2012-13 - Behind the Beautiful Forevers, by Katherine Boo

13 - Behind the Beautiful Forevers, by Katherine Boo, 254 pages, Random House, 2012
WHY I PICKED IT: It's my Toronto Book Club's next book
ELAPSED TIME: 1 week
RATING: Very Good

This book, that reads like fiction, is actually a compilation of 4-years of research by Katherine Boo.  Sitting on the edge of the Mumbai airport, Annawadi is (was?) a relatively small slum.  Katherine Boo follows many of the inhabitants as they go about their lives... portraying their good and bad sides, and explaining their motivations from their own perspectives.

The family of hardworking recyclers... particularly the socially misfit oldest son.
The woman who uses politics and influence to bring herself up, and get a college education for her daughter.
The college educated child who wants to do good, but knows better than to challenge the paradigm of a dutiful daughter.
The scrap metal thief.

These, and other characters, are woven together to tell their stories... and the challenges of living on the fringe of one of the world's largest cities.