Winston-Salem Journal, N.C., Kim Underwood column: From blog to book, lawyer tells India travel story.(Column)

Byline: Kim Underwood

Feb. 25--Joseph L. Anderson is an only child. When his father unexpectedly died after an accident in 2004, Anderson thought that perhaps he should cancel his trip to India. He didn't want to leave his mother on her own.

"My mother was grieving; so was I," he said.

Go, she said. All she asked was that he post something on the Internet every day so that she would know what he was up to.

So that's what Anderson did. After stops in London and Paris, he flew to India for a three-week stay in December and January. At least once each day, he posted photographs and a combination of his experiences, observations and thoughts.

Although his writings were meant primarily for his mother, they became a book after Kevin Watson, the co-publisher of Winston-Salem's Press53, read the log online and offered to publish it. It's easy to see why. Parts of the book -- particularly when Anderson immerses himself in the slums -- are gripping in their vividness.

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