A depressing but worthwhile read—that was the bottom line on A Burning by Megha Majumdar for our Book Club. Why?
The writing was incredibly powerful and the plot well-structured. The reader was grabbed by the book immediately and the story moved forward quickly. The prose was spare—almost delivered with the voice of a child, i.e., stripped of social veneer—and contained beautiful metaphors. The end is extremely poetic “Know that I shall return…”
The author delivered an incredible sense of place—the smells, poverty as a lived experience, the blessed but beggar Hijra, the Eve teasing and the struggle of the have-nots to better themselves.
Although the story is set in India, the themes, albeit in hyperbole, resonate in North America where the impact of social media and right-wing extremism on democracy is a growing concern.
The story is appalling! Corruption appears widespread and implies that the modern world enables things to happen quickly. A lot happens. Some things work out but in a morally repulsive way. Morality is presented on a sliding scale. Within a short time, Lovely becomes a star through YouTube; PT Sir rises from teacher to Education Minister and Jivan goes from Facebook comment to hanging.
The main characters are well drawn—each had a distinct voice. Neither PT Sir nor Lovely appeared psychopathic but they allowed self-interest to prevent them from doing the “right thing”. While those two clearly compromised principles, it is less clear for Jivan: she felt guilt about walking away from the man asking her to take his child—a child that likely could not be rescued. However, Jivan, betrayed by the journalist, held out hope for the system and trust in humanity to the end.
What is the author’s purpose? Is she putting us on notice about how money can undermine democracy?