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Dominique Lapierre was born on July 30, 1931 in Chatelaillan, France. His first book was A Dollar for a Thousand Kilometers. His other works include Honeymoon Around the Earth, The City of Joy, Beyond Love, A Thousand Suns, Once Upon a Time in the Soviet Union, A Rainbow in the Night and India- My Beloved. He collaborated with Larry Collins to write Is Paris Burning, O Jerusalem, Or I'll Dress You in Mourning, Freedom at Midnight, The Fifth Horseman and Is New York Burning? In collaboration with Javier Moro he wrote Five Past Midnight in Bhopal. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2008 by the government of India.
Dominique Lapierre's novel The City of Joy was originally published in French as La Cite De La Joie in 1985. The English translation by Kathryn Spink was also published in the same year. It was adapted for screen in 1992. The movie starring Patrick Swayze and Pauline Collins was directed by Roland Joffe. The screenplay for the movie was written by Mark Medoff. Indian actors Om Puri and Shabana Azmi also played important roles in the movie. The book received Christopher award in 1986. The author claims to have received more than twenty thousand letters from the readers expressing their love for the book. The book has been hailed by Mother Teresa as, "A magnificent homage to the courage of the poorest of the poor". The Los Angeles Times praised it as, "Apositive, uplifting, experience... lending hope and joy to us all." The Pope John Paul II has described the book as an inspiration to the world. The book is set in the slum of Anandnagar which is based on Pilkhana, Kolkata. Stephen Kowalski's character is inspired by the efforts of Gaston Grand Jean, a Swiss who moved to India in 1972 and has devoted his life in improving the welfare of slum dwellers.
The novel presents a pathetic picture of the poverty, hunger, squalor, disease, and suffering in the life of people living in an urban ghetto. Who in spite of their condition have something unique, something redeeming in their lives: ajest for life, hope in their seemingly hopeless lives. Intertwined with these poverty ridden people is the story of Stephan Kovaksky, whose humanitarian efforts...