One Amazing Thing by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

I got this ARC from Hyperion Books. I like to read disaster novels to see how the characters coped and store any survival ideas that sound good. I'm not expecting a disaster in my life, but who knows?

Take an office full of Indian (from India) people who are waiting to get their visa and passports for travel back home. Add in a bad earthquake and shake, and you will get a collapsed building with nine wildly disparate people trapped in one small office. Not only do they not know anything about each other, they're not people they want to be trapped with either.

There are varied emotions. Panic, anger, fear, tears. The man who takes the lead is asthmatic and only has five sprays left in his inhaler. They have no hope of being rescued soon.

At first, they aren't too upset because they have a bathroom, and the utilities are working. But, as the building collapses further, they lose their water and the use of the toilet. And the water starts to rise in the room in the room they're stranded in.

As they sit on tables and try not to panic, one lady brings up the idea of sharing one amazing thing from their life. They can each take turns.

The stories distract them from the doom around them, and everyone in the room learns about the other person by listening to their story.

It's very well done, the stories are amazing in themselves, and I found it a fast read.

If you'd like my copy of this ARC, please leave a comment here on the blog and email me at info NOSPAM @bookfaerie.com (take the spaces and NOSPAM out) with your name and address and tell me why you'd like to have it. I'll give it away in about a week.