Ever since That Night, the residents of Khaufpur have lived a perilous existence.
The water they drink, the ground they walk on and the atmosphere they breathe is poisoned. Nobody has received compensation or help for the chemical leak, least of all Animal, as he is known, whose spine twisted at a young age, leaving him to walk on all fours. His mind is full of foul, insidious thoughts, but the bitterness is mixed with a longing to know human affection and, more urgently, sex. He inhabits a dark kind of half-life.
But Animal still knows what love is. He has harboured feelings for his friend Nisha, the daughter of a local musician as long as he can remember. It’s not that she is particularly good-looking; it’s how she does things. Her smile, the way she moves her hair from her face and how she treats him. There will be no chance for him though, as she is enamoured of his friend Zafar. So he has to watch from a distance, taunted by the insults of others and not allowing himself hope.
When Elli Barber arrives, an ‘Amrikan’ keen to set up a free clinic to help the victims of the disaster, deep suspicion arises amongst the community. Why has she come? Why does she want to help for no money? Is she a saint or an undercover spy for the factory owners? Animal resolves to turn the situation to his advantage and starts to investigate Ellie’s motives. He attempts to get to the bottom of things and help himself along the way. What follows is a web of scams and intrigue which will keep you, the ‘eyes’ gripped from first page to last.
Disturbing, entertaining and full of truths about the human dilemma, Indra Sinha’s second novel is as original as his first.
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