This book was good. I might've thought it was even better had it not been quite so hype

Using three different narrators we catch a glimpse of the complicated nature of the world we live in. While the particulars of the story are, it could be argued, unique to the setting the wider issues of corruption, personal politics, social media etc are all to relevant no matter where we live. To tell ourselves the lies that things like what happen in the book couldn't happen here is to ignore the fact that it can and does

I very much enjoyed the narration from all three voice actors and I look forward to what Majumdar writes next. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Megha Majumdar's searing debut shines a burning torch on life in Kolkata - from the village slums to the highest political office. At its centre is a heartbreaking story about the fate of one girl but the actions of the supporting characters, in all their complexity, have a demonstrably massive impact. Through Jivan, PT Teacher and Lovely we are able to consider the ruthlessness of politicians, the intoxication of approval and acceptance, the surreptitious nature of manipulation as it occurs in imperceptible increments and plain old survival. My favourite character is Lovely who is Hijra (trans). She is the most loveable and relatable trans witness since Peter Capaldi played the unforgettable Vera Reynolds in Prime Suspect. In this novel we see people who appear to be good doing bad things. Majumdar shows us both sides of the coin, humanising selfish choices and provoking debate which makes "A Burning" an ideal bookclub choice. Themes also include poverty, kindness and charity, corruption, terrorism, religious intolerance, tradition, superstition, vigilantism and violence. These elements are often revealed (and expanded upon) via the interludes which I thought was a useful tool. I listened to the audiobook which was brilliantly narrated by Vikas Adam; Priya Ayyar; Deepti Gupta; Ulka Mohanty; Soneela Nankani; Neil Shah. I loved the authenticity they brought to the story.

A Burning is an absolutely outstanding debut with three distinct narratives, once you pick A Burning up you will not want to put it down.

Set in modern day India, the book follows Jivan, Lovely and PT Sir with alternating chapters for each character's story. The three characters are so instantly recognisable and authentic and the audiobook truly added to this, each actor narrated it with such honesty and the production was a delight to listen to.

Like many, Lovely was my favourite character and I found myself truly rooting for her the whole way through. Majumdar manages to weave so many topics and issues in to a relatively short novel and nothing felt rushed or unrealistic.

A true pleasure to read and I would highly recommend to all.

Note: there are some trigger warnings for A Burning that should be noted.

Wow. Just Wow. I dont even know where to start. First thanks to Simon & Schuster for the ARC Audiobook. I decided to listen to it as I was working and just got swept away. Finished it in one sitting!

This story is so real and so sad and so relentless. Jivan is a young girl who makes a stupid comment on facebook (havent we all?) and is then accused of aiding a terrorist plot and taken to jail. The story takes us through her imprisonment, court case and the aftermath. It also introduces us to a wealth of characters that she interacted with. PT Sir was a former teacher of hers who fuelled with petty resentments and political ambition, leverages Jivan's plight to push his nationlist agenda. Lovely is a Hijra - in this case seen a s a transgender woman (who is also revered as having a close connection to divinity). She is an aspiring actress who was being tutuored by Jivan on how to speak English. She is initially a staunch defender of Jivan but lverages the publicity of the case to push her acting career.

Another main character in this book is the might of the state. There are several interludes and sub plots where we see how poor people are marginalised - like the case of 2 men being charged to enter a new mall (a tactic designed to keep poor people our), or how a moslem family is killed in a village because a cow goes missing, and ofcourse how Jivan is treated. I've read articles about the rise of nationalism in India and how thats creating religious tensions and how women are raped or molested - which are themes you see reflected in this book.

The author does a very deft job of tackling the issues and the characters who all have issues and are morally ambiguous. Even Jivan who is innocent of her charges isnt completely pure - what she is, is young and you cant help but think her actions would have very different consequences in oher countries. I always enjoy reading books with morally grey characters but in this case you also have a view of the unfairness of the world which is what makes it very real for me as there's nothing that can be done about it and not everyone gets their comeuppance. Jivan remains ever hopeful whilst the people who you would think will support her are corrupted or bought in different ways.

