1501 1750 World History Books : The White Tiger

The White Tiger

£5.99


Winning the Man Booker prize is something that most authors dream of, although -- ironically -- the reputation of the prize itself was under siege a few years ago. Books that won the award were acquiring a reputation of being difficult and inaccessible, but those days appear to be over -- and unarguable proof may be found in the 2008 winner, The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga. Apart from its considerable literary merit, the novel is the most compelling of pageturners (in the old-fashioned sense of that phrase) and offers a picture of modern India that is as evocative as it is unflattering. The protagonist, too, is drawn in the most masterly of fashion.Balram Halwai, the eponymous ‘white tiger’, is a diminutive, overweight ex-teashop worker who now earns his living as a chauffeur. But this is only one side of his protean personality, he deals in confidence scams, over-ambitious business promotions (built on the shakiest of foundations) and enjoys approaching life with a philosophical turn of mind. But is Balram also a murderer? We learn the answer as we devour these 500 odd pages. Born into an impoverished family, Balram is removed from school by his parents in order to earn money in a thankless job: shop employee. He is forced into banal, mind-numbing work. But Balram dreams of escaping -- and a chance arises when a well-heeled village landlord takes him on as a chauffeur for his son (although the duties involve transporting the latter s wife and two Pomeranian dogs). From the rich new perspective offered to him in this more interesting job, Balram discovers New Delhi, and a vision of the city changes his life forever. His learning curve is very steep, and he quickly comes to believe that the way to the top is by the most expedient means. And if that involves committing the odd crime of violence, he persuades himself that this is what successful people must do.The story of the amoral protagonist at the centre of this fascinating narrative is, of course, what keeps the reader comprehensively gripped, but perhaps the real achievement of the book is in its picture of two Indias: the bleak, soul-destroying poverty of village life and the glittering prizes to be found in the big city. The book cleverly avoids fulfilling any of the expectations a potential reader might have -- except that of instructing and entertaining. The White Tiger will have many readers anxious to see what Adiga will do next. --Barry Forshaw

Rohinton Mistry it ain t - When I first picked up this Booker winner, I thought it was just like every other novel I d read about modern India, wallowing in self pity and weighed down by the colossal shoulder-chip of post-colonialism and the caste system.Perhaps I must take into account the author s tender years (he s 34ish), but I feel that a more life-experienced writer would have done more with the tale of a servile young man s corruption by the hot-headedness of the amoral business world.Having said that, it is nicely written with some very quotable one liners. But the editor s poor grasp of correct English ( bored of - forsooth!) is extremely disappointing.

Overrated - Poor story all around, no surprises here. I suppose the book would make for some sort of (poor) guide to India for someone who has no clue about the country. For everone else its a waste of time.The book dwells into the lives of the worst possible characters in any society. We don t need the book to tell us, that human society has a few of such kind in whichever country we may live. Complete waste of time.

it got me through a Christmas flu..... - I was dubious about a Booker but found this an easy and entertaining read - I felt for Balram Halwai and loved his humour in spite of what he had to endure at the hands of his employers ...but nothing changes and I thought the ending appropriate............

a cracking read - I have just finished The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, winner of the man booker prize 2008.It was a cracking read - pacy and chilling, and I fear rather close to reality for some people... certainly illustrates some of the - good and bad - sides of new India and old India , poverty and opportunity (or lack of it)and the darker side of human nature.

Utterly hopeless - This is an utterly hopeless book. Hopeless in that it offers no hope whatsoever. It is beautifully written, very easy to read and gives a real sense of modern India. I don t know but one suspects that it, sadly, may be an accurate picture. None of the characters come across well, the while Indian situation is described in a way which portrays the society as fundamentally unjust, corrupt and rotten to the core. From a Christian perspective the book is a reminder to me of how lost human society is without Jesus Christ - and how secular humanism has nothing to offer as a solution. At the end of the book Balram indicates his desire to build a school of the poor children in Bangalore A school where you won t be allowed to corrupt anyone s head with prayers and stories about God or Gandhi - nothing but the facts of life for these kids. It is a bleak and depressing vision - not least because one of the facts of life is that sometimes murder is ok.....




The White Tiger