Going through a roller coaster of emotions

I have read countless books and I have never reviewed one. I don’t intend to start doing so here. However, recently, I read a book that was recommended to me by my mum and OMG…it was one of the most difficult books I’ve read thus far. Not that it was long or that it had many chapters. But the emotions that were invoked in me as I read page after page, chapter after chapter…I felt as though my soul was being slowly chipped away as I turned the pages, while at the same time, hope, inspiration and gratitude was threatening to burst out of my heart. Never have I felt such a roller coaster of emotions while reading a book. And that is why I have to write this.

I’m the type of reader who prefers to read within my genre of comfort. Reading a book that is not in my comfort zone is a rarity, something that I have just began to venture out into. And so, when I decided to take up my mother’s recommendation about the book, both my sis and mum were surprised! Surprise soon turned to regret (I think), because I kept complaining the whole time I was reading the book, much to their chagrin!

The book: The City of Joy by Dominique Lapierre

“What irony, that one of Calcutta's most devastating slums should be known as Anand Nagar, ``the City of Joy.'' By interweaving impressionistic glimpses from the lives of a Polish Catholic priest, a rickshaw driver, and an American doctor, Lapierre creates a searing vision of the struggle for survival, the flashing violence, and the social and cultural practices of the slum. His theme that from human misery can emerge joy might seem to some readers as a bogus acceptance of a terrible evil. Yet Lapierre's narrative slides skillfully in and out of both history and fiction to create an effective but horrible montage of disease, death, and destruction amid elements of charity, hope, and love.” – adapted (and edited) from Barnes and Noble.

The book was written based on interviews, immersions and visits to the City of Joy. In a way, it was sort of like a consolidated diary of various people. I took that review/synopsis from the Net as I just could not find the right words to describe the premise of the book. To me, whatever I say will not live up to quality of the book.

As I read the book (which was later turned into a movie starring Patrick Swayze), a whole range of emotions went through me. There were times when I wanted to cry, when I actually laughed out loud, when I actually closed my nose when reading a scene. The book really hit me simply because, I have, to an extent, experienced some of the scenarios from the book - the lack of (or no) water and electricity; mingling with the children (not slum children but rural children who are underprivileged); the poor men and women being so generous with their food and whatever else they had. I’ve been to India twice and reading this book brought me right back.

I’ve not been to Calcutta, but I guess the extent of poverty, disease and destruction is somewhat similar all over India. Lapierre’s use of words and description of places were so vivid that I did not even have to imagine it in my mind; but rather, I could SEE it so clearly, as though I was a fly on a wall, watching every move, everything that was happening. This was an old book, written in 1982 (if I’m not mistaken). While my copy of the book looks like it has been chewed by a dog, the issues detailed in the book, sadly, have not changed in the 30-odd years since it was first published. That is just so sad.

The good thing is: the book is a great read! No regrets! And while I was forced to delve into emotions that really shook me, I’m happy to have “survived” and come out stronger, more inspired, more thankful. The book also delves into religion and there were times when I had to stop reading, close the book and pray, thanking God for all that I have. I’m not a strictly religious person but the people in this book served as a reminder to me that, even when everything is going wrong, faith and hope (in God) can carry us through anything.

This book is going to stick to me for quite awhile. It’s just hard to forget or erase what I have “seen.”--