Two writers who have personal experience with the streets of Lusaka and their desperate denizens combine forces to create an unforgettable tale of poverty, violence, cruelty and hope.

Plunging into the action from the outset, we meet a strong-minded but desperately poor boy, Lusabilo, as he stares at the mutilated corpse of another youth protruding from a pile of stinking garbage. The garbage dumps of Lusaka, Zambia’s capital and largest city, are Lusabilo’s domain, where, like other scavengers of all ages, he struggles for scraps of food and anything remotely saleable --- day after exhausting day. An official search for the killer will entwine Lusabilo and others in a skein of complications that include threats of police torture, gang battles and at least one other killing.

"WALKING THE BOWL should be read and studied by anyone genuinely dedicated to real reform and wishing to be educated about the actual conditions of the world’s abandoned and often forgotten children."

We meet Timo, a would-be drug dealer getting his start in that career from the largesse of a big-time racketeer; Kapula, a young girl forced into prostitution and initially Timo’s private “property”; Moonga, whose brief harsh experience in the country’s metal mines brought him in desperation to the trash heaps of Lusaka’s back streets; and the book’s narrators and researchers --- Daniel Mulilo Chama, known as the “Outreacher” for his role as a social worker, and Chris Lockhart, identified as “the white man” in this distressing, real-life drama.

But beyond the ugly landfill’s stench, the constant threat of sickness, rape and death, and the corruption found in the most unexpected places, there is a redemptive force. Known colloquially as “walking the bowl,” it is the ability of people (even young ones) trapped in horrific, harrowing scenarios to recognize charity and kindness when it is offered, and “pay ahead” to others.

The story behind the book is as intriguing as the narrative itself. Chama, a former Lusaka street child, and Lockhart, an author, anthropologist and developmental research consultant, met at a conference and shared their individual experiences. Together they resolved to compose a story that not only would convey accurately and empathetically the conditions of street children in Lusaka, but would give a broader picture to the outside world of the abiding questions surrounding sub-Saharan Africa’s inequalities at a time when equality elsewhere was the great rallying cry.

As they delved into these issues over several years of working directly with street children, the actual murder scenario arose, resulting in an overarching structure. Significantly, much of the vivid depiction of events arose from audio recordings, giving their diligence even greater gravity.

WALKING THE BOWL should be read and studied by anyone genuinely dedicated to real reform and wishing to be educated about the actual conditions of the world’s abandoned and often forgotten children.