Between The Assassinations is a perfect book to read during a journey. Aravind is not just a writer. He is a talented writer. His book reminded me so much of Malgudi Days by RK Narayan. Narayan seems to be an inspiration and a strong influence, but the author managed to keep his originality intact.
I loved the narrative. Unlike many other books by Indian authors where I felt the book was written to be sold as an international best seller, this book is by an Indian to an Indian. If you love India and its people, you will like this book. He touches all the sore spots of our culture but makes us feel like "this is how we are and there is nothing good or bad about it".
The stories are gripping, fast paced and always end up making you relate strongly to the situations and the characters. If RK Narayan's stories are all about beliefs and innocence of the pre-independence era, this book is about today's society.
The stories collectively are quite disjoint but you won't feel it because of the strong theme of the town in the background. This is precisely why this is a great read for a journey. Even if you leave reading in the middle, you are not left biting your nails to complete the book and when you return to read the rest, you don't feel like you forgot where you left the story.
I categorize this book as a 'must read'. I have the book with me, but I promised to lend it to a friend to read. As always, if you know me personally, drop me an email and I will happily lend you the book.