Aravind Adiga has won this year's Man Booker Prize for his novel The White Tiger.
This was the first novel that I read after it was long-listed back in July. I thought it was a pretty decent book at the time but I didn't expect it to get shortlisted or be the winner in the long run.
What I did like about the book was that it was thoroughly original, modern and very readable because of its engaging characters. However, I didn't like the way the novel was structured. The main character - the White Tiger of the novel - is Balram Halwai. We learn early on in the novel that he kills his master (at the end of the first chapter in the book, I think). Over most of the next chapters, the author explores Balram's relationship with his master and this is really where the novel is at its best. Adiga used humour well and there were some interesting subplots. Then I quickly found myself at the end of the novel and I still didn't understand why Balram had to kill his Master to get what he wanted. I understand his entrepreneurial ambitions but not why they lead to him committing such a vicious act. The socio-political parts of the book were the best parts, I thought, and were what remained with me after closing the book.
In my last post I mentioned that dream winner would be Steve Toltz's A Fraction of the Whole. This was a much longer book that Adiga's and whilst some of the criticisms that I have made of Adiga could equally be applicable to Toltz, I found the novel resonated with me much more. In fact, when Michael Portillo this year began to announce the winner, he said: "The Winner of the Man Booker Prize 2008 is a debutante novelist..." - this meant either Toltz or Adiga from the shortlist and I leapt up with joy, but it was not to be.
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3 comments:
"Then I quickly found myself at the end of the novel and I still didn't understand why Balram had to kill his Master to get what he wanted."
Spot on. His whole motivation was patchy. I thought the subject matter was interesting but good subject matter doesn't automatically equal good novel.
I liked A Fraction of the Whole a lot more, and although it wasn't my favourite by a long shot, it would have been a much more worthy winner than The White Tiger.
Then again, if the Booker didn't disappoint us with its decisions, we'd still be talking about the credit crunch!
"Then again, if the Booker didn't disappoint us with its decisions, we'd still be talking about the credit crunch!"
Yes, there is that!
I found your reviews for this year's Booker longlist to be a great read in themselves. Interestingly, to show how at one we are in our opinions, I note that in one of your comments on the A Fraction of the Whole review on your blog, you called it 'lacklustre'. Well that's what I'm all about, I thought!
The judges of this year's prize I think had narrowed their final choice down to The White Tiger and one more novel from the shortlist. Do you think it was A Fraction of the Whole?
Impossible to say (though you can think that if it makes you feel better!). The judges' decision-making was so unpredictable this year, from longlist on, that I have given up trying to second guess them.
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