Shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1996. This is a World Book Night copy from 2011.
A fascinating story, set in Bombay during The Emergency, telling the stories of people from different castes. I suspect it is true to life but that only makes it all the more incredibly depressing.

Going to Tarna as my RABCK for July. I hope you enjoy the book!

The night before yesterday, I found a card when returning home. It was from our mail delivery person and said that there was a large letter waiting for me at the post office. So I went there to pick it up yesterday before our local meet-up. I couldn't believe my eyes. This book has over 600 pages! And I'm the one always declaring a novel should (almost) never have more than 350 pages... Well, maybe A Fine Balance is the exception that proves the rule. It does seem very interesting, and there's a bonus I hadn't realized earlier. This is a Canadian book, hooray! If I should name one nation/country that provides the utmost best literature in the word, I'd say Canadians/Canada. They're just so good.
I'm really happy I won this book in your One book a month draw. Thank you so much, greenbadger! Thank you also for the postcard — I just love owls& other birds — and the One book a month thread. It's the best. I hope it'll be there also in 2015.

Rohinton Mistry at The Canadian Encyclopedia
Rohinton Mistry at the British Council Literature site
Rohinton Mistry at Wikipedia
A Fine Balance at Wikipedia

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Edited to add on Jan. 25, 2016 that I just tagged Piiku with this book. It's reserved for her.

Admittedly, I was afraid of this book. I think a novel writer should be able to say their piece in not more than 350 pages. Then I tagged Piiku with this book and she assured me that A Fine Balance is “truly a great book”. And she was right. I really enjoyed it even if I still think it could be a bit shorter. I got lost with some characters at first but Mistry’s writing style kept me going on with my reading. Yes, I really loved this book. Thank you so much for letting me read it, greenbadger!
Next, this book will travel to Piiku. Thanks also to pippis who’s promised to carry it to Turku with her.

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Among other challenges, I’m participating so called Ammattihaaste (Occupation Challenge).
There are quite a few occupations in this book. I seem to have lost my notes but I’ll try to remember at least something. For instance
• Seamstress: Knowing your customers and their life situation may be good for your business. Your eyesight is better be good.
• Tailor: Basically, same things are required as if you were a seamstress.
• Subcontactor needs to hire workers and keep them both happy and busy.
• Hair-collector gets the hair from pavement barbers (don’t remember if that’s the right word) of hair saloons. Sometimes one gets it free, sometimes have to pay for it. (Reminds me of war time when Finnish girl guides and boy scouts were gathering all kinds of things, eg. hair, to help with the war effort.
• Beggar: You’d better be handicapped somehow.
• Policeman drives people away from places where they’re not allowed to stay.
• Nightwatch may get some extra money for “renting” sleeping places to homeless people
• Motivator for Family Planning distributes leaflets
• Fascilitator is a kind of subcontactor since he gathers unemployed/jobless and other idle-looking people together and takes them to work camps even against their will
• Beggarmaster takes a substanctal part of beggar’s earnings and gives him/her a place to sleep, clothes etc.

Enjoy, Piiku! Thanks, pippis.

The book is here, thank you Tarna. I have read it before, so I know I'll like it a lot.

*** LaCalma 9/2016

Still liked the book a lot, though had forgotten how heartbreaking the end was.

Sending along as a wishlist surprise.

28.7.2020 I met Pamina and she kindly couriered me books from my wishlist. Thank you once again, Pamina and thank you for fulfilling my wish, Piiku!