The White Tiger

As Balram begins to tell his story of growing up, surviving and then thriving (this is debatable) in India I wasn't sure I wanted to hear another Slumdog Millionaire story.  I kept reading because the author, Aravind Adiga, threw me a bone, so to speak and then I was hooked.  Balram grew up in the Darkness of India as a smart kid who wormed his way into a job as a driver for a wealthy family.  The bulk of the book is taken up as Balram describes his life and that of his master.  Not his boss, not his employer, his master.  As Adiga describes the injustices in India I wanted to point my finger at India and get very self-righteous about their caste system.  However, my head was also swimming with the questions that I ponder constantly.  How do we keep people in their place here in the U.S.?  How are our social classes actually divided?  Do people from one class actually want to move up to the next class, or do they just want some of the benefits of that class?  The White Tiger is Adiga's first novel and I look forward to reading more from him, as soon as I can emotionally prepare for it.

Admission

There's nothing like a movie based on a book to get me writing again.  When I saw the preview for the new movie Admission with Tina Fey and Paul Rudd I thought, "I think I own that book."  Sure enough I found it in a big stack of "to be read" in my bedroom.  I think Tina Fey is great so I know I'm going to see the movie.  Of course, the way my brain works is that I need to read the book first.  I finished it this afternoon.  Thumbs up, or down?  Hard to say.  I have a feeling Karen Croner (screenplay) will have written what I wish the book had been.  The title is a homonym used in the book to describe Portia Nathan's career as an admissions officer for Princeton University and for the secret that she needs to get off her chest that she's carried for 17 years.  The book is organized according to the cycle of admissions to ivy league universities.  I now know WAY TOO MUCH about admission to ivy league universities.  In fact, the book waxes on so much about the process that I literally thought it was the author's first book.  I was wrong.  So, where was her editor? Other than that flaw, I'd like to say that I like the characters and the setting, etc.  I want to like Portia.  She has some admirable qualities.  Unfortunately, she's just not very likable.  I think the author knows this, as Portia has approximately one friend.  There are a few other likable characters, but only one or two others tied to Princeton.  The author makes ivy league schools seem very disagreeable to someone like me, honestly.  Well, if Tina Fey signed on, then I have faith that the film will be much more enjoyable.  For instance, even in the preview there are a few laughs...whereas the book is most definitely not funny.  In fact, I would say that it takes itself entirely too seriously.