This title will be released July 7. Aug 24, Sensitivemuse rated it liked it. The Blue Notebook by James Levine is told in the point of view of Batuk, a young girl who has been sold into prostitution by her father. From then on, she works through several places, including the streets of Mumbai, then being bought from place to place where her final place ends up being in some sort of hotel. It's a hard read. Although being only two hundred pages, it is an account in extreme graphic detail of Batuk's life after being sold by her father.
She does not skimp away the grisly de The Blue Notebook by James Levine is told in the point of view of Batuk, a young girl who has been sold into prostitution by her father. She does not skimp away the grisly details that happens to her and how she is meant to please her clients. The only light hearted moments I get are when she shares a laugh with her friend Puneet and how they make fun of the "Hippopotamus".
I thought they were so cute together but, even that little bit of happiness fades as Batuk is passed on to another place to do her work. My heart went out for Batuk. You see her innocence shatter and how she narrates the entire story you don't hear much emotion, it's almost as you can hear a flat voice through the diary entries. It's a bleak and depressing read but it probably is a very realistic account of what happens out there to child prostitutes anywhere in the world.
There are only a few things I didn't agree with in this book. I'm not for flowery poetry writing and mini stories and there's a few parts of that in this story. I mostly skipped it by as I didn't have much patience for that. I don't really understand how you can be that literate when you've only learned to read and write at a missionary hospital but that's just my opinion.
Second, the ending was very vague. However, if you really think about it, no one in this world really cares where a prostitute ends up, therefore the ending shouldn't matter. It's very shocking, but it's sadly true however, I would have liked to know where Batuk ended up. Also note, due to the graphic nature and content this is not for the squeamish. It didn't bother me much, but there were parts where I cringed.
Overall a very sad and in depth look into the life of a child slave. It'll make you feel for the millions of child slaves and helpless women out there suffering where they have no control over their lives and sadly, no where to turn to. Apr 15, Nicole The Readerly Report rated it it was amazing.
Batuk is a fifteen-year-old girl living in a brothel on Common Street in Mumbai, India. Her vivid imagination and knack for storytelling lead her to paint a world of cheerful descriptions of the ragged and decrepit room that she describes as an elaborately painted and decorated nest or cage Batuk is a fifteen-year-old girl living in a brothel on Common Street in Mumbai, India. Her vivid imagination and knack for storytelling lead her to paint a world of cheerful descriptions of the ragged and decrepit room that she describes as an elaborately painted and decorated nest or cage and the sexual acts that she is forced to endure is misleadingly called making sweet cakes.
Over the course of the novel Batuk tells the story of how she was sold by her father into prostitution as a nine-year-old to pay off unspecified family debts. The proprietor of the brothel, Mamaki Briilla, drops a pencil and instead of returning it Batuk steals and hides it so that she can recount her early life, and the last day that she saw the family and the father she still misses after six years.
James Levine does an amazing job getting us into the head of Batuk. Though she has grown up with a family and has had to face the betrayal of those closest to her she tries to make the best of it and always see the beauty in the life despite her horrific circumstances. Batuk weaves a world of beauty and exquisite stories out of the every day tragedy that is her life.
She creates a world that you want to believe in for her sake though it makes the crushing reality that she faces that much more difficult and painful to witness. The subject matter is dark and movingly in contrast to the light and engaging way that Batuk presents her narrative. Aug 17, Aarti rated it it was amazing. Upton Sinclair wrote a painfully graphic book about the horrors of Chicago's meat-packing district, The Jungle.
He later famously said, "I aimed at the public's heart, and by accident I hit it in the stomach. Levine does much the same in his book, The Blue Notebook. This is one of the most difficult and painful books I have ever read.
Batuk writes in a beautifully lyrical voice, and so it is all the more jarring when she turns from her happy and playful thoughts and dreams to the graphic det Upton Sinclair wrote a painfully graphic book about the horrors of Chicago's meat-packing district, The Jungle.
Batuk writes in a beautifully lyrical voice, and so it is all the more jarring when she turns from her happy and playful thoughts and dreams to the graphic details that form the stark reality of her life. I do not have a favorite quote from this book.
It is by turns gorgeous and terrifying. There were pages that made me shudder and I admit that there were at least two pages that I was unable to finish reading. I had to skip ahead. This is not a book to read on the train or to wile away a spare half hour. I was close to tears on my morning commute yesterday. Levine's book is calculated to reach you in that manner. It is written almost as a series of inter-related vignettes more than as a novel.
A girl from rural India who, by chance, learns how to read. The apple of her father's eye, who is then sold to a stranger. A seasoned prostitute on the Common Street of Mumbai, taking spare moments to write about the voices of old trees and wise tigers. A poor young woman who dreams about expensive and gorgeous hats. A magical story about the silver-eyed snow leopard, and the power that someone's hope can save them from a miserable situation.
