The White Tiger is a novel by Indian author Aravind Adiga. It was published in 2008 and won the 40th Man Booker Prize the same year. The novel provides a darkly humorous perspective of India's class struggle in a globalized world as told through a retrospective narration from Balram Halwai, a village boy. In detailing Balram's journey first to Delhi, where he works as a chauffeur to a rich landlord, and then to Bangalore, the place to which he flees after killing his master and stealing his money, the novel examines issues of the Hindu religion, caste, loyalty, corruption and poverty in India. Ultimately, Balram transcends his sweet-maker caste and becomes a successful entrepreneur, establishing his own taxi service. In a nation proudly shedding a history of poverty and underdevelopment, he represents, as he himself says, "tomorrow."
The novel has been well-received, making the New York Times bestseller list in …
The White Tiger is a novel by Indian author Aravind Adiga. It was published in 2008 and won the 40th Man Booker Prize the same year. The novel provides a darkly humorous perspective of India's class struggle in a globalized world as told through a retrospective narration from Balram Halwai, a village boy. In detailing Balram's journey first to Delhi, where he works as a chauffeur to a rich landlord, and then to Bangalore, the place to which he flees after killing his master and stealing his money, the novel examines issues of the Hindu religion, caste, loyalty, corruption and poverty in India. Ultimately, Balram transcends his sweet-maker caste and becomes a successful entrepreneur, establishing his own taxi service. In a nation proudly shedding a history of poverty and underdevelopment, he represents, as he himself says, "tomorrow."
The novel has been well-received, making the New York Times bestseller list in addition to winning the Man Booker Prize. Aravind Adiga, 33 at the time, was the second youngest writer as well as the fourth debut writer to win the prize. Adiga says his novel "attempt[s]
to catch the voice of the men you meet as you travel through India — the voice of the colossal underclass." According to Adiga, the exigence for The White Tiger was to capture the unspoken voice of people from "the Darkness" – the impoverished areas of rural India, and he "wanted to do so without sentimentality or portraying them as
mirthless humorless weaklings as they are usually."
"The moment you recognize what is beautiful in this world, you stop being a slave."
I read this book on shabd.in and gave this a read and this was definitely an interesting read.
One of the strengths of The White Tiger is its unflinching portrayal of the stark divide between the rich and poor in India. it skillfully weaves together elements of social critique, dark humor, and a compelling narrative to shed light on the harsh realities faced by those at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder.
This is definitely a well-written book that always keeps the reader's interest. But is it a great book that deserves all the accolades it has gotten? I am not so sure. I felt that the plight of the Indian poor in the 'darkness' is wonderfully captured in the book and the author's clean, clear style makes us think from the perspective of the central character, Balram. The author also manages to capture some genuinely wonderful and funny moments. I am also thankful that the author stays away from sentimentality. [spoiler ahead] But the book becomes a little shaky when the author attempts to capture how Balram, after feeling trapped, decides to break free of his shackles by murdering his boss. How did he go from feeling the need to escape to murdering his boss for stealing the money? The abruptness felt while reading this novel about Balram's decision to kill …
This is definitely a well-written book that always keeps the reader's interest. But is it a great book that deserves all the accolades it has gotten? I am not so sure. I felt that the plight of the Indian poor in the 'darkness' is wonderfully captured in the book and the author's clean, clear style makes us think from the perspective of the central character, Balram. The author also manages to capture some genuinely wonderful and funny moments. I am also thankful that the author stays away from sentimentality. [spoiler ahead] But the book becomes a little shaky when the author attempts to capture how Balram, after feeling trapped, decides to break free of his shackles by murdering his boss. How did he go from feeling the need to escape to murdering his boss for stealing the money? The abruptness felt while reading this novel about Balram's decision to kill his master is because the author seems to have formed the big picture of the plot first and then searched for Balram's motivations.
You see this whole idea of Balram feeling like the 'White Tiger' has a bit of overlap with some interpretations of Nietzsche's 'Ubermensch' - where a superior man escapes his shackles. As can be seen in world history, such ideas of 'White Tiger' or 'Ubermensch' indeed generate a passion and interest but can be interpreted badly to lead to terribly bad choices.
To be clear, this is indeed a very well-written novel, though I do not feel it is as great as some critics and award committees would like us to think. The movie 'Parasite', which came years after this book was published, has some overlapping elements with this story. I found 'Parasite' well-made and funny, but thought it was also totally weird towards the end. This book is much better than the Parasite movie for sure.
Roight! I have a confession to make, I only read this book to fill a spot in a reading challenge, there is no way I would have picked up this otherwise. It has over 9000 reviews on Goodreads, that puts is well into mainstream and out of my comfort zone. The last mainstream "award winning" book I read was a major disappointment.
Luckily for me, this is a fantastic book, I have never experienced satire from an Indian's point of view. Balram, aka The White Tiger, is a top notch narrator, here he is telling us how to be an entrepreneur in India, how to crawl out of "the darkness" and make a man of yourself. How to manage all the chaos in that country, how to work the caste system and how to get away with crimes.
This is one of those books that makes you blurt out a …
Roight! I have a confession to make, I only read this book to fill a spot in a reading challenge, there is no way I would have picked up this otherwise. It has over 9000 reviews on Goodreads, that puts is well into mainstream and out of my comfort zone. The last mainstream "award winning" book I read was a major disappointment.
Luckily for me, this is a fantastic book, I have never experienced satire from an Indian's point of view. Balram, aka The White Tiger, is a top notch narrator, here he is telling us how to be an entrepreneur in India, how to crawl out of "the darkness" and make a man of yourself. How to manage all the chaos in that country, how to work the caste system and how to get away with crimes.
This is one of those books that makes you blurt out a laugh and then instantly cover your mouth cos you're not sure if it is PC to laugh, you can sense the humour in the white tiger's voice so I guess I'm not going to Hell this time around.
This is a good fun read and even though it is over 300 pages it doesn't feel like it, you'll soon find yourself whizzing through those pages.
What I liked: Interesting look at India. The narrator is a driver, so the story is told from a servant's perspective. Having never been to India, I don't know how accurate it is, but it paints a pretty jacked picture of corruption and castes.
What I didn't like: At times it was hard to follow the story (maybe because I tuned out?) so some of the twists didn't seem to fit together. Also - I was thinking it would be similar to "How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia," and it some ways it was, but with a MUCH darker edge to it.
Overall, I probably would NOT recommend it to your average fiction fan.
Refreshing to read a modern(non-colonial) piece of fiction out of India. Slums, massive rural corruption, American's seeking enlightenment and rapid econosocial change from outsourcing. It took some time getting used to the format, a letter to the Premier of China about the true India. The first installment seems to seek to pile-drive this dynamic into you so that you don't forget it for the rest of the novel and I almost stopped reading. I waited though and it settled into a proper narrative that was enjoyable.
Living in a place where servants are still the norm, it's not only a great read, but also disturbingly spot-on. I don't know much about India, though, but I am sure that many will attack (has attacked) the book as being either too harsh on the rich of India, the poor of India or India in general. Well, there are quite a few great novels out there that depict the country in which they take place negatively. And that is all for the better. India is also portrayed as a place where everything can happen. And that bit, I'm sure no one will take away from the author.
Most importantly, the book is such a pleasant read and the author has a great sense of humor and is an impeccable observer. It's a great, easy read with lots of interesting, globalization-themed, underlying issues.
It was generally liked, although there was some surprise that it had won a Booker. The characters weren't cut of cardboard, and you kept changing your mind on whether or not you actually liked any of them. The book revealed the gritty underbelly of India. Fictional, but from the sounds of it an accurate portrayal of both the corruption and huge polarization of wealth in the country.
"The White Tiger" by Aravind Adiga is one of the those books that you see at the bookstore prominently displayed, with over a dozen pages of praise and a prestigious award blazoned on its cover. Winner of the Man Booker Prize in 2008 ("the best book in the English language"), "The White Tiger" is a biting, eye-opening book for the dawn of the 21st century that is big on ideas if a bit wanting for plot.
The book's inventive frame narrative is that it is a series of e-mails/letters sent to the Premier of China by Balram Halwai, an Indian entrepreneur and the "White Tiger" of the book, on the eve of the Premier's state visit to India. The letters discuss many things, most importantly Balram's rise from crushing poverty to economic success. The main character is deeply engaging, charming, and an astute observer of the world. Oh, and did …
"The White Tiger" by Aravind Adiga is one of the those books that you see at the bookstore prominently displayed, with over a dozen pages of praise and a prestigious award blazoned on its cover. Winner of the Man Booker Prize in 2008 ("the best book in the English language"), "The White Tiger" is a biting, eye-opening book for the dawn of the 21st century that is big on ideas if a bit wanting for plot.
The book's inventive frame narrative is that it is a series of e-mails/letters sent to the Premier of China by Balram Halwai, an Indian entrepreneur and the "White Tiger" of the book, on the eve of the Premier's state visit to India. The letters discuss many things, most importantly Balram's rise from crushing poverty to economic success. The main character is deeply engaging, charming, and an astute observer of the world. Oh, and did I mention that he killed his former employer and stole his money? Needless to say, by the time the murder comes around, it doesn't matter and one finds themselves strangely horrified at his action and cheering him on at the same time. Adiga, in this his first novel, has given the century one of its first and I am tempted to say what will be one of its most endearing antiheroes: the "White Tiger" who refuses to live in its cage anymore.
Balram describes modern India and the picture is not a pretty one. One (of many) ideas Adiga presents is that India is not one country but two: the Darkness and the Light. The Light is what most of the world sees, in the form of technological innovation, modern advancements, wealth, and opportunity. But most of India lives in the Darkness, a vile, corrupt, and soul crushing existence where the cycle of poverty is never-ceasing. The book makes one reflect on the complex picture of India today: two very different and incompatible worlds. It behooves the reader to understand the role India will play in the next century and the stark divide that exists.
While I found the characters in this book to be extremely well drawn, one may find that plot is thin and leaves the reader wanting more. At times, I felt like I was not fully engaged with the story. I did not rush to finish it and was able to put it down and come back to it not feeling as if I missed anything. I think the book is immensely enjoyable, with good characters and interesting ideas. However, it is not one that you will probably rush to finish.
I found this book intriguing, mostly because of all the moral ambiguity. I cannot decide whether or not I like Balram. He is an intelligent character, a survivor, and not a monster, and yet...I thought that the first accident scene seemed like an interesting homage to The Great Gatsby, and admired his rooster coup analogy. It's a good, thought-provoking novel.
