How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia

A Novel

By: Mohsin Hamid

Narrated by: Mohsin Hamid

Length: 4 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

From the internationally best-selling author of The Reluctant Fundamentalist, the boldly imagined tale of a poor boy's quest for wealth and love.

His first two novels established Mohsin Hamid as a radically inventive storyteller with his finger on the world's pulse. How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia meets that reputation - and exceeds it. The astonishing and riveting tale of a man's journey from impoverished rural boy to corporate tycoon, it steals its shape from the business self-help books devoured by ambitious youths all over "rising Asia". It follows its nameless hero to the sprawling metropolis where he begins to amass an empire built on that most fluid, and increasingly scarce, of goods: water. Yet his heart remains set on something else, on the pretty girl whose star rises along with his, their paths crossing and recrossing, a lifelong affair sparked and snuffed and sparked again by the forces that careen their fates along.

How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia is a striking slice of contemporary life at a time of crushing upheaval. Romantic without being sentimental, political without being didactic, and spiritual without being religious, it brings an unflinching gaze to the violence and hope it depicts. And it creates two unforgettable characters who find moments of transcendent intimacy in the midst of shattering change.

©2013 Mohsin Hamid (P)2013 Penguin Audiobooks

Critic reviews

A Foreign Policy Leading Global Thinker

Shortlisted for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature

Named a Best or Notable Book of 2013 by The New York Times, National Public Radio, The Chicago Tribune, Vogue, Apple, The Observer (London), The Sunday Times (London), Financial Times, The Christian Science Monitor, Huffington Post, Kansas City Star, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, BookPage, Publishers Weekly, and Kirkus Reviews

A Vogue "Favorite Novelist"

“It is a measure of Mr. Hamid’s audacious talents that he manages to make his protagonist’s story work on so many levels. ‘You’ is, at once, a modern-day Horatio Alger, representing the desires and frustrations of millions in rising Asia; a bildungsroman hero, by turns knavish and recognizably human, who sallies forth from the provinces to find his destiny; and a nameless but intimately known soul, whose bittersweet romance with the pretty girl possesses a remarkable emotional power. With How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia Mr. Hamid reaffirms his place as one of his generation’s most inventive and gifted writers.” (Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times)

“Thanks to Hamid's meticulous use of detail - and his sympathy for a man on the make in a society of endemic poverty - we engage deeply with a serious character whose essence remains his own yet who stands as a figure representative of his time and place, an effect only the best novelists can create.... This tale of an unscrupulous striver may bring to mind a globalized version of The Great Gatsby. Given the unabashed gimmickry of Hamid's how-to design, it's a pleasant surprise to find that his book is nearly that good.” (Alan Cheuse, NPR)

"A love story and bildungsroman disguised as a self-help book, and the result has all the inventiveness, exuberance and pathos that the writer's fans have come to expect.... Marvelous and moving." (Time Magazine)

sweet, different

I like that this was written in the second person narrative. I quite enjoyed it

An amazing new way to blend fiction with nonfiction ideas and a hint of philosophy

The bland of fiction and parallels with modern self help books is a really clever premise. The characters are not as well written as other titles by Mohsin, and I found I was not drawn in by the story overall, but the unique twist to the way the story is told was excellent.

Excellent listen

I have read the author’s other books and I was curious about this one. This one is a story that spans the main character’s life from early childhood to his old age. Through it we see the socio-economic, political and cultural events and trends play out as he navigates through his world with his aspirations and challenges. It’s an epic story disguised as a self-help book. And along the way, the author feeds you with his choice morsels of his insights into life, Asia, the global stage. His narration is dry and even a little matter of fact. Much in contrast to a lot of events. I liked it.

Recommended

Concentrated goodness. A uncommon and sublime combination of vagueness and clarity in a convenient morsel.

Fantastic Literature

Really loved listening to this book. Fantastic story, told in a compelling way. The author uses beautiful and creative transition which deeply intrigued me.

Breathtaking

I was taken on a journey that I didn't want to end. But as the author portrays in this well narrated look in the mirror, it all eventually comes to an end.

A MUST read!

This book, and ALL of his books are a must read. Stellar. Poignant. His way of crafting an impactful story is so human, heartbreaking, joyous, and REAL.

The title is misleading, I loved this quick read.

I loved this book, which has a sensationalist misleading title. You'd think it was a business book. Really, it's a well crafted "first person" fiction book.

It's the human story of a boy starting in a slum in India, struggling with the challenges of achievement, love, conflict and death.

The author writes the book as if you are the lead character, giving it a very unique quality that I've never experienced in a book before.

This book evoked an emotional response from me on more than one occasion, by the end I was tearing up...not out of sadness though.

It made me laugh out loud a few times.

Highly recommend it. You can finish it in a weekend.

Clever

Well written and entertaining. Written in a very unique format that you don't often see.

Enexpected and stunning.

A must read for any one whose is curious about living a full life! Enjoy.