Animal’s People

我的名字是「動物」。我的脊椎彎得像髮夾、全身最高的部位是屁股，我用雙手走路跑步，一跳一跳地把雙腿拖在後面。我才不是他媽的人類，我也不想當人，現在我正對著在看這些文字的你講話。

我是個徹底的壞胚子，考普爾市的任何人都認得出我。修女、警察與天知道有哪些人都曾經想讓我離開街頭行乞騙錢的生活，我都拒絕了。但妮莎一開始就接受我本來的樣子，幫我在扎法爾領導的組織內找到工作，也就是每天在路上張大眼睛打開耳朵，打聽任何風吹草動。貧民窟的人說我們是聖人，毒害援救局長則說我們是反動分子。如果要我老實說，我們只是一群他媽做好事的人。

然而，所有的偉大善行似乎都比不上艾莉這個神祕的美國醫生。她突然出現在考普爾市，設立診所提供免費治療，甚至連我這種屎蛋也想救。難道美國公司在「那一夜」害大家生病之後，又派艾莉女醫生來搞鬼？扎法爾要我明察暗訪揭發艾莉的真面目，瘋瘋癲癲的法蘭西老媽則警告世界末日會再度降臨，我的心中卻湧起一種莫名的希望：艾莉將會改變我的人生！

「沒有希望一樣可以奮鬥下去，只要你的心在更強大的東西裡找到力量，那就是愛。」

作者簡介

英德拉．辛哈

1950年出生於印度，在孟買和西高止山區間度過童年歲月，後移居英國，大學時代主修英國文學。曾任職廣告公司，並獲選為英國歷來最佳的十位廣告文案。出版過The Cybergypsies等多本非文學作品，和小說The Death of Mr Love，受到廣大好評。《據說，我曾經是人類》是他的第二部小說，獲得2007年曼布克獎決選提名、2008年Commonwealth Wrtier’s Prize決選提名。

Ever since That Night, the residents of Khaufpur have lived a perilous existence. Their world is poisoned. Nobody has received compensation or help for the chemical leak, least of all Animal, as he is known, whose spine twisted at a young age, leaving him to walk on all fours. Though he inhabits a dark kind of half-life, he knows what love is. He has long harboured feelings for his friend Nisha but since she is enamoured of his friend Zafar he cannot even allow himself to hope. When Elli Barber arrives, an 'Amrikan' keen to set up a free clinic to help the victims of the disaster, deep suspicion arises amongst the community. Animal resolves to turn the situation to his advantage and starts to investigate Elli's motives.Chronicles the relationship between Animal, a street boy forced to go about on all fours after his back is twisted beyond repair during the chemical plant accident in Bhopal, India, and Elli Barber, the American doctor treating the suffering inhabitants of the region.