Winner of the 2008
Man Booker Prize, Aravind Adiga writes a tale about a smart man, Balram Halwai, - who rises from poverty to becoming a multi-millionaire, successfull business man in the New India. And it is the journey that is really the focus of the story - filled with corruption, virtual slavery, family and social presssures and even murder - it is a very stark contrast to the traditional tale of success.
What is really tragic, in many respects, about the story - is that it is in many respects an honest potrayal of the class, social and economic divide of India. The tales of corruption - while maybe exaggarated, are not tales that would not ring true at some point.
And in the end, you realise - that the story could be really set in any other third world country. You will get smart boys forced to work, to pay off some family debt instead of going to school. You will find social pressures dictating what the person can do as their living. And, it will be the very select few, who can trully escape their background and trappings of their birth. In fact, in the times of financial turmoils; this tale probably rings true for everyone in the world ... and in the end, we would all support Balram Halwai's actions ...
