Everybody in Annawadi talks like this - oh, I will make my child a doctor, a lawyer, and he will make us rich. It's vanity, nothing more. Your little boat goes west and you congratulate yourself, "What a navigator I am!" And then the wind blows you east.
Abdul's father,
…more Karam Husain
The author Katherine Boo, draws you into her explosive, powerful, world of women, men and children, who spend their days and nights living in one of the worst slums of India. This is not a novel, there is no happy ending. These are real people, who live in world in which from the moment you open your eyes, till sleep overcomes you, life is a struggle. "Everything around us is roses" is how Abdul's younger brother MIrchi, put it. "And we're the shit in between'. There is very little of truth in their lives. Corruption, lies, bribery, filth, is every where in this slum community which borders the International Airport of India. They watch the planes bring the beautiful and the wealthy. Yet this is the place where they go to steal food, where they scavenge to find garbage which they can resell and earn a rupee or two. Yet they dream of a better tomorrow. They dream of love, education, a job, a place in country around them.
This is a book I will suggest that others read, that my book groups read and discuss.
Katherine Boo has used her writing skills to encourage each of us to open our eyes and view the global world, to see what's wrong and find a way to make a difference..somewhere. (less)
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