The Blue Notebook by James A. Levine is about a fifteen year old girl, Batuk, who has been a prostitute on the streets of Mumbai since she was nine years old. Batuk survives the horrors of her sex-filled life through her imagination and writing. Batuk introduces us to the people around her with compassion and a thoughtfulness beyond her years.
Because Batuk’s life is filled with sex, Levine would have been amiss to keep out that piece of her life. In the beginning, he uses metaphors to describe the actions against Batuk, but later as Batuk ages, he uses more graphic language to describe her horrifying circumstances. I think that Levine handled the subject matter as delicately as he could without being vulgar.
This book disgusted and horrified me, but I felt that I needed to finish it. I felt that if I didn’t finish it that I would be doing a disservice to all of the children who have been made into sex slaves because I would be ignoring it. The book made me incredibly uncomfortable and there were times that I felt sick to my stomach thinking that anyone could do that to a child. But there are men who do solicit sex from children and that is the reason that I finished hearing Batuk’s story. I needed to know what would happen to her.
The Blue Notebook is one of the most disturbing book that I have ever read. The voice of Batuk haunted me long after I had finished the book and I had a very difficult time reconciling what had happened to her. What I had the hardest time with is that her story could have been only too real. Her voice is one that could have been heard in many children in Mumbai today.
The Blue Notebook is not for the faint of heart. To read this book is a very personal choice that I could not condemn or praise. I will say that if you do read The Blue Notebook, you will never forget it and the news footage of Indian children on the streets will strike you in a way that it never had before.
Book Source: Hennepin County Library, Eden Prairie Location, Audiobook
The Blue Notebook was completed as part of The Review Challenge hosted by The Infinite Bookshelf. To see other challenges that I am participating in, go to the Reading Challenges page.
Read Other Reviews for The Blue Notebook:
What is the last book that you read that you found disturbing or thought provoking?
2 Comments
Great review. I’m really torn about reading this book. It sounds very disturbing and something I would not want to know. But as you wrote, I also feel I am doing the children a disservice by pretending this doesn’t happen. I’ll have to keep thinking about it!
It’s really such a personal decision. I knew once I started it, I had to finish it even though it was really tough to get through. If you do decide to read The Blue Notebook, I’d be more than happy to talk about it with you
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