Advanced publicity for The World is Round: A Year of Living Off the Land and Off the Grid, by M. Chowdhury

The heroic and humorous account of one Bengali family’s year long attempt to go without the fruits of the world economy. After stumbling across a LiveEarth brochure at a local recycled-goods pile, the Chowdhury family decide to take a principled stand against the worst excesses of global capitalism – environmental degradation, human rights abuses, unfair trade practices – and devote one year to simplifying their lives and lessening their contribution to these problems. Gone are the basic necessities – no automobiles, no consumer products made from China or the United States. Instead of buying groceries, the Chowdhury’s limit themselves to food grown by themselves or within a 10-mile radius. Instead of purchasing consumer goods, they reuse what they have or recycle discards from a local recycled-goods pile. Laugh along as they try to cope with less in a world of so much!

The World is Round is a enchantingly unconventional memoir which chronicles the trials and tribulations of M. Chowdhury, a subsistence farmer and renowned local storyteller in Patuakhali, Bangladesh, as he chooses to live with his family of 6 on a one-half hectare plot of land! Readers will be as amazed – as the Chowdhury’s surely were – when they learn about all the small things the family would be giving up: from microwaves to M&Ms, from Cadillacs to cashmere sweaters. Come along as they navigate the mysteries of rice cultivation! Snicker as they chase down their own ornery sheep to slaughter! Marvel as they battle monsoon-force winds to repair the roof of their swaying hut! Admire their pluck and fortitude as they reduce their daily caloric intake by half during seasonal flooding! Then rejoice with them as they end their year in self-imposed exile and rejoin the world of the typical Bengali family!

“Timely, funny, and powerful… M. Chowdhury is a model for us all. An eye-opener about how we can re-connect to what’s around us by… do[ing] without [for awhile].”
– Titus Applewhite, author of Cleansing the Colon: A Year without Subtitles

“The Chowdhury family’s exploits put a human face on the desire to do good in the world, despite all the temptations otherwise. This book will make you think about whether you really need that larger capacity dryer.”
– Susan Deitsmeiterschwin, author of Forsaking the ‘Spear’: A Year in Search of the Perfect Mojito

“A story of how one family chose to interconnect their land, the lives, and their desires. …A must-read book.”
– Herman Wellsmight, author of Irony is Dead: The Year after Everything Changed

“If only more people were like [the Chowdhury’s]!”
– J. Ellen Kerlinge, The Dallas Evening Times