Booker Prize Winner
The White Tiger
by Aravind Adiga
Summary
Balram Halwai, a chauffeur turned entrepreneur in Bangalore, narrates his bloody escape from rural poverty in a series of letters to a visiting Chinese premier. Adiga's mordant first person voice exposes the underside of India's economic miracle, where caste, corruption, and servitude underwrite the new wealth. The novel is fast moving, blackly funny, and unsparing about who pays the cost of growth.
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Historical Context & Significance
Adiga was a debut novelist and only the fourth Indian born author to win at the time.