So, let me start with the obvious: Q&A is, in general, a readable book. One of its strengths is that Swarup (2006/2005) connected most of the chapters with the dialogue (pp. 27-30, 44-47, 66-67, 86-89, 121-122, 150-152, 170-172, 191-192, 221-222, 242-243, 268-272, 335-342, 356-357) taking place between Ram Mohammad Thomas (first mention p. 14; for name origin see pp. 52-53) and Smita Shah (first mention p. 25) who is actually Gudiya (p. 356; Gudiya's relationship to Ram features in "5,000: A Brother's Promise" (pp. 68-89)).
Ram's fantasy of his mother also reappears at various times (pp. 24, 49, 80, 187[1], 289). In fact, Ram's obsession with her stops after he experiences intimacy with a woman who is, in that moment, a mother substitute: "I do not know what Neelima Kumari [first mention p. 70] was thinking ... But as I nuzzled my face between her breasts ... for the first time I felt ... [t]hat I had a real mother, one whose face I could see ... flesh I could touch" (p. 265). (See further down for my comments on the novel's chronology).
Swarup (2006/2005) also introduced other repeating motifs during Ram's recollections. Among them: The links between present and past (pp. 66, 69, 94, 128, 131, 156, 338); the similarities of abuse evidence for Neelima[2] and Nita (p. 329; first mention p. 299); the identity of Neelima and Nita's abuser (pp. 333, 350); the references to Who Will Win A Billion, or W3B (p. 16; see pp. 158, 333, 350); the film (pp. 250, 257-258, 267-268) and real life references to Mumtaz Mahal (p. 278); the euphemism "'Houston we have a problem'" (p. 87, speaker: Prem Kumar; cf p. 356, thinker: Ram); and the sentiment: "That dreams have power only over your own mind. But with money you can have power over the minds of others (p. 180; cf p. 359).
However, there are some flaws in the novel. The most glaring of them is the confusion that arises from Ram's recollections going back and forth in time. Just to make things easier, here's the linear sequence of all those recollections (minus one (see para. that follows for an explanation)) and the frame story:
- "2,000: The Burden of a Priest" (pp. 48-67)
- "10,000: A Thought for the Crippled" (pp. 90-122)
- "10,000,000: The Tragedy Queen" (pp. 244-272)
- "1,000: The Death of a Hero" (pp. 31-47)
- "5,000: A Brother's Promise" (pp. 68-89)
- "50,000: How to Speak Australian" (pp. 123-152)
- "200,000: Murder on the Western Express" (pp. 173-193)
- "100,000,000: X Gkrz Opknu (Or a Love Story)" (pp. 273-342)
- "100,000: Hold on to Your Buttons" (pp. 153-172)
- "1,000,000: Licence to Kill" (pp. 223-243)
- "1,000,000,000: The Thirteenth Question" (pp. 343-357)
- "Prologue" (pp. 11-30)
- "Epilogue" (pp. 358-361)
The only story, however, that doesn't fit is "500,000: A Soldier's Tale" (pp. 194-222). First, it happens outside of the chawl in Ghatkopar (first mention pp. 70, 74; see p. 247), the people in that story don't appear in other chapters when Ram is also 12 years old (p. 196; see pp. 44, 69), there's no reference to what happens in that chapter in other chapters, and nothing from other chapters is referenced in this chapter. This chapter also had inconsistent POV shifts (see pp. 204, 206).
On the other hand, I wouldn't be grousing as much if the present day events involving W3B were the central part of Swarup (2006/2005). With Ram's recollections being the focal point of the novel, the issues I had involved the lack of congruity with the events he describes, no timeline to help the reader establish the sequence of events, unclear chapter stylings that add confusion when trying to clarify relationships between events, and, in several instances -"1,000: The Death of a Hero" (pp. 31-47); "100,000: Hold on to Your Buttons" (pp. 153-172); "500,000: A Soldier's Tale" (pp. 194-222) - there's no tie-in with other events in the story.
Also, long before you get to the end of the novel, two problems end up making Ram a less sympathetic character. First, Ram actually does cheat on two questions (see pp. 66-67, 348, 352-353, 355-356), thus undermining the premise that he did not cheat (see "Prologue" (pp. 11-30)). More, Ram's ability to recall details accurately is also put into question (see pp. 278-282). Together, these make Ram unreliable.
So, in the end, I'm not sure what to make of Ram. I also think the dialogue elements (see my first para.) might've been expanded on to give clarity to Ram's recollections.
[1] If you've seen The Simpsons on TV, you might remember an episode when Maggie uses a gun. So that visual may have inspired the scene in which Ram disconnects from reality and projects himself as a baby (see pp. 187-188), with the image he has of his mother preceding it: "I am seeing a tall woman with flowing hair. The wind is howling behind her, making her jet-black hair fly across her face, obscuring it. She is wearing a white sari whose thin fabric flutters and vibrates like a kite. She holds a baby in her arms (p. 187; cf pp. 24, 49, 80).
[2] She is called "'Neelimaji'" on p. 248.
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