Summary :
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Gopal, an eleven-year-old boy, lives in his native rural village of India with his parents and his siblings, Naren and Sita. In the past years, his parents have accumulated a lot of debts that they cannot pay. They don’t have any choice but to sell their farm.
One day, Gopal’s father decides, on an impulse, to quit their village to go live in the big city of Mumbai to earn money and have a better life. The problem is that they don’t have enough money to buy the train tickets to go to the station where Jama, Gopal’s uncle, is waiting for them. They arrive in an unknown station and have no place to spend the night. But Baba, the father, has enough money to get on a bus to Jama. The rest of the family must stay in the streets and endure challenges and bad weather. Two days later, after a long wait, Gopal finally gets money to pay for everybody’s bus ticket. They arrive at his uncle’s home and realize that Baba isn’t there and got lost. Convinced that he can also help earn money, Gopal is determined to find a job. So, when a stranger named Jatin offers him what looks like a dream job in a factory, Gopal accepts it, even though his mother refuses. Afterwards, he understands that it was a trap, but it is too late. All day long, he’s forced to glue beads to picture frame with five other boys whom he can’t even talk to. And when there is something that their boss doesn’t like, they get beaten or are not allowed to eat food for the rest of the day. Finally, they become friends and find a way to make days less hard. But will they succeed in escaping this nightmare and get back to their family? |
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My appreciation:
First, I really loved reading this book because the structure was simple but rich. The author’s writing is easy to understand.
Secondly, I find the story very interesting and evocative, because it refers to a reality in our world. Indeed, there are still too many children on earth that are exploited and forced to work in unsafe and dirty places. These ones can be mistreated by their boss and some of them never return to their families. Unfortunately, it is something we can’t stop, but books like this one can make people aware of this disastrous situation.
Thirdly, I really appreciated that, in the story, the six boys found a way to get along even if they were in a precarious situation. When their choleric boss is leaving the ‘‘factory’’ in the evening, they form a circle and tell stories about their family or childhood. They become friends and this allows them not to give up and, perhaps, search for an escape from this horrible job...
Secondly, I find the story very interesting and evocative, because it refers to a reality in our world. Indeed, there are still too many children on earth that are exploited and forced to work in unsafe and dirty places. These ones can be mistreated by their boss and some of them never return to their families. Unfortunately, it is something we can’t stop, but books like this one can make people aware of this disastrous situation.
Thirdly, I really appreciated that, in the story, the six boys found a way to get along even if they were in a precarious situation. When their choleric boss is leaving the ‘‘factory’’ in the evening, they form a circle and tell stories about their family or childhood. They become friends and this allows them not to give up and, perhaps, search for an escape from this horrible job...
Alexis Mellet, Groupe LCC 311
The author : Kashmira Sheth
