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Informative,
Dramatic,
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6 reviews

A Fine Balance (Oprah's Book Club)

by Rohinton Mistry

Published: 1997
Paperback : 603 pages

22 members reading this now
32 clubs reading this now
26 members have read this book

Recommended to book clubs by 6 of 6 members

No other editions available.

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Introduction

With a compassionate realism and narrative sweep that recall the work of Charles Dickens, this magnificent novel captures all the cruelty and corruption, dignity and heroism, of India. The time is 1975. The place is an unnamed city by the sea. The government has just declared a State of Emergency, in whose upheavals four strangers--a spirited widow, a young student uprooted from his idyllic hill station, and two tailors who have fled the caste violence of their native village--will be thrust together, forced to share one cramped apartment and an uncertain future.

As the characters move from distrust to friendship and from friendship to love, A Fine Balance creates an enduring panorama of the human spirit in an inhuman state.

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Excerpt

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Discussion Questions

Suggested by Members

What factors are key in maintaining a fine balance that makes life worth living when rare moments of joy are far out numbered by abject misery?

by [email protected] (see profile) 11/22/18

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Book Club Recommendations

Recommended to book clubs by 6 of 6 members.

Member Reviews

Overall rating:

by Beth H. (see profile) 05/20/23

by Marcia P. (see profile) 04/09/22

by Kay M. (see profile) 02/14/20

by Stacy T. (see profile) 12/01/19

The main character is Dina. The book is her life story and the story of the people who touched her heart. The book is set in India in 1975. It is eye-opening to see the struggles of this country. I’m... (read more)

"Kumbaya In America"by javier f. (see profile) 11/22/18

The problems of prejudice in our country pale when juxtaposed with India's caste system. We're all singing Kumbaya in America by comparison. This book is a shockingly graphic account of humans nearing... (read more)

by Keri C. (see profile) 07/23/18

Incredible. I loved everything about this book. The author has such a skill for describing people, place and abject poverty. Inspirational yet heartbreaking.

by Rebecca D. (see profile) 01/12/18

"A Fine Balance"by Amy K. (see profile) 09/06/16

This was a beautiful story. The interactions and relationships among the four main characters were engrossing and inspiring. If you enjoy historical fiction, this story is for you. I could not put... (read more)

"A Fine Balance"by Angela S. (see profile) 06/18/13

It's amazing how much one's outlook on life, pessimistic vs. optimistic, sways decisions and outcomes. The book proves that you really need to strike a fine balance in order to carry on no matter what... (read more)

"Don't miss this book!"by Emma L A. (see profile) 01/12/12

This book changed my life. I encouraged every reader in my family to read it and all were deeply affected. You will be hard pressed to take your life for granted after knowing what others have endured.... (read more)

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