“Microfinance started as a sector that helps people come out of
poverty and empower women. Over time, NGOs discovered the profit
potential, and as more and more changed to profit motive, the sector
became an industry, the profit motive led to exploitation and extortion.
This extreme deviation has been vividly captured in this intense and
entertaining fictional novel, which is written in very easy style and is
compelling from start to finish.” …..Dr. Smita Premchander, who has taught an elective in Microfinance managementfor the past four years at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and is an international development consultant, and Secretary of Sampark, an NGO that has facilitated formation of financial cooperatives
Full Book Review: Where Angels Prey
Microfinance started as a sector that helps people come out of
poverty and empower women. Alongside, it also provided surpluses to
NGOs. NGOs tasted freedom from donors. They began to expand their
microfinance operations, and realised that as their profits grew, so did
donor interest in them. Donor funds did not stop, they increased! The
microfinance bread was buttered on both sides. The microfinance agency
leaders were painted as angels, by the people to whom they provided easy
cash, and by the donors to whom they provided large scale success
stories. And then the profit motive led to excessive, expensive credit,
at extortionary practices. Those who could not repay, started suffering,
even committing suicides. The angels began to prey. With no remorse,
even accolades.
An intense, entertaining and compelling plot! Eerily close to
reality. A compelling way of narration, with details that sound so
true, as if one could imagine these characters and events in real life.
Arunachalam’s book is a gripping depiction of what has gone wrong in
some cases in microfinance.As the first novel depicting
the sector, Arunachalam does a great job, revealing a story layer by
layer, with political, village and administration dynamics unfolding
alongside an international journalistic story.
A work of fiction has the license to exaggerate, and I would warn
readers of the book to read it as pure fiction. Those who know the
sector should not look to put faces to characters, as they would be
barking up the wrong tree. Read it as fiction, and enjoy it. Personally, although I found the book gripping till the end, I was startled by the end.
Perhaps this was the intention of the book, and I caught myself falling
into the same trap that I just warned you about: don’t read it as
anything but fiction!
Arunachalam is a passionate writer, with regular columns on
microfinance. His first book was a magnum opus on what has gone wrong
with microfinance. His second book was a concise overview packed with
his experience in the sector. His third, the novel Where Angels Prey, is not for the sector specialist at all, it is
fiction, and enjoyable as a story. In the genre of light, engaging,
fast reading. With that, I recommend the book highly to all, as a good
two hour read while you wait at airports and take a flight out, you will
not feel the time pass by!
Dr. Smita Premchander, who has taught an elective in Microfinance management for the past four years at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, is an international development consultant, and Secretary of Sampark, an NGO that has facilitated formation of financial cooperatives
Light, engaging, entertaining fast reading, I Highly Recommend Where Angels Prey To All – Dr Smita Premchander
“Microfinance started as a sector that helps people come out of poverty and empower women. Over time, NGOs discovered the profit potential, and as more and more changed to profit motive, the sector became an industry, the profit motive led to exploitation and extortion. This extreme deviation has been vividly captured in this intense and entertaining fictional novel, which is written in very easy style and is compelling from start to finish.” …..Dr. Smita Premchander, who has taught an elective in Microfinance management for the past four years at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and is an international development consultant, and Secretary of Sampark, an NGO that has facilitated formation of financial cooperatives
Full Book Review: Where Angels Prey
Microfinance started as a sector that helps people come out of poverty and empower women. Alongside, it also provided surpluses to NGOs. NGOs tasted freedom from donors. They began to expand their microfinance operations, and realised that as their profits grew, so did donor interest in them. Donor funds did not stop, they increased! The microfinance bread was buttered on both sides. The microfinance agency leaders were painted as angels, by the people to whom they provided easy cash, and by the donors to whom they provided large scale success stories. And then the profit motive led to excessive, expensive credit, at extortionary practices. Those who could not repay, started suffering, even committing suicides. The angels began to prey. With no remorse, even accolades.
An intense, entertaining and compelling plot! Eerily close to reality. A compelling way of narration, with details that sound so true, as if one could imagine these characters and events in real life. Arunachalam’s book is a gripping depiction of what has gone wrong in some cases in microfinance. As the first novel depicting the sector, Arunachalam does a great job, revealing a story layer by layer, with political, village and administration dynamics unfolding alongside an international journalistic story.
A work of fiction has the license to exaggerate, and I would warn readers of the book to read it as pure fiction. Those who know the sector should not look to put faces to characters, as they would be barking up the wrong tree. Read it as fiction, and enjoy it. Personally, although I found the book gripping till the end, I was startled by the end. Perhaps this was the intention of the book, and I caught myself falling into the same trap that I just warned you about: don’t read it as anything but fiction!
Arunachalam is a passionate writer, with regular columns on microfinance. His first book was a magnum opus on what has gone wrong with microfinance. His second book was a concise overview packed with his experience in the sector. His third, the novel Where Angels Prey, is not for the sector specialist at all, it is fiction, and enjoyable as a story. In the genre of light, engaging, fast reading. With that, I recommend the book highly to all, as a good two hour read while you wait at airports and take a flight out, you will not feel the time pass by!
Dr. Smita Premchander, who has taught an elective in Microfinance management for the past four years at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, is an international development consultant, and Secretary of Sampark, an NGO that has facilitated formation of financial cooperatives