#BookReview: Boys Without Names, Kashmira Sheth

Overview:

Book: Boys Without Names

Author: Kashmira Sheth

Genre: Young Adult, Realist Fiction

Rating: 4/5☆

Blurb:

Gopal’s father is a farmer who is now heavily debt-ridden due to insufficient produce. To quote his Baba: “We stay, we starve.” Gopal, being the eldest sibling of the family, is made is brought up in a manner that makes him feel responsible to take care of his family and ease the financial burden. From the very beginning, he thinks of getting a side job alongside school to help out his father. They struggle to reach his uncle’s place, his father getting lost in the city in the process. Gopal is soon drugged by a young man he meets on the street who promises him a good job at a factory. He is taken to a dingy looking small sweatshop where he is imprisoned with five other boys and forced to work under poor living conditions. How they develop inter-personal relationships among themselves despite the existing power dynamics at play to escape from the place form the rest of the tale.

The book is a short read that looks at the issue of child labour from the first-person perspective. The author keeps in mind the target age-group and manages to convey heavy issues like exploitation of labour and cruelty of children without being graphic; while the points sink and are hard-hitting, it doesn’t take too much of a toll on the emotional psyche of the reader. The book can be divided into two parts: reaching Mumbai and life in the sweatshop. The struggle to reach his uncle’s place is described in vivid detail and captures the grim reality of every single person who emigrates to cities with dreams of ‘a better living’. The existing dualism in the society is reflected throughout the pages; this is shown when the protagonist watches people rush back to their cars to avoid the downpour while those living on the pavements and small shacks brave the storm and try to save their few possessions. The book takes some time to detail on these aspects and illuminates the socio-economic background of Gopal’s family.

The author next portrays the harsh living conditions of children forced into labour and the toll it takes on them. Gopal’s “Boss” is portrayed as a hard, strict individual, used to getting his deeds by violence who doesn’t hesitate even in the slightest to beat the kids. He abuses the kids physically, verbally and psychologically, especially his rule of not letting the boys share their real names. This significantly contributes to their isolation and prevents them from forming meaningful relationships to sustain normal social behaviours. This affects the ones that have been under his control the most, who have adapted to their situation so much that they gave up on thoughts of escape as they might be forced into worse situations like being sold off to work in firework or chemical factories. They are also threatened of this dire possibility whenever they seem to commit any minor error or try to escape from the sweatshop. The kids are also shown to be severely underfed and overworked with no proper provisions in place to ensure they receive basic healthcare. One kid gets heavy fever with the Boss relenting and buying medicine after a few days only when the other kids seem to be at risk of ‘catching’ it. The Boss also has a hierarchy in place, with him favouring a kid every now and then to further deepen the divide between them.

"Kahanis are like the sky. There is no end to them. You can always retell the old one, make a new one up, or twist the old one to make it funnier, scarier, or sweeter. Aai used to say, “Kahanis are your best friends because they never leave you." (Aai-Mother; Kahani-story)

Gopal’s storytelling comes to play here, as he uses it as a tool to stay focused on his dream of escaping, form connections with the rest of the boys and empower them to escape from the life of slavery. The others’ resentment and distrust slowly melt and it is a true treasure watching them bond. By referring them with a nickname, Gopal slowly bonds with the others as they slowly reveal their true name. Their backstories reveal how children are forced to undertake any and every form of work for no pay by greedy employers to save on labour wages; showing how the threats issued by their boss was no idle one. From being forced to work in tea-stalls to being forced into a pick-pocketing gang, they had weathered harsh conditions out in the streets before being dragged here. This makes some of them reluctant to escape from there initially, as they feel they would only end up going to a worse place. The end leans towards a happily-ever-after scenario which while makes for a decent conclusion to the book is unfortunately not always the case in real life.

Overall, this is a book that conveys a deeply moving tale while throwing light to the harsh reality of those existing at the margin.

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~Reviewed by Kaveri (@bibliophilerants)~

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