Q & A (novel)
First edition
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| Author | Vikas Swarup |
|---|---|
| Country | India |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Drama |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
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Publication date
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2005 |
| Pages | 304 |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 57564932 |
| 813/.6 22 | |
| LC Class | PR9499.4.S93 Q13 2005 |
Q & A is a novel by Vikas Swarup, an Indian diplomat. Published in 2005, it was the author's first novel. Set in India, it tells the rags to riches story of Ram Mohammad Thomas, a young waiter who becomes the biggest quiz show winner in history, only to be sent to jail on accusations (but with no evidence) that he cheated. In 2008, the book was adapted into the multiple Oscar-winning movie Slumdog Millionaire.
The idea behind the story line was triggered by a report in a local newspaper about children living in the Indian slums using mobile phones and the internet - an indication that class barriers were breaking down. At the same time, Charles Ingram, an ex-British Army Major, was accused and found guilty of cheating in the British version of the television show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. To quote Swarup: “If a British army major can be accused of cheating, then an ignorant tiffin boy from the world's biggest slum can definitely be accused of cheating.”.
Q & A won the South Africa's Boeke Prize 2006. It was also nominated for the Best First Book by the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and won the Prix Grand Public at the 2007 Paris Book Fair.
To date, the book has sold translation rights in 43 languages, including Arabic, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Danish, Spanish, Greek, Romanian, Finnish, Slovenian, Croatian, Turkish, Icelandic, Chinese, Polish, Russian, Norwegian, Swedish, Bulgarian, Serbian, Hindi, Gujarati (as Jackpot), Marathi, Punjabi, Tamil, Sinhala, Indonesian, Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese and Hebrew (both as The Riddle Boy from Mumbai), Portuguese.
Ram Mohammad Thomas: The main character, who tells his life story to the lawyer he met in the strip club. He is in love with Nita and believes firmly in destiny. He possesses a "lucky" coin that he uses when confronted with big decisions—but both sides are "heads". Generally, he has a very pessimistic and realistic view of life. His name stands for three religions because it is unknown which religion his parents had. He is an orphan like Shiva.
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Wikipedia