I would love to read an Indian person's take on this and how realistic the portrayal is. I really enjoyed this - the audio narrators did an excellent job of bringing the characters to life and enacting the story. The end finished me but I loved it. Excellent book and highly recommended from me.

I really enjoyed the performances on this audiobook, each character has a distinct voice which I really appreciate when listening to books. I've had my eye on A Burning for a while when I heard about the premise. I really enjoyed being immersed in Indian life and culture. However, I think some of the storylines didn't interest me as much, I found myself wanting to hear more about Lovely over PT and Jivan. This is an amazing debut and I look forward to reading Megha's future work.

A Burning is a must for those who enjoy hard hitting, cultural and political novels.

Wow. What an incredible debut. I was hooked. I had to see this out to it's bitter conclusion.

The characters were excellent. The three main pov characters all had distinct voices (all voiced by different performers in the audiobook) and distinct personalities. There are a lot of morally grey characters in this book as well as downright unlikable ones and I can foresee that being an issue for some.

The plot was by no means easy to read nor would I really use the word enjoyable. But it was engaging and excellently crafted and had a whole lot to say in not a massive page count.

People are pegging this as a political story and it is of course but it's also about the impact "normal" people can have through action or inaction. It's about selfishness and mob mentality. It's that feeling of "I'm just one person, what can I do?" and realising that every small action can add up to create a powder keg.

This one won't be leaving my mind in a hurry.

I had heard only good things about the book and was very excited to be able to listen to the audiobook. I enjoyed listening to the narrators and liked what they did with their characters. However, the speed of the speech could have been a little faster by default.

The story was incredibly interesting to follow and I could sympathize will all three characters and their individual stories. The book highlights an important topic not only in India but the world- the prejudice against Muslims and the readiness to convict someone based on their beliefs and not on evidence.
All in all I enjoyed the book but for me it could have had a little more depth.

A Burning - Megha Majumbar

This debut novel follows 3 main characters whose lives revolve around one lie in the aftermath of a terrorist attack. Our main characters are a teacher with a taste for politics, a young woman accused of a crime and an actress looking to pursue their career. I really enjoyed the narration during this book as we flick back and forth between the three characters and I feel this really helped the flow of the book. I felt a lot of emotions during this book and found it harrowing at times. I am definitely looking forward to reading more from this author. Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for allowing me the opportunity to enjoy and review this book

I listened to this audio book on my commute, I really enjoyed the voices of Jivan, Lovely and PTSir all by different narrators. The voices were so distinct, the characters shone through and felt like real testimonies of the life, circumstance and trial of Jivan and two of the people who knew her. I particularly loved the character, tone and voice of Lovely. This is a compelling tale of a Muslim girl in India and how through poverty and discrimination, her life is turned upside down. No spoilers here!

I would highly recommend this audiobook as the story is brilliantly relayed by the three characters, giving a vivid picture of ordinary people living ordinary lives in India, each hoping to better their own life, and move out of poverty.
Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook ahead of release in exchange for an honest review.

‘A Burning’ is set in India and follows three characters in the aftermath of a terrorist attack. Wrongly accused of executing the attack is Jivan, a girl from the slums. Her alibi is Lovely, an aspiring actress and Hijra who she has been teaching English. Pt Sir, an old teacher of Jivans is gives evidence at her trial, but his judgement is clouded by prejudice and his own political ambitions.

I liked the premise of this book and found it really insightful. Each character is very well written and even when they made questionable choices it was easy to understand why they made their decisions. When you live a comfortable life, free from retribution it’s much easier to stick to your morals. Unfortunately, there is much inequality in this world and looking out for your own interests is hard enough without taking on others. This is perfectly demonstrated in this book with Jivan paying the price for talking out about injustice, Lovely initially taking a stand but being forced to decide between her flourishing career and what she feels is right and Pt Sir, entering the world of politics in which the intention is to make India a better place but undertaking some questionable actions in order to gain power.

While I found the snapshots into the characters lived fascinating, I did feel that our time with them was a little brief. There is so much more that could have been explored. Perhaps it was a bit ambitious to cover all three characters in such a small amount of space, I think I would have preferred for the book to focus on just one of the characters or even if it had been longer to accommodate more of their story’s.