All US proceeds from this book will be donated to charity. It is not an easy book to read. But while some books are read for pleasure, others are read to gain an understanding of our world. This book is in the latter category. Just as Sinclair did in The Jungle, Levine will aim for your heart and hit you in the gut.
Sep 03, Susan Storm rated it liked it. I always enjoy reading books about people who overcome deep struggles and harsh circumstances, and so I was really drawn into this book.
It's written in the first person by Batuk, a young girl sold by her family into child prostitution at the age of nine. She writes down her experiences in her 'blue notebook' and through her eyes we get to see the terror that these kids face on a daily basis, but through the eyes of a child.
Through all that she suffers she writes with intense imagination and ev I always enjoy reading books about people who overcome deep struggles and harsh circumstances, and so I was really drawn into this book.
Through all that she suffers she writes with intense imagination and even optimism. When she writes about her 'work' she does it in such a lush, childlike way that it could be less or more disturbing at times. Less disturbing because it seemed less harsh, but more disturbing because it's obvious in her writing that she's still just a child. What I liked: This book gave a very real idea of what kids in this situation face, and it really makes you think about what you can do to help.
All the proceeds from the book are going to be used to help exploited children, that was definitely a plus. What I disliked: I had a hard time with certain sections because I feel there is a fine line between pornographic stories and description of brutal acts.
I had a really hard time reading it without contemplating whether some would find these scenes titillating. The writing is almost too 'pretty' for some of the horrible things that happen. I felt like for a long section the book was just a series of sexual encounters, and they described what happened a little too vividly. I have the stomach for it but I felt like the detail was a drawback and since Batuk is just a child, I felt like it should have been a little more tasteful.
I don't want them to make the facts less harsh, these things happen, but the way it was described was a little too sensual. View all 4 comments. This book is part of my reading challenge This book is written as a diary where the reader follows Batuk, a fifteen year old Indian girl who is sold into prostitution by her father in Mumbai.
This book is her diary where she tells her story from her early childhood to the day she becomes a prostitute. It was a hard book to read. The things that Batuk have to endure is heartbreaking. But somewhere in your mind you know this kind of life exist in reality. The story is well told, but the writing is arguable. James A. Levine is trying to sound like a fifteen year old girl and in my opinion he fails.
Sometimes she is very bright and grown-up and other time she sounds more childish and a bit stupid. The choice of words she Levine uses to describe her private part is also confusing.
In her world childish way of thinking is quickly destroyed and innocence is gone by a second. More book reviews here: Elzas book reviews Jul 04, Mary rated it really liked it Shelves: adult-books. This is definitely not a book for children. It covers some of the same ground as the movie Slumdog Millionaire. Batuk was 9 when her father sold her into prostitution in Mumbai. She is "nested" on the Common Street, where Mamaki Briila oversees the girls and one boy, Puneet, who is Batuk's good friend.
The story begins as Batuk is She keeps writings of her days, because she was taught to read and write in the hospital where she spent months recovering from TB, and because one of the men who This is definitely not a book for children. She keeps writings of her days, because she was taught to read and write in the hospital where she spent months recovering from TB, and because one of the men who visits her gives her a pencil. After a while, Batuk is purchased by a businessman, Bubba, for his son, Iftikhar, and taken to a hotel.
She stays for several days in the Tiger Suite, cared for by Kita, raped by the doctor who examines her, and beaten badly by Iftikhar. One night he has a party with 3 friends, some of whom are politically connected, and when Batuk's writings are discovered and read aloud, things get out of hand. This book is both hopeless and hopeful. Batuk escapes the reality of her situation in writing and in her imagination, and that seems to carry the reader along as well.
Sometimes though, it seems almost too poetic - not gritty enough to be realistic. Nov 03, Lydia Presley rated it liked it Shelves: fiction , india. What a horrifying story. From the book jacket, the story of how this book was written is told. Your Rating:. Your Comment:. Levine Submitted by: Jane Kivik. Read Online Download. Great book, The Blue Notebook pdf is enough to raise the goose bumps alone. Add a review Your Rating: Your Comment:. A man got out of the white car.
In silhouette he appeared to be quite handsome. He was large and full figured and effused power like fresh tea. From the taxi headlamps I saw that he wore a light blue suit. It is astonishing how quickly Mamaki can move when the nectar of money is puffed in her nostrils; she sprung on the man with the agility of a mountain goat. The man stared in the direction of my nest. My green curtain was partly drawn and the small electric light lit me from the back.
I am not sure if he saw my face, but he stared at me for longer than a glance. Levine is donating all his U. Sincerely, Celina Spiegel Publisher. About us.
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