me down…yes I mean you Lawrence Hill!
I was disappointed in the last ⅓ of it and the ending especially until I remembered him saying it was going to be a trilogy.
I am now almost looking forward to the next instalment.
Maybe having low expectation helped. All my recent choices have let me down…yes I mean you Lawrence Hill!
I was disappointed in the last ⅓ of it and the ending especially until I remembered him saying it was going to be a trilogy.
I am now almost looking forward to the next instalment.
January 4, 2023
I picked this up after reading an interview with Randy Boyagoda that accompanied "Little Sanctuary," his contribution to the 2022 Hingston & Olsen Short Story Advent Calendar. The novel, first in a trilogy, compares favorably to James Morrow's satires on faith and religion. Mix in the satiric and absurdist style of Kurt Vonnegut with the earnest Catholic introspection of Graham Greene, and voila! The satire of academia hits really close to home, and while the ending is abrupt, knowing that this is just the first installment of a trilogy, I'm ready to charge right into the next book.
March 3, 2024
“Father, I don’t know. I’m sorry. I don’t know. How can I know, how can any of us know? Look, I just came in here because I ate steak on Good Friday and also because I need to tell my wife something strange but true. I still do,” Prin said.
“Whatever it is, it can’t be stranger or truer than what God believes about you,” the priest said.
A bit outrageous. I probably could’ve gone my whole life without this book and I would’ve been fine. Maybe there’s something to think about in all of this but I’m not sure what.
“Whatever it is, it can’t be stranger or truer than what God believes about you,” the priest said.
A bit outrageous. I probably could’ve gone my whole life without this book and I would’ve been fine. Maybe there’s something to think about in all of this but I’m not sure what.
January 4, 2019
I can’t say that I really enjoyed reading this book as it was tough to follow for me in certain sections. However the humour is very sharp and well written and clever. I had a good chuckle in many parts. I really appreciated the quality of the writing. I have not read much satire but now I will look for more books of the genre. The scenes of the pickle ball tournament and the last 30 pages of the shrine and the airport were particularly hilarious.
I will await the sequel.
I will await the sequel.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 13, 2019
Kinda fun read. If it seems a little too cute or folksy I guess that's just what makes it Canadian and not an American story. The best parts are the casual way the author inserts in-joke references to Catholic culture.
I heard the author speak in NYC when I bought the book. I hope he keeps honing his craft.
I heard the author speak in NYC when I bought the book. I hope he keeps honing his craft.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews