A review by lagobond
The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
5.0
This book is a tour de force. Now I'm not Indian, I've never been to India, and I don't know a lot about India. What I do know is this: regardless of what is being claimed in the many reviews included in the book, Balram is not a psychopath. And neither is this a funny book. Anyone who claims one of these two things to be true must not have read the book, or if they did, they weren't paying attention. Yes, Balram lives in a psychopathic world, and he's not an easy character to like in some ways; but he's not the root of the problem, and he definitely isn't devoid of feelings or empathy. And yes, the book has copious amounts of humor, but funny it isn't. It's revolting, heartbreaking, infuriating.
The White Tiger is not a pleasant book to read. But it has earned its accolades and prizes. Adiga is a masterful storyteller, and the story flows well. I love how, over and over, he leads us in one direction, only to flip things upside-down and go someplace else entirely. He has a rare talent for telling his story in a way that is truly an adventure for the reader. No foregone conclusions, no clichéd progression of events, no boredom. I love this kind of book. For a first-time author to create a thing like this... wow, hats off.
In the (fairly terrible) interview included at the end of the book, Adiga states that this is a work of fiction, and not meant to be a "true story." But I think anyone going through life with open eyes knows that much of what he describes is true, perhaps not in every detail but certainly in a big-picture way. Humans are awful to each other. One does not need to be Indian, or intimately familiar with Indian society and history, to understand that.
I would compare Aravind Adiga to Émile Zola. Competely different style, same heart. Great reading.
The White Tiger is not a pleasant book to read. But it has earned its accolades and prizes. Adiga is a masterful storyteller, and the story flows well. I love how, over and over, he leads us in one direction, only to flip things upside-down and go someplace else entirely. He has a rare talent for telling his story in a way that is truly an adventure for the reader. No foregone conclusions, no clichéd progression of events, no boredom. I love this kind of book. For a first-time author to create a thing like this... wow, hats off.
In the (fairly terrible) interview included at the end of the book, Adiga states that this is a work of fiction, and not meant to be a "true story." But I think anyone going through life with open eyes knows that much of what he describes is true, perhaps not in every detail but certainly in a big-picture way. Humans are awful to each other. One does not need to be Indian, or intimately familiar with Indian society and history, to understand that.
I would compare Aravind Adiga to Émile Zola. Competely different style, same heart. Great reading.