Book Review

Book Review Of
The Banker To The Poor

About The Author
Mohammad Yunus
Yunus is the author and the main character of the book. He grows up in the city of Chittagong, the son of a local jeweler. The family lives in quarters above the jewelry shop. Yunus develops his compassion for and interest in the poor from his mother who always puts money away for poor relatives. He attends the Lamar Bazar Free Primary School as a child. He attends high school and receives a monthly stipend by winning the Competitive Scholarship Examination. After high school he attends Chittagong College in Chittagong. At the age of twenty-one he is offered a teaching post in economics, which he holds from 1961 to 1965. He also establishes a successful packaging and printing business at this time and in 1965 receives a Fulbright scholarship to study for a Ph.D

Theme
Concern for the Poor
The overriding theme of the book is concern for the poor. Yunus is raised in a middle class family that does have to worry about starvation. His father owns a jewelry shop so they always have enough to eat. Yunus learns compassion for the poor from his mother. She always puts away money to help those in need.
When Yunus is teaching, he sees the village of Jobra which is located outside the school grounds. There are unused fields during a time of starvation. He becomes interested in the village and the problems and he and his students begin to work with the villagers. He sees the abject poverty of the people and wonders how to help them

Style
Perspective
The book is written in the first person point of view with Yunus as the narrator. This is Yunus's story of how the bank comes into being from a twenty-seven dollar loan he makes to some of the villagers of Jobra. The first person point of view allows the reader to experience many of the events through Yunus's eyes. The reader has the benefit of his knowledge and experience as an economist and as a Bangladeshi.
The story Yunus tells is a powerful... [continues]

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