Aravind Adiga's "The White Tiger"

"Kill my boss?! Do I dare live out the American dream?"

by Ashley Blunt

The White Tiger is indeed about a man who kills his boss - I'm not ruining it for you, really! The main character owns up to it right in the first few pages, and without much sense of regret or even chagrin. But while it may well be the American dream, this story takes place in India and is very much of India: not only are both boss and employee (and all other characters) Indian, the story of the murder - the story of Balram Halwai's entire life, spirals around and grows out of the circumstances of India.

The pieces of Balram's life are simply and directly narrated by Balram himself, who received no fancy education or special privilege. They immerse us in the India of the moment, and are laid out for us in such as way as to convince us that, in the same circumstances, we would have murdered the boss as well, even though, to be honest, he was not so bad, as bosses go. In fact, the case is made, though not explicitly, that had the boss been a little crueler, inspired a little more fear in Balram, well, then - he probably never would have taken the chance.

Balram's not a bad guy, after all. Aside from the whole "murder" incident, he's generally done his best to live in a decent way. Oh, right -- he's also responsible for the death of pretty much his entire family. But some of them had it coming. And again, when allowed to present the circumstances from his point of view, Balram is quite convincing.

Perhaps you'd disagree with me. Perhaps you'd say Balram deserves to be in prison, to be punished, what have you. But then again, perhaps you'd feel just the same as I did when I finished the book: slightly guilty, slightly vindicated, largely relieved. I don't know. You'd have to read it.