Boys Without Names Letter Essay
April 23, 2010
Dear Ms. Monaco,
I have recently read Boys Without Names by Kashmira Sheth. The genre of this book is historical fiction. I rated this book 10 star because it pulled you in to the story and was easy to follow. Also because I have never read a book in the setting of this book, India, or been introduced to Indian culture or what life is like there.
I was struck by this passage “We stay we starve” because in our communities starving is not really a problem like it is in Gopal’s, who is the main character. In our community If we are hungry we go to the pantry and get something to eat, but in Gopal’s family they have to share 1 portion of food between 5 of them so they do not starve to death. I thought it was sad who in our community we take food for granted and for Gopal it’s like gold, it means life or death for his family. We can go to the grocery store and buy food, but for Gopal and his family if they have one bad season of crops they are in deep trouble and debt.
Gopal had 2 big problems in the story. 1 being that his family was In debt more than they could ever pay off. The resolution was when the escaped with what money they had left and took a train to Mumbai, a big city where they could make a better living. 2 being that Gopal is tricked and drugged and taken to an old warehouse where he and 5 other boys are forced to work. The resolution to this problem comes when Gopal runs an errand and writes a note on dollar bill he uses to pay for it. Days later the police and inspector find them all tied up and gagged on the top floor hidden by giant sacks so no one would find them. The inspector finds them because they kick the bags until they hear them. The police take them back to their families all over India.
I wish that I would have not read the back of the book because it gives the book away. The whole first half of the book I was waiting for Gopal to get taken away. I had to tell myself to just to read the book and pay attention to foreshadowing clues. One of the obvious ones was that Gopal was so eager to find work in Mumbai to support his family. Another one was when Jatin, a random kid on the street asks Gopal if he has seen his uncle who owns a factory and Gopal asks for a job. Later in the story Jatin shows up again and tells him he has a job. When Jatin gave him tea, I knew it was a trick.
The character development in this book is interesting because Gopal a very brave and mature boy to begin with. When he escapes during the night he longs to say good bye but doesn’t. In Mumbai when his father goes out and does not come back Gopal becomes the man in the family and find a place to sleep and food for his family. When he is forced to work, he never loses hope of seeing his family again. When Scar takes away everything, he gives it back to the boys and unites them with their stories. He knows one cannot escape without the other boys paying for it. Through the story Gopal remains strong for both of his families, he stays strong, he never loses faith and even when he did he always found it again. I think that to trait that through his experiences he developed was Courage, courage to slip the note to cashier and the courage to bring the boys together and give them their names back.
I predict that since Gopal has returned home to his family, he has realized that rushing to get a job was a mistake. That he should have taken the opportunity to get an education, something that not all children get, and focus on that. I also predict that Gopal will grow up to become very successful and that he and his family will have a good life. I think Gopal will open a book store like he told in one of his stories.
Sincerely,
Taylor Schleisman
