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Remarkable circumstances displayed little Saroo's proverbial 9 lives of a cat (or lion cub).

A young child went off with his teenaged brother for an evening adventure, and neither returned home. This is the stuff of parental nightmares, no matter which country of residence. But this situation was worsened by the limited circumstances of both the family and their nation.

In rural India in the mid-1980s, the two brothers separated after Saroo, the younger boy, was instructed by 14 year old Guddu to wait for him inside the train station. After waking from a nap, Saroo was anxious and boarded a train looking for Guddu. Saroo did not find his brother. When he finally exited the train, he was about 1,000 miles from home, in a part of the vast subcontinent that spoke a language different than in his home state.

A Long Way Home is his account of his early childhood, survival on the streets of Calcutta (today's Kolkata), adoption by an Australian couple, and a reunion, 25 years late, with his biological family.

Saroo's family had been abandoned by Saroo's father. In the mid-1980s, his family consisted of his mother, two older brothers and a younger sister. His mother's wages as an unskilled laborer weren't enough to keep the family fed. So his two older brothers also hustled on the streets, leaving Saroo in charge of their youngest sister.

Hunger and poverty steal your childhood and take away your innocence and sense of security.

I could envision the squalor and see how those circumstances could cultivate strong survival instincts. I do not doubt that the street urchins of India faced dangers from those who wanted them for organ harvesting, sexual abuse, or other criminal rackets. But I had difficulty in believing every early childhood vignette, such as Saroo being hired to transport 10 huge watermelons by himself.

Human memory is a slippery thing as any trial lawyer would attest. Psychologists have found that we can invent "memories" because our imaginations are so powerful. But strong negative events can also sear themselves into memory. I believe the basic outline of Saroo's story but also suspect some embellishment during his early years. Saroo himself admits the holes in his memory when he replicated his childhood train journey. There were inconsistencies - from the likelihood of changing trains to the amount of time that had truly elapsed. Saroo had also forgotten his own name, which was "Sheru" ("lion" in English).

I most question the issue of Saroo's age. He asserted that he was five when he became lost. But in chapters 2 and 11, his siblings' ages do not concur. In the former, there's a gap of 9 years between him and Guddu, but in the latter, the difference is only 6 years. I find the childhood tales to be more plausible of a child older than 5 years. My doubts, however, don't detract from Saroo's ultimate message.

My return seemed to inspire and energize the neighborhood, as though it was evidence that the hard luck of life did not have to rule you. Some time miracles do happen.

... providing me with an unshakable faith in the importance of family - however it is formed - and a belief in the goodness of people and the importance of grasping opportunities as they are presented.

I liked A Long Way Home, as it was an easy, straightforward read. I was interested in his second parents' motivations, which were quite exceptional. This bio had some introspection from Saroo. But when I consider his extraordinary circumstances, this memoir didn't elicit a very strong emotional response from me, hence my rating of 3.5 stars.