Iqbal: A Novel Summary

Iqbal: A Novel Overview

Iqbal is a 2001 novel written in Italian and translated into English. It was published in America in 2003. It is set in Lahore, Pakistan and follows the fate of a young girl named Fatima who works as a bonded laborer in an illegal carpet factory. The story is told in the first person from Fatima’s perspective. She and the other children are generally resolved to their fate until a new boy, Iqbal, comes and refuses to live peacefully within the system. He escapes twice and eventually is able to help his friends get to freedom. He then helps other people held in bonded labor before he is killed by those wishing to stop his work. This is a fictionalized tale of the real life story of Iqbal Masih. Key themes include the way that fear does not prohibit courage, the way that love can be a motivating factor, the fact that people do not often want to face harsh realities, and the idea that hope is fragile. These and other themes are elaborated in part through the way that Iqbal is used as a Christ figure in the novel.