This was only the second book I finished this year and it might well be one of the top five books I am likely to read in 2009.

The story is compiled of letters/installments by the title character Balram Halwai aka The White Tiger aka Munna aka Ashok Sharma, addressed to the Chinese official Wen Jiabao. The White Tiger presents himself as someone who can offer his insight on how to become an entrepreneur in India. In actuality, he proceeds to tell his life story to Mr. Jiabao, from his days as a nameless (Munna = "boy") son of a rikshaw-puller of low caste and his subsequent rise by becoming first a driver and later - after disposing of his master - a self-made man in the city of Bangalore.

The murder itself is ghastly, but does not come as a surprise - and I am not giving anything away here - because he admits to being a murderer right away.

Impressive.

Thanks, concertina8!
I want to send it to a BC friend in Germany, but I think first I'm gonna read it myself! :)

A very good read. If you liked Q & A (Slumdog Millionaire) you will probably like this one too.

I'm going to send it to elhamisabel now.

Sent off to Germany today!

Arrived today, thanks both of you! :-)

Aravind Adiga's books won the 2008 Booker Prize and I can see why. Its language is fluent and engaging.
Unfortunately, just like I've been fed up with reading books about the Nazi era, the numerous South American juntas terrorising their own people, and the Spanish literaure full of Franco's atrocities, I've had enough fiction and non-fiction about India's self-destructing abilities.
Therefore, I kind of loathed this novel. And that's why it took me so long to read it.
As I said, the book itself was very good. It's just that I seem to be unable to take more of that kind of stuff from India at the moment.

I sent it to Borschtsch.

Vielen Dank für die Spende. Das Buch wird demnächst ausgesetzt, leider kann ich jetzt noch nicht sagen, wann oder wo. Aber es kommt wieder unter die Leute, versprochen :). Deshalb stelle ich auch alle gespendeten Bücher jetzt schon auf "Travelling". Gelesen werden natürlich auch eine Menge :)

Da ich gerade eine Lampen-, Verkehrsschild- und Verteilerkastenphase habe, lehnt es wahrscheinlich hinter einer Lampe, an einem Verkehrsschild oder liegt auf einem Verteilerkasten.