Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity
Remember the title of Katherine Boo鈥檚 new book Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity, because you will see it on upcoming nominee lists for the next round of Very Important Literary Prizes. That Boo won the Pulitzer in 2000, a MacArthur 鈥淕enius鈥� Fellowship in 2002, became a staff writer for The New Yorker in 2003 (contributor since 2001) after 10 years with The Washington Post, and is just now publishing her debut title, will guarantee media coverage. That 鈥淏eautiful鈥� is an unforgettable true story, meticulously researched with unblinking honesty, will make Boo鈥檚 next awards well-deserved.
From November 2007 to March 2011, Boo became a regular fixture in Annawadi, 鈥渢he sumpy plug of slum鈥� next to the constantly modernizing international Mumbai airport, and home to 3,000 inhabitants 鈥減acked into, or on top of 355 huts.鈥� Settled in 1991 by Tamil Nadu laborers from southern India hired to repair an airport runway, 21st-century Annawadi sits 鈥渨here New India collided with old India and made new India late.鈥� Encircling Annawadi are 鈥渇ive extravagant hotels,鈥� luxurious evidence of India鈥檚 growing global presence: 鈥溾�橢verything around us is roses,鈥欌�� describes an Annawadian, 鈥溾�橝nd we鈥檙e the sh*t in between.鈥欌�� In this fetid microcosm, everyday dramas range from petty jealousies to explosive violence fueled by religion, caste, and gender.
At the center of Boo鈥檚 story is garbage trafficker Abdul, the oldest son and prime earner of the 11-member Husain family who comprise almost one-third of Annawadi鈥檚 three-dozen Muslim population. Thoughtful, quiet Abdul, who is 16 or 19 鈥� 鈥渉is parents were hopeless with dates鈥� 鈥� his ill father, and his older sister stand accused of beating their crippled neighbor One Leg and setting her on fire. For three years, the family is victimized by a labyrinthine legal system controlled by open palms constantly demanding payment.
Life continues in Annawadi: Asha, a lowly-paid kindergarten teacher, works her growing political connections toward escaping the slum, determined her daughter Manju will become Annawadi鈥檚 first college graduate. Manju鈥檚 best friend Meena wants something more than to be a teenage bride trapped in an arranged marriage: 鈥淓verything on television announced a new and better India for women,鈥� but 鈥渕arrying into a village family was like time-traveling backward.鈥�
The toilet cleaner Mr. Kamble is literally dying to raise enough money for a new heart valve so he can continue to shovel sewage and feed his family. The tiny scavenger-turned-thief Sunil (first introduced to Western readers in Boo鈥檚 February 2009 New Yorker article) worries that he will remain forever stunted, but at least he鈥檚 not a 鈥渂aldie鈥� like his taller, younger sister whose rat bites have become 鈥渂oils [that] erupted with worms.鈥� Meanwhile, thieving Kalu recreates the latest Bollywood films with his talented impersonations, entertaining slum kids who will never witness such marvels themselves.
Mumbai, for its marvelous rebirth, remains the largest city in an India that, in spite of being 鈥渁n increasingly affluent and powerful nation 鈥� still housed one-third
of the poverty, and one-quarter of the hunger, on the planet.鈥� With the wealth of India鈥檚 top 100-richest equaling almost a quarter of the country鈥檚 GDP, today鈥檚 gap between top and bottom is virtually unfathomable.
Having built her lauded career on capturing the experiences of those living in some of America鈥檚 poorest communities, Boo moves 鈥渂eyond [her] so-called expertise鈥� to her husband鈥檚 country of origin, ready to 鈥渃ompensate for my limitations the same way I do in unfamiliar American territory: by time spent, attention paid, documentation secured, accounts cross-checked.鈥� Once the Annawadians accepted the novelty of her foreign presence, 鈥渢hey went more or less about their business as I chronicled their lives鈥� on the page, on film, on audiotape, in photos.
Throughout such careful documentation, the one element missing 鈥� very much to her credit 鈥� is Boo herself. 鈥淏eautiful鈥� is by no means a personal memoir; it is not a socioeconomic study on poverty, nor a political treatise on widespread corruption. 鈥淏eautiful鈥� is pure, astonishing reportage with as unbiased a lens as possible about specific individuals who populate a clearly demarcated section of ever-changing Mumbai.
The details of Boo鈥檚 process 鈥� with a glimpse into her experiences 鈥� are added in the 鈥淎uthor鈥檚 Note鈥� at book鈥檚 end. Further details about Boo follow in 鈥淎 Conversation with Katherine Boo鈥� conducted by Random House power editor Kate Medina. Before ever "meeting" Kate Boo, readers thoroughly experience Annawadi with Abdul, One Leg, Manju, Sunil, and so many memorable others. Boo鈥檚 presence as the silent reporter remains so discreet throughout that she virtually disappears as you journey deeper and deeper, unable to turn away.
Terry Hong writes , a book review blog for the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program.