I listened to the audiobook version of this book and I felt this was well produced. Each of the main characters is voiced by a different person which helped to bring them alive. There are also ‘intermissions’ and chapters that deviate from the three main characters to tell another side of the story, this worked really well in audio format as it felt very much like a production rather than just a reading.

Overall, this book is engaging with a well written setting and cast of characters, it certainly makes you think. Even greater depth into the subject would have really elevated this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

A very insightful book. Exposing the corruption and hardships of this community. The horrors the main characters face are eye opening. Human rights seem to have been forgotten and women, as always, are treated as lesser humans. The unfairness makes me sick, how can this corruption continue? I’m so pleased people write books, use Facebook and the news to open the eyes of the world. Everyone should have the same rights in the world. I was completely moved by the attitudes of the unfairly treated characters- so strong - despite the unfairnesses. I listened to this book as an audio book- the voices of the narrators really brought the story to life.

It might seem strange to some people that I'd already read 'A Burning' before asking to hear the Audiobook less than two months later. Why would I do that? Because 'A Burning' was easily one of the best books I'd read this year, and I was keen to hear the audio version, despite already knowing the plot.

I love the sound of Indian accents and normally I go to India every year. With the virus stopping us from going anywhere this year, I wanted to immerse myself in the voices and the story of Megha Majumdar's wonderful book.

The narrators are fantastic and well-chosen for their roles. For those potential listeners who are perhaps a bit worried about whether they'll understand, all of the narrators are US-based actors and voice artists so, whilst the music of the accent is authentic, you won't struggle to understand as they are toned down for an international audience.

I can't add anything to my original review of the book and since this is an unabridged recording, those thoughts still hold true for the audiobook:

"Everything about this short book is deeply REAL. A terrorist attack, a foolish Facebook post leading to an online conflagration that's as hot and damaging as the attack, a political campaign that needs outrage to focus minds. The characters are excellent - a hard-working girl who has pulled herself out of poverty to get a job in a store and buy a smartphone, little knowing it will change her life forever. A well-meaning hijra who has to choose between fame and fidelity to a friend who tried to help her. A corruptible school teacher who misses a train and finds a 'cause'.

I liked that the book is set in Kolkata. Most authors writing about Indian cities go for Mumbai or Delhi. Kolkata brings a different flavour to the story. I liked that this is a book about aspiration in a country where everybody, no matter how poor, can dream of pulling themself up the social ladder and yet that can go horribly wrong or horribly right in completely uncontrollable ways.

I recall last time I was in India (I go most years - obviously not this one) reading or seeing a TV report about the dangers of smartphones in a society that's not had time to learn about fake news, where too many people believe whatever they've been told, or whatever fits their prejudices. I'd read about Muslim families slaughtered by irate neighbours because somebody had started a rumour about the killing of a cow; somebody with a grudge to settle.

Reading this book is like watching a car crash in slow motion. We start by assuming that nobody can possibly get prosecuted on the basis of so little evidence. And then piece by piece, everything slots into place with terrible consequences.

I loved it and recommend it highly. I was very fortunate to get a review copy from Netgalley but already had this on my Amazon wishlist. It did not disappoint in any way."

A Burning is a moving political drama in which a terrorist attack leads three lives to intertwine in ways they will never know the extent of.

Majumdar does a wonderful job introducing us to our three narrators, Jivan a young Muslim woman whose comment on the attack results in her being used as a political pawn, Lovely an aspiring actor who wishes to be seen for her talent and not her outward appearance and PT Sir a disenchanted PE teacher seeking meaning in his life. These three strands beautifully compliment each other, Jivan with her softness, Lovely with her brightness and PT Sir with his gruffness. Each character is complex and make both selfish and generous choices that allows the reader to connect with their very different circumstances. All told on the backdrop of present day India politics and the demonisation of Muslims across the globe. Majumdar writes in a way that is thought provoking and measured, promoting the reader to ask questions and encouraging them to seek their own answers.

Each of the three main narrators capture the essence of their characters, allowing them to shine through in their performance. I particularly enjoyed Lovely's narration, in part due to the character herself whose omptisim and self confidence the narrator really enhanced.

In all A Burning was a gripping and challenging listen that had me hooked throughout.