Town of Love
“Finally, an engaging novel that sees beyond our tiny, Norwegian lives . . . Ostby has included a glimmer of hope into this novel, which is based on her own numerous visits to the prostitutes in northern India: Some of the women do escape the wheels of karma. It is the theme which carriesTown of Love. Not that the language is poor. Ostby knows her India, and her writing is clear and unsentimental.”  —Dagbladet“A strong and engaging story . . . a novel definitely worth reading.”   —Sandefjords Blad “Anne Ostby's portrayal of the Nats is horrifying, but also beautiful. Her novel depicts the most degrading of attitudes towards women, but at the same time conveys love, hope, compassion, and warmth. The author describes an India which sadly exists for real to this day. [Told] in a well-flowing language which enables us to smell and sense our way through the very darkest alleys of India. But more than anything Town of Love portrays women supporting women. How they do it with an indomitable courage in spite of hostility, scorn, and beatings by corrupt policemen and violent family members. The book is truly, as the epilogue points out, an important chapter in the fight against slavery. That in itself is reason enough to read this novel, an unsentimental depiction of the fear of women and the lust of men. And of what a few brave women can achieve."  —Troender-Avisa“Having personally met the survivors of trafficking about whom this is written, I know that Anne Ostby’s novel deserves world attention. It is the essence of a terrible truth that must be exposed.”  —Gloria Steinem“A forceful and brutal novel about powerlessness, but also a heart-warming story about love—and about hope. It's a novel that wakes you up, that makes you reflect on the value of a human being!”  —Anne Schaffer,Tara Magazine"I recommend this book for all readers who appreciate how people manage to act as human beings in situations that deny their humanity." —Me, You and Books