41. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse
ISBN: 0811202925
New Directions, New York ,1957
122 pages

Teaser: Siddhartha gives up success to explore Buddha and the trek to happiness, to find that happiness is within each individual and came for him through a combination of simplicity and goals to meet his inner peace.

Summary: The journey for Siddhartha leads him down paths of love and struggles for power and wealth, then to the struggles with his own son in finding peace and inner strength. Siddhartha finds that was he thought would be an easy path, turned into twists and turns and forks in the road that caused an internal tug of war to balance the true meaning of self-knowledge.

Evaluation: I thought the book was okay, but for me not great. It explored the constant change and flux in society, as well as in the personal exploration of individuals to both fit in, and to find a way out of the box. The relationships between love and family were brief and I think could have been explored further and given the reader more to ponder. It was too short for me and I would have liked to see more of a challenging read, but maybe good for younger readers.

Challenge issues and age recommendation: This book discussed Buddhist beliefs. Like any book featuring religion as a main topic, some people may feel the need to challenge the book because of this. Overall, the book was not really a religious book, but a book about inner beliefs and what individual strengths and goals are to happiness. It does deal with the father/son relationship and finding true love, but also in just the attempt to balance the world and inner desire to seek balance. I would recommend this book for readers 12 and up. It would also be good for a western studies class or history class boost with discussion to follow.