The paper presents a book review of this non-fiction work that critically examines the massive dam projects and the detonation of India’s first atomic bomb.
The paper analyzes the work, which claims that although these two projects were intended to bring India into the modern age; they exposed arrogance and corruption on the part of the Indian government. The paper gives a brief biography of Roy, mentions her most famous literary work, `The God of Small Things` and lists her essays. It discusses public support for `The Cost of Living` and looks at the controversy surrounding the work. Next follows a synopsis of each of the two essays that make up the work. The strengths of the work (such as the combination of intellectual rigor with an engaging personal style and a fusion of imagery and lyricism of poetry with a tight, engaging journalistic style) are highlighted and the paper concludes with the political and social messages contained in the work.
`In the two tightly woven essays, Arundhati argues that both projects were lauded by the government to be initiatives that would pull India, willing or not, into the modern age. Instead, Arundhati argues that the dam projects have displaced millions of Indian people, and that the cost of the nuclear bomb. The two essays tell a terrible story of the arrogance, corruption, idiocy, and high-handedness of India’s government.`