realism

Often, I will judge a book as good or bad by how convinced I am that the world portrayed is realistic. Sometimes books succeed in creating a realistic sense by focusing on the outer environment, sometimes on the inner lives of the characters. What distinguishes A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry is the melding of the outer world and inner lives.

The premise of the story is the intersection between a lower middle-class woman, a pair of low-caste migrant tailors, and an upper-caste college student. Or, between a middle-aged woman who has abandoned hope, two young men full of hope, and an older man who still harbors hope for his nephew, if not for himself. Hope can be defined in a variety of ways, and is by each of these individuals. But in each shape it is faith in the world and fellow humans.

Dina, in an effort to maintain financial independence from her overbearing brother, rents a room in her house to Maneck, who is a college student. Simultaneously, she advertises for tailors to work for her home-sewing business. As these individuals get to know each other and fill the roles that were previously empty the world(s) which each individual inhabits seem a little bit brighter and happier. Sadly, this hopeful mood wanes and by the end of the novel hope has shrunk back to the stingy thing it had been at the beginning.

I was very surprised by how sad and isolated each character had become by the end of the novel. It was worth  reading, but only if followed by reading more optimistic writing!

"The great Indian rooster coop"

Continuing the theme of narrators who feel trapped by the society in which they live, Balram Halwai, a young Indian man, recounts his life history in The White Tiger. This is an epistolary novel and Balram is writing to Wen Jiabao. Hearing on the radio that Wen Jiabao wants to meet Indian entrepreneurs Balram volunteers to recount how he became an entrepreneur. Over the course of seven nights he tells his story.

As a boy Balram was successful in school and aspired to leave his village for the city. Learning how to drive he succeeds in becoming a driver, a prestigious occupation for someone of his background. Unfortunately, as he outlines philosophically, he (and all Indians) are constrained by "the great Indian rooster coop" which prevents any one individual from escaping their prison of indebtedness and familial obligations to become really free. As soon as someone tries to escape they are dragged back down with the rest of the chickens. Balram, however, has found a way out of the coop as only a white tiger can.

I did not find Balram to be an admirable or likable character. His lack of familial responsibility or affection is aberrant by any cultural standard.

December Book Club Choice

The book club will no longer be voting on a book every month. Rather each person will be choosing a book and the rest of us will read it. December's book will be The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga. This novel won the Man Booker Prize in 2008. It was reviewed in the NYT.

"Train to Pakistan"

This 1956 novel by Khushwant Singh is a tragic love story. Juggut Singh, a Sikh, is in love with Noorm, a Muslim, and they hope to marry. Their village is a mixture of Sikhs and Muslims, and portrayed as quiet and peaceful. Then the intellectual, Iqbal Singh, arrives. As the Partition of India and Pakistan begins he hopes to spread revolutionary ideas.

The Muslims are given the choice to leave while they can, or face mounting violence and persecution in the time ahead. Muslims in the region have been getting on trains and leaving, and Sikhs have been arriving from future Pakistan. However, when a trainful of dead Sikhs arrives, the question is, "will the Sikhs will take revenge on their Muslim neighbors?" Whether Noorm escapes to Pakistan rests in the hands of Juggut Singh, who loves her, and Iqbal Singh, who loves his ideology.

This is an excellent, well-written, short novel. The central romance is heart-wrenching and makes the violent and chaotic events of the Partition more understandable. Not being knowledgeable about the Partition of India this novel provides an overview of what happened. I highly recommend it.