“ The setting is modern Singapore, where a law has been established making the collection of trash for the purpose of sale illegal. There are so many words for trash; rubbish, yes, and garbage, waste, and refuse. This last seems best to communicate that which is worthless, discarded. It can be a verb; something turned away, refused. The protagonist, an eighty-eight year old woman for whom this law means the end to her livelihood, selling scavenged cans and cardboard. In the end, it is clear that people can be refuse, too. A surreal story told with humor and heart. Highly recommended! ”