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Audiobook narrated by Vikas Adam. A format I highly recommend for this novel.

“Please always remember, the secret of survival is to embrace change, and to adapt. To quote: ‘All things fall and are built again, and those that build them again are gay.�� �� “Yeats?�� guessed Maneck. The proofreader nodded, “You see, you cannot draw lines and compartments, and refuse to budge beyond them. Sometimes you have to use your failures as stepping-stones to success. You have to maintain a fine balance between hope and despair.�� He paused, considering what he had just said. “Yes,�� he repeated. “In the end, it’s all a question of balance.�� Maneck nodded. ��

The above paragraph summarizes the novel quite well, I would say. The conversation was carried out by Manek, one of the main characters and a mysterious character who reappears three times in the novel. My buddy readers are also fascinated and confused by this key person and his role in the story.

The novel takes place during the State of Emergency period installed by Indira Gandhi and follows the lives of four characters and how their life is affected by the draconic regulations. The first chapters show us how those people of different ages and social status came to meet each other. Then, we are introduced to each character’s life story. We have Dina, an independent widow who tries to survive on her own and not depend on her domineering brother. She is a tailor but her diminishing sight forces her to look for help. Ishvar and his nephew Om are two tailors who ran away from their village due to caste violence and are desperate to find a job in the city. Lastly, there is Manek a young student who is looking for a place to live, unhappy with the squalid conditions in the hostel where he had accommodation.

The writing gave me Dickensian and Hardy vibes. We follow the three characters through their failures, hurts and minor successes. I started to care a lot for this characters and I could not stop from suffering with them every time something bad happened. And here is the problem and the reason I gave the book only 4 stars. Too many bad things happen to this limited number of people, especially to Om and Ishvar. I could not bear it at some point and felt really depressed. All those bad things are real and many people were affected but those two felt like the unluckiest people in the world. The writing had some humour, probably intended as some sort of anaesthetic for the pain the author inflicted on his characters and the reader. I broadened my knowledge about the caste system, forced sterilization and other horrible practices. I also improved my knowledge of the Partition and The State of Emergency. I am glad I read A Fine Balance, I believe it is an important novel but one has to be in the right state of mind to cope with all that misery.