A debut novel that stands out for its satirical humour - A Black and White Life

Dec. 28, 2016 - PRLog -- The first thought that comes to your mind when you read A Black and White Life is you are being carried along on a gust of wind that never stops blowing. Yet it is neither a thriller nor romance fiction. Debutant author Bharath Veeraraghavan has moved away from the beaten path and focused on telling a simple story where the humour carries the narrative and makes for light and easy reading.

Not written like conventional fiction, the book is not laden down with description or backstory because of its linear narrative and its very tight focus.

It starts off like the crazy memoir of the completely self-obsessed and in fact delusional Raman Venkat Iyer and you wonder whether the writer will be able to pull this style off over an entire book. He manages to by getting you to utterly empathise with Raman. That doesn't mean that you will agree with Raman in everything that he says and does, rather you would understand why he does it, even though inwardly you might be wailing "No, don't do that!".

Raman is an interesting character who comes alive very quickly. He refuses to grow up. He blames everything and everyone else for all his problems, taking it to new and unprecedented levels due to his position as a rich man's (only) son.

He's not stupid. He might not be academic, but he has some acute observations to make of his peers and the adults around him. Raman's story, while initially perhaps morally repugnant, does gain its own logical plausibility. All he wants is to be left alone with his stick of marijuana. All the usual tropes about heroes overcoming their obstacles and learning from their experiences don't really wash with Raman. He does his best to avoid conflict, to sidle round obstacles and yet stubbornly hold on to his peculiar moral code.  He's found himself in the happy circumstance of not needing to struggle in life, and makes an early decision that he's therefore not going to bother. He doesn't want to be part of society and doesn't see why he needs to be.

Can anyone just recline on their inherited wealth and lead a life without engaging with society? Apparently not. Does that mean he undergoes some change, crosses some kind of Rubicon, where the scales fall from his eyes? Hop on to Raman's hilarious and wacky journey to find out.