Miss Ter Ter itibaren Căușeni 617032, Romanya
How did I miss hearing about this author until now? These are wonderful and strange little stories.
I liked this book. It is very tongue-in-cheek. It is an unforgiving look at the cruelties that being poor in India can reward you with. The protagonist mentions how he has never once voted in his life and yet a ballot has always been cast in his name in all elections since he came of age. I had to laugh at this. I remember chasing the voter registration guy who came to my house when I was 18. My name was not on the list and he would not add me. He had only come to confirm whoever he already had on the list. India's democracy survives despite how its government functions. It is instilled in the people in terms of their indomitable spirits, their will to be free and to self-determine. Aravind Adiga does that tradition of speaking to power and holding up a mirror to the emperor proud with this book. Just by having smart people who care and a system that generally allows them the freedom to speak out, I feel the Indian story, despite its false starts, might still have a better ending than the Chinese.