http://dinetoread.ie/forums/ A book club with a difference en Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:57:56 +0000 http://dinetoread.ie/forums/topic/a-fine-balance-by-rohinton-mistry#post-405 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:03:01 +0000 Claire 405@http://dinetoread.ie/forums/ <p>I loved it too. I love the way Indian writers can write about such tragic circumstannces with such a light touch. There is a lot of grief but a lot of laughter in this book. it's not misery lit (which I can't abide!) </p> http://dinetoread.ie/forums/topic/a-fine-balance-by-rohinton-mistry#post-404 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:21:45 +0000 Eileen 404@http://dinetoread.ie/forums/ <p>Bookbug, I loved this book too, although I prefered Family Matters. Mistry as a brilliant way of conveying India. I felt like I'd done a degree in Indian Studies after reading those books! </p> http://dinetoread.ie/forums/topic/a-fine-balance-by-rohinton-mistry#post-402 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 16:15:58 +0000 Bookbug 402@http://dinetoread.ie/forums/ <p>A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry</p> <p>I think this has skipped to the top of my favourites list for the year so please anyone who has an interest in Indian culture give this a go! However, it is one of the bleakest books I have read in a long time so prepare to be depressed. Set against the backdrop of 1970s India, it is the story of four people whose lives cross paths - a naive student from the North, a middle aged Parsi widow maintaining a tenuous independence from her overbearing family and an uncle and nephew, both Hindu tailors of an 'untouchable' caste. While telling the story of their lives Mistry touches on the injustices of the caste system, details the monstrosities committed by Indira Gandhi's Government and documents the Muslim and Sikh riots of the 70s. The story is beautifully intricate and horribly tragic - I cannot recommend this book highly enough. </p>