"How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia" written by Mohsin Hamid
Review: Mohsin Hamid definitely has a unique masterful writing style. His ability to succeed in not naming any of his characters is amazing. The second person narrative is a welcome change to live the birth to death of a life which could be anyone in Asia - no city, no names, no time. Passed off as a self-help book where at the beginning of each section, he takes a dig at the genre, the book is surely a novel attempt.
Each chapter is a decade (except the last 2) with the theme to become filthy rich in rising Asia, the book is at its core a love story. The love story is understated by tides of time in the life of an entrepreneur's meteoric rise and the inevitable fall. The protagonist is not likable but neither is he hateable since it happens to be you in his shoes. The prose is brilliant as usual in Hamid's books.
I loved the narrative which had its strength in its normalcy (almost) and craving for companionship. In one of the best moments towards the end, the narrator tries to convince you to empathize with a fish trying to burp! The commentary on self-help books as a genre was humorous. There were some parts I found too cliched like whining about poverty and corrupt bureaucrats.
As I came to the end of the novel, one of the questions I took away with me was whether or not the unnamed protagonist's successes were worth the inevitable losses -- extending that concept outward I find myself hoping that this country will survive the downsides of its rapid growth and rise. The powerful and continuing love story between the unnamed character and the pretty girl holds the key to existing with a measure of peace and stability among the chaos; that's all I'll say about this right now and leave it to you to read for yourself.
Highly recommended.
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