The White Tiger A Novel - TINET

1 The White Tiger : A NovelAdiga, AravindFree Press (2009)Tags:barbara-seabourn barbara-seabourntttSUMMARY:Introducing a major literary talent, The White Tiger offers a story of coruscating wit, blisteringsuspense, and questionable morality, told by the most volatile, captivating, and utterly inimitablenarrator that this millennium has yet Halwai is a complicated man. Servant. Murderer. Over the course of seven nights, by the scattered light of a preposterouschandelier, Balram tells us the terrible and transfixing story of how he came to be a success in life --having nothing but his own wits to help him in the dark heart of India, Balram gets a breakwhen he is hired as a driver for his village's wealthiest man, two house Pomeranians (Puddles andCuddles), and the rich man's (very unlucky) son.

2 From behind the wheel of their Honda City car,Balram's new world is a revelation. While his peers flip through the pages of Murder Weekly ("Love-- Rape -- Revenge!"), barter for girls, drink liquor (Thunderbolt), and perpetuate the Great RoosterCoop of Indian society , Balram watches his employers bribe foreign ministers for tax breaks, barterfor girls, drink liquor (single-malt whiskey), and play their own role in the Rooster Coop. Balramlearns how to siphon gas, deal with corrupt mechanics, and refill and resell Johnnie Walker BlackLabel bottles (all but one). He also finds a way out of the Coop that no one else inside it 's eyes penetrate India as few outsiders can: the cockroaches and the call centers; theprostitutes and the worshippers; the ancient and Internet cultures; the water buffalo and, trapped in somany kinds of cages that escape is (almost) impossible, the White Tiger .

3 And with a charisma asundeniable as it is unexpected, Balram teaches us that religion doesn't create virtue, and moneydoesn't solve every problem -- but decency can still be found in a corrupt world, and you can getwhat you want out of life if you eavesdrop on the right in sixteen countries aroundthe world, The White Tiger recalls The Death of Vishnu and Bangkok 8 in ambition, scope, andnarrative genius, with a mischief and personality all its own. Amoral, irreverent, deeply endearing,and utterly contemporary, this Novel is an international publishing sensation -- and a startling,provocative PRESSA Division of Simon & Schuster, Avenue of the AmericasNew York, NY 10020 This book is a work of fiction.

4 Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of theauthor s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons,living or dead, is entirely 2008 by Aravind AdigaAll rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any formwhatsoever. For information address Free Press Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of theAmericas, New York, NY 10020 FREE PRESS and colophon are trademarks of Simon & Schuster, of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataAdiga, Aravind. The White Tiger : a Novel / Aravind Adiga. p. Chauffeurs India Bangalore Fiction.

5 2. Poor India Bangalore Fiction. 3. Ambition Fiction. 4. Business people India Bangalore Fiction. 5. Bangalore (India) 2008 2007045527823'.92 dc22 ISBN-13: 978-1-4165-6273-3 ISBN-10: 1-4165-6273-7 Visit us on the World Wide Web: Ramin BahraniTHE White TIGERC ontentsThe First NightThe Second NightThe Fourth MorningThe Fourth NightThe Fifth NightThe Sixth MorningThe Sixth NightThe Seventh NightThe First NightFor the Desk of:His Excellency Wen JiabaoThe Premier s OfficeBeijingCapital of the Freedom-loving Nation of ChinaFrom the Desk of: The White Tiger A Thinking ManAnd an EntrepreneurLiving in the world s center of Technology and OutsourcingElectronics City Phase 1 (just off Hosur Main Road)Bangalore, IndiaMr.

6 Premier, you nor I speak English, but there are some things that can be said only in ex-employer the late Mr. Ashok s ex-wife, Pinky Madam, taught me one of these things; and at11:32 today, which was about ten minutes ago, when the lady on All India Radio announced, Premier Jiabao is coming to Bangalore next week, I said that thing at fact, each time when great men like you visit our country I say it. Not that I have anythingagainst great men. In my way, sir, I consider myself one of your kind. But whenever I see our primeminister and his distinguished sidekicks drive to the airport in black cars and get out and do namastesbefore you in front of a TV camera and tell you about how moral and saintly India is, I have to saythat thing in , you are visiting us this week, Your Excellency, aren t you?

7 All India Radio is usuallyreliable in these was a joke, !That s why I want to ask you directly if you really are coming to Bangalore. Because if you are, Ihave something important to tell you. See, the lady on the radio said, Mr. Jiabao is on a mission: hewants to know the truth about Bangalore. My blood froze. If anyone knows the truth about Bangalore, it s , the lady announcer said, Mr. Jiabao wants to meet some Indian entrepreneurs and hear thestory of their success from their own lips. She explained a little. Apparently, sir, you Chinese are far ahead of us in every respect, exceptthat you don t have entrepreneurs. And our nation, though it has no drinking water, electricity, sewagesystem, public transportation, sense of hygiene, discipline, courtesy, or punctuality, does haveentrepreneurs.

8 Thousands and thousands of them. Especially in the field of technology. And theseentrepreneurs we entrepreneurs have set up all these outsourcing companies that virtually runAmerica hope to learn how to make a few Chinese entrepreneurs, that s why you re visiting. Thatmade me feel good. But then it hit me that in keeping with international protocol, the prime ministerand foreign minister of my country will meet you at the airport with garlands, small take-homesandalwood statues of Gandhi, and a booklet full of information about India s past, present, s when I had to say that thing in English, sir. Out was at 11:37 Five minutes don t just swear and curse.

9 I m a man of action and change. I decided right there and then to startdictating a letter to begin with, let me tell you of my great admiration for the ancient nation of read about your history in a book, Exciting Tales of the Exotic East, that I found on thepavement, back in the days when I was trying to get some enlightenment by going through the Sundaysecondhand book market in Old Delhi. This book was mostly about pirates and gold in Hong Kong,but it did have some useful background information too: it said that you Chinese are great lovers offreedom and individual liberty. The British tried to make you their servants, but you never let them doit.

10 I admire that, Mr. was a servant once, you three nations have never let themselves be ruled by foreigners: China, Afghanistan, andAbyssinia. These are the only three nations I of respect for the love of liberty shown by the Chinese people, and also in the belief that thefuture of the world lies with the yellow man and the brown man now that our erstwhile master, thewhite-skinned man, has wasted himself through buggery, cell phone usage, and drug abuse, I offer totell you, free of charge, the truth about telling you my life s , when you come to Bangalore, and stop at a traffic light, some boy will run up to your car andknock on your window, while holding up a bootlegged copy of an American business book, wrappedcarefully in cellophane and with a title like.