Last night I finished reading “The other hand(Little Bee in US and Canada)” by Chris Cleave. The book doesn’t has a description on the back flap, it only says this about the book:

“We don’t want to tell you what happens in this story. It is a truly special story and we don’t want to spoil it. Nevertheless, you need to know enough to buy it so we will just say this: This is the story of two women. Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice. Two years later, they meet again — the story starts there… Once you have read it, you’ll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don’t tell them what happens either. The magic is in how it unfolds.”

This got my attention and the fact that the book is on the top 10 list at the bookshop made me buy it. I read it in three nights, I had to force myself to stop to get some sleep. The book is a fiction story based on actual facts.

It’s about a refugee woman in England and an English woman. I like the other back flap version more:

“…we will only say this: It is extremely funny, but the African beach scene is horrific. The story starts there, but the book doesn’t. And it’s what happens afterward that is most important…”

The author’s intention isn’t to educate its readers on the refugees looking for asylum in the western world. But to provide the facts and for the readers to make their own opinion. It’s not about immigrants looking for better life, but refugees who flee for their life. I notice that this difference is overlooked a lot among citizens and even politicians.

I don’t want to spoil the book because they are right that you should read it without having any or much knowledge about the book. But it sure opened my eyes and made me realize again how good we have it in the western world and how much atrocities happens in third world countries as a direct result of the western worlds involvement in those countries. We should be remembered about this once in a while and not take things for granted.

I leave you with this quote from the book, it is said after the horrific beach incident.

“That is a good trick about this world Sarah. No one likes each other, but everyone likes U2″ –Little Bee