New Delhi, Oct. 6 -- One of the consequences of reading The Many Lives of Syeda X is that referring to what is called "the informal economy" in India will always henceforth seem a willful denial of reality. That part of the economy in Neha Dixit's telling of many of the 50 jobs that her protagonist Syeda has worked at over a few decades is better described as a Dickensian brutalisation of a vulnerable workforce.

Consider the almond industry, well documented in this book. Almond shells "had to be soaked in acid to soften them faster. Most workers used their bare hands, teeth and feet to break the shells," Dixit reports. "Lalita, Syeda, everyone had disfigured nails and bruised fingertips. Syeda found it difficult to eat meals with her han...