Batuk and What Made Her Special

Batuk is special or different from the other 9 year-old children due to :

1) Her love of reading and writing.

2) Her ability to use escapism/imagination to temporarily flee the horrors she encounters in reality.

3) Her ability to adapt and/or control events to her advantage.

The Blue Notebook is a disturbing yet inspiring novel about a young Indian girl named Batuk the protagonist

who at age 9 is thrust into the world of child prostitution on the "Street of Cages" in Mumbai,

India. Disturbing it is, but how can a story regarding child prostitution be inspirational. Batuk is different or

special from the other children she has the ability to read/write and loved do so. It is not a common trait in

young poor children from India in the sex trade. What also makes her different is ability to use her

imagination skillfully to escape if only temporarily the horrors and abuse she encounters on a daily basis.

Another trade that makes Batuk special is the ability for her to adapt and/or control events to her

advantage. Putting pen/pencil to paper is the story of "The Blue Notebook".

As a young Indian girl raised in a poor farming family setting Batuk was unable to receive an education.

Ironic as it seems the deadly disease TB which she contracted early on in life was her introduction to

literacy. It was introduced to her by the nurse Hita at the missionary medical clinic where she was being

treated for TB. Batuk wanted to know what the doctor was writing in the medical report and that began

her journey into the world of literacy. Her first word she repeated was "Rabbit", she was entranced "I

stared at this word and repeated it over and over again, like a mantra". Batuk fell in love with reading

within days of learning " I wanted to read my book to the white man because he always carrying a book

with him and so I thought he must love to read too.”. Batuk's love of reading you could say turned into a

wonderful addiction as she mentions it quite eloquently "Mr. Chopra came to teach me ( and visit Hita )

three times a week during the rest of my twelve week stay on the ward. I was a fast study. Having walked

in the desert with no water, I was thirsty and could not drink enough!" Her clear wanting of more words

was a healthy dose of life which helped her deal with the future events in her life. At first there was reading

when she eventually learned to write it opened up new avenues of expression. Batuk ability to read,

write then allowed her to put down in words with pencil/pen, and paper her imagination delving dreams,

Fantasies and alternate less cruel world.

Batuk uses imagination to esacpe her cruel reality when she describes her "nest" on the street of cages and

herself "My nest is a womb of gold.