Ahh the joy of reading a novel by an indian author.The characters are indian, the setting indian and there is just so much one can relate to.Sure Malory Towers was fun but here comes a more matured story of hostel life and the demand to excel faced by students.
Five Point Someone - by chetan bhagat, is no Indian’s answer to literature kind of thing by that I mean you don’t have to reach out for the dictionary twice in every sentence.The emphasis is more on the story, the hostel lifestyle, the dominating education system et al.
Set against the background of India’s most esteemed technology institute , the IIT(inidan institute of technology for the uninitiated) the book is a bit of an eye opener to the ridiculous importance given to grade point averages or GPAs.
The three protagonists all male and all with a GPA of 5 point something(hence the title) come from different backgrounds and exhibit varied attitudes but the Kumaon hostel brings them together and from there starts their camraderie and the story unfolds.
Ryan is the obvious leader of the trio who is superior not only in his finances and looks but also in his mental prowess by which standards he is somewhat of a genius.The kind of genius who is not afraid the challenge authority, including the authority of the elitist institute in which he is enrolled which holds the key to his future.
Alok on the otherhand is of a timid nature who follows educational conventions to the fullest and comes from a family comprising of sick unemployed father and school teacher mother.Left alone to himself he would have graduated out of iit as a five point someone but Ryan had something else planned for him or did he in his heart of hearts really want to challenge the mighty system too?
Hari is your average joe , who is the narrator of this story, who lives life in moderation and takes it easy but even he is overpowered by the dominant character of ryan into doing something very stupid which could jeopardise his education and also his career.
Together the trio become quite some daredevils and embark upon compromising tasks which lead to disciplinary action against them and there comes a time when their future literally depends on the decision of the authorities whom they challenged. Are the 3 tough enough for IIT?do they have it in them to graduate from the premier institute?This book is surely a must read.