How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia

How could you not want to read a book by that title?  How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia is Mohsin Hamid's follow-up to his 2007 hit, The Reluctant Fundamentalist.  Here's what I came up with in trying to categorize this title: Self-Help Fiction.  Seriously.

The main character is actually "You".  The writer is instructing you on how to, you guessed it, get filthy rich in rising Asia.  In each chapter, you move forward in time in your question for riches, checking off each goal as you go.  But there is an actual story here, too.  You meet a pretty girl, in the chapter entitled "Don't Fall in Love", and her appearances and disappearances throughout the novel play a key role, despite the author reminding you to not let such distractions deter you from your ultimate goal.  Yes, sometimes your personal relationships may crumble, but you want to get rich, right?

Other chapter titles like "Befriend a Bureaucrat" and "Patronize the Artists of War" should give you an inkling of what to expect.  The book is very tongue-in-cheek at times, though there is a lot here about the global economy and personal relationships.  Just expect a lot of dark humor along the way.