Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo

I first heard about this book in a Vlogbrothers video, and if you do not know the Youtube channel, then you should look it up and join the Nerdfighter community. However, going into the story I did not know anything about the plot or characters, which is unusual for me since I like to get a feel of the mood before starting a book, and for a good reason too. The first chapters about the character One Leg’s burn and a garbage boy named Abdul being the suspect having to hide in the shed were confusing, especially since the terminology and setting of Annawadi and the slums of Mumbai seem foreign, although they are English words on the page. As the story rewinds and introduces Abdul, Fatima, Manju, Asha, Sunil and Sonu – the main characters, and how each of their family arrived in the slum and what they do for a living and their hopes and dreams beyond poverty pulls at your heartstrings.

Perhaps the most interesting part of the novel and about the slums of Mumbai is the existence of social hierarchy under the umbrella of “poor” or “lower class” in society. Asha aspires to be the slumlord, and she has a remarkable network and social skills in being a kindergarten teacher despite only having completed grade 7 and uses the corruption to benefit her family into being the top class of Annawadi. The tenacity and capability of this woman is something to be reckoned with, as she is from a farming caste in rural India and the end, secures a great amount of funding from the government for her charity. Her daughter Manju is the first to go through college and is no doubt my favourite character in the book.

The lower classes in the slum do not have similar experiences and are living as scavengers, thieves, garbage pickers, prostitutes and several lives are at stake. I will not spoil who passed, but each one is heartbreaking, especially when most are so young, and their hopes were so realistic and tangible. No one seeks lottery chances or a miracle, but just a roof over their heads. Abdul’s family success turned upside down into jail time for a crime they did not commit is eye-opening, especially combined with domestic and international corruption. The donations from developed countries are going into the pockets of the bureaucracy.

As 2020 wrapped up, the whole world is recovering from the pandemic – I cannot think how it affects these people. They are real, and this book is non-fiction. As Boo said herself, these stories are not ones the people opened easily and thus should not be taken granted for.

Cheers,

Kelly