Aravind Adiga's White Tiger wins Booker Prize

Aravind Adiga won the Man Booker Prize for fiction last week with his novel, The White Tiger. At 34, Adiga was the youngest of the Booker's six shortlisted finalists. The White Tiger, his first book, chronicles the journey of a young Indian entrepreneur bent on escaping impoverished rural life.

Adiga is the fourth Indian-born writer to win the prestigious award, joining Kiran Desai, Arundhati Roy, and the Best of the Booker winner (who was famously snubbed by this year's committee) Salman Rushdie.

The White Tiger proved a controversial selection, as many have criticized the book for its harsh portrayal of the lower classes in India. In an interview with the BBC, Adiga responded, "In India if you really want to get out and do a book you have to make a conscious effort to connect to people in every conceivable way."

Other shortlisters included Sebastian Barry, Amitav Ghosh, Steve Toltz, Linda Grant and Philip Hensher.

Related links:
TheManBookerPrize.com
News: Booker Prize 2008 shortlist surprises
Booker News: The White Tiger wins the 2008 Man Booker Prize for Fiction

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