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brettcarl 's review for:
Slumdog Millionaire
by Vikas Swarup
dark
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
In regards to the novel's prose, I found say that Slumdog Millionaire can be an enjoyable and easy read, specifically; the use of first-person was an effective choice for a story recounting the life experiences of its protagonist as it allows us to see everything through Ram's perception - his thoughts, feelings, opinions, and actual sight - and its use also, obviously, makes the story more personal and thus humanises Ram effectively too.
On the other hand, the novel's structure, which I didn't hate and I even understood the use of it because of its simplicity, does eventually make the story, and in particular, Ram's anecdotes become repetitive and predictable, a feeling which is exacerbated by the story's overall gloom and doom tone which at times feels exploitative and similar to torture porn, and thus the novel is not the enjoyable and/or easy read that it can be occasionally.
Critically, there are main themes and ideas mentioned in the novel, such as: sexuality, racism, religion, crime and corruption, as well as abuse and neglect. Yet, clearly the most dominant themes/ideas mentioned, and further explored, are poverty, wealth and social class as the story's itself revolves around a young lower-class man working as a waiter and who was born as orphan, who then ends up winning a billion rupees on a game show. While the latter themes, as stated above, are explored further, the eventual analysis and conclusions about them are basic and uninspiring. Furthermore, the former themes like sexuality, racism, etc, are mentioned and some help highlight tensions if the environment and reveal the histories of settings, and some show the ignorance and bigotry of certain characters, there is also a lack of profound or poignant commentary on them and in the case of exploring the theme of sexuality, the novel does come across quite homophobic.
Finally, in regards to the novel's characters and setting, Swarup did a decent job at creating likeable and interesting characters in believable and intriguing settings. However, the character development of Ram feels underwhelming and as previously stated about other aspects of the novel, the characters and the settings too become repetitive and predictable, thus losing their effectiveness.
Overall, Slumdog Millionaire by Vikas Swarup was simultaneously an easy, enjoyable read and then a tiring, taxing read, I didn't regret reading it and as I've said there are some aspects of the novel that I appreciated and even enjoyed. Yet, considering its potential as novel, especially regarding its structure and premise, it could be far more satisfying, inspiring and entertaining than what it turned out to be.
On the other hand, the novel's structure, which I didn't hate and I even understood the use of it because of its simplicity, does eventually make the story, and in particular, Ram's anecdotes become repetitive and predictable, a feeling which is exacerbated by the story's overall gloom and doom tone which at times feels exploitative and similar to torture porn, and thus the novel is not the enjoyable and/or easy read that it can be occasionally.
Critically, there are main themes and ideas mentioned in the novel, such as: sexuality, racism, religion, crime and corruption, as well as abuse and neglect. Yet, clearly the most dominant themes/ideas mentioned, and further explored, are poverty, wealth and social class as the story's itself revolves around a young lower-class man working as a waiter and who was born as orphan, who then ends up winning a billion rupees on a game show. While the latter themes, as stated above, are explored further, the eventual analysis and conclusions about them are basic and uninspiring. Furthermore, the former themes like sexuality, racism, etc, are mentioned and some help highlight tensions if the environment and reveal the histories of settings, and some show the ignorance and bigotry of certain characters, there is also a lack of profound or poignant commentary on them and in the case of exploring the theme of sexuality, the novel does come across quite homophobic.
Finally, in regards to the novel's characters and setting, Swarup did a decent job at creating likeable and interesting characters in believable and intriguing settings. However, the character development of Ram feels underwhelming and as previously stated about other aspects of the novel, the characters and the settings too become repetitive and predictable, thus losing their effectiveness.
Overall, Slumdog Millionaire by Vikas Swarup was simultaneously an easy, enjoyable read and then a tiring, taxing read, I didn't regret reading it and as I've said there are some aspects of the novel that I appreciated and even enjoyed. Yet, considering its potential as novel, especially regarding its structure and premise, it could be far more satisfying, inspiring and entertaining than what it turned out to be.