Andy Mulligan's Trash is anything but

For something called garbage, Andy Mulligan's 229-page thriller Trash is the exact opposite. The setting is Behala, a dumpsite that Filipinos will quickly associate with Smokey Mountain. Probably accurately, since Mulligan says at the end of the book that the setting is loosely based on a place he visited in the Philippines, where he taught English at the British International School in Manila. The school is partnered with a charity-run dumpsite school, similar to the book's fictional Pascal Aguila Mission school which its three small heroes attend - when they have the time, that is. Like many children in their situation (literally down in the dumps), Rat, Gardo and Raphael spend most of their time working to help feed the family. Going to school when graduation seems impossible is seen as pointless, and children are expected to contribute to the family income by whatever means available, in this case, by crawling through trash, hoping to find treasure. A plastic bottle that can be sold here, some edible leftovers there. One day Raphael finds real treasure - a wallet with eleven thousand pesos. But even better than the money, there is a folded map, and in it a key. Little does he know that with the key comes an adventure bigger and dirtier than the mountain of trash they live in, and make a living of. For many privileged readers, the situation is unimaginable. But Mulligan has seen for himself that such a life exists, and he shows his readers what it is like for a dumpsite boy. "It's like one of the circles of hell. You are watching seven-year-olds crawling through the rubbish right next to 70-year-olds – and you have in that vision the absolute solid image of what that seven-year-old will become. You just think this can't really be true and you are overwhelmed by your own impotence – there is not a thing I can do about it," Mulligan said in an interview by Michelle Pauli for the Guardian. It seems like an enormous task to tackle such a serious, heavy reality in so short a book, but the author does this with a tight, singular plot and only a handful of characters. What's impressive is how well he does it. With the slew of internationally-acclaimed films that depict the Philippines' gritty third world encounters, it's understandable that a plot like that of Trash can be met with a certain amount of wariness. After all, there's already plenty of poverty porn out there. The last thing we need is another story that romanticizes the plight of the poor, shocking or entertaining the audience but never really moving them. Fortunately, Trash has none of that rubbish. Despite the grim story, the tone is sincere, not sentimental. The twists and turns of this thriller are believable, and not completely predictable, even for readers older than children, who are the books primary target audience. The characters are allowed to speak for themselves, each writing particular chapters. As the plot thickens, Raphael, Rat, Gardo, Sister Olivia, Father Juilliard take turns giving their accounts, taking off from where the last ended. Here and there, details are discovered, and the narration is interrupted by a few newspaper articles. The typical mystery objects - a key, a map, and a letter eventually become meaningful through the boys' sleuthing. A former theater director, Mulligan has a knack for vivid storytelling, which makes Trash an unexpectedly intense read that readers will finish in one sitting not just because it's short, but because it's a veritable page-turner. Readers find themselves engaged in the story, especially when a book-code comes into the picture. The strangely endearing protagonists capture the reader and make them care, so that with every foreshadowing phrase that reminds the reader that something bad is going to happen, the page is turned with the hope that the boys make it. Descriptions are not minced at all - we know that these are boys with rags for clothes, the kind that wouldn't be given a ride even if they had money to pay the fare. But you find yourself wanting to hug them or even kiss them, and not out of pity but out of respect and admiration. They're incredibly spunky, fierce, and instead of becoming resentful or disillusioned by the severely flawed system that neglected them, they go on an adventure and stick it to the (bad) man with panache worthy of cinematic treatment. It's no surprise that film rights were taken shortly after the book's UK publication in 2010 by David Fickling Books, an imprint of Random House Children's Books. The book will be published in 12 languages across the globe. Despite its success and the generally warm reviews, Trash was dropped from the shortlist for last year's Blue Peter awards. Though initially selected by the judges, it was deemed inappropriate for children as young as six, who are included in the BBC programme's audience. According to a Blue Peter statement, "scenes of violence and swearing" are what make the book unsuitable. For his part, Mulligan believes "a good book will upset someone, because the moment you engage with someone's imagination, you take them into both light and dark," as he tells the Guardian. In Trash, readers journey with the characters through the dark, but bits of humor and hope keep their spirits afloat until the end, which ultimately makes up for all the suffering. "I've got no interest in children's books that don't offer hope. I suppose I'm firmly wedded to the idea of redemption: that whatever you've done, whatever situation you are in, there is a possibility of finding a way out of it," Mulligan told the Guardian. - GMANews.TV