Jhumpa Lahiri: Unaccustomed Earth

I’ve heard so much about Jhumpa Lahiri in recent years, from praise for her debut (Pulitzer Prize-winning) collection of stories, Interpreter of Maladies, to the film adaptation of her novel The Namesake, that it was only a matter of time before I took the plunge. The publication of a new collection of stories in a fine edition and praise by trusted commenters on this blog, was the kick in the backside I needed.

The epigraph, and title, of Unaccustomed Earth comes from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s ‘The Custom-House’:

Human nature will not flourish, any more than a potato, if it be planted and replanted, for too long a series of generations, in the same worn-out soil. My children have had other birthplaces, and, so far as their fortunes may be within my control, shall strike their roots into unaccustomed earth.

It’s perfect for the book: here are eight stories of people who struck their roots into unaccustomed earth, either themselves or by their parents: typically Indian roots in America, sometimes via England (as in the case of Lahiri’s own parents). Contrary to Hawthorne’s prescription, not all of them are thriving.

All this is beautifully illustrated in the title story, the longest in the book at almost 60 pages. Here Ruma, in her late 30s, struggles to balance independence and family loyalty when her widowed father comes to visit.

“You’re always welcome here, Baba,” she’d told her father on the phone. “You know you don’t have to ask.” Her mother would not have asked. “We’re coming to see you in July,” she would have informed Ruma, the plane tickets already in hand. There had been a time in her life when such presumptuousness would have angered Ruma. She missed it now.

What Lahiri does so well in the story ‘Unaccustomed Earth’ is present people who are perfectly individual yet utterly recognisable, particular to their culture but universal in their character. She really does have families down pat. She knows how a father is never quite the same as a mother: “[Ruma] had never been able to confront her father freely, the way she used to fight with her mother. Somehow, she feared that any difference of opinion would chip away at the already frail bond that existed between them.” She understands the greatest unrequited love of all, that of parents for their children, when she expertly slips into the mind of Ruma’s father (who has a few surprises in store for his daughter too in the course of the story), who remembers how “tormented” he had been by his growing children’s appetite for independence:

That loss was in store for Ruma, too; her children would become strangers, avoiding her. And because she was his child he wanted to protect her from that, as he had tried throughout his life to protect her from so many things. He wanted to shield her from the deterioration that inevitably took place in the course of a marriage, and from the conclusion that he sometimes feared was true: that the entire enterprise of having a family, of putting children on this earth, as gratifying as it sometimes felt, was flawed from the start.

(In a later story, another parent is “plagued by his daughters’ vulnerability,” without seeing his own.) Loss and frustration takes a more familiar form in ‘Hell-Heaven’, a contender with ‘Unaccustomed Earth’ for strongest in the book. Here we have not only a tale of unspoken love which keeps its powder dry right up to the last page - and then catches fire - but the recurring question of belonging. Just as Ruma in the opening story cannot understand her father’s handwritten postcards (”her own Bengali was slipping from her”), here the daughter-narrator protests when her parents make her wear a shalwar kameez, making her American friends “assume … that I had more in common with other Bengalis than with them,” whereas she feels herself to be not only her mother’s daughter “but a child of America as well.”

If I had a criticism of these early stories, all of which are superb, it’s that I would have liked some balance of emphasis on the older generation, those who feel less attached to America and more of a pull with their homeland.  We get this only a little, with Ruma’s father in the title story.

The later stories delighted me less. ‘Nobody’s Business’ seems too glib and clever with its tale of housemates, dodgy boyfriends and mysterious callers (though it’s a measure of how well Lahiri executes her effects elsewhere that this story would have pride of place in many other authors’ collections). The three linked stories which close the book, under the umbrella title ‘Hema and Kaushik,’ somehow failed to engage me at all, putting me off partly I suspect with the first story’s curious use of first/second person narrative. This may have been a simple case of story fatigue on my part - 330 pages of stories is somehow more demanding than a novel the same length - and I did wonder if some of the stories should have been shorter. The stories in Unaccustomed Earth average 40 to 50 pages each, which for me makes it a struggle to read each in a sitting (surelys the means for getting the best out of any story). I see that Lahiri’s previous collection managed to fit nine stories into 200 pages, so the stories were half the length of these. One commenter did recommend reading the closing trilogy first, and that might have helped. Meanwhile, I’ll be grateful for the considerable - the unaccustomed - pleasure I had from it, and try that reverse order next time around.

      

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http://theasylum.wordpress.com/2008/10/07/jhumpa-lahiri-unaccustomed-earth/

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Catch all for 10.6.08

John Self's review of Monsieur Monde Vanishes sparks a debate about which of Simenon's thousands of books to read next.

Terry Teachout makes us wish we were in Chicago to see this revival of Karel Capek's R.U.R. (which introduced the word "robot" to the world): "Strawdog's R.U.R. is a major revival of a play that turns out to be far more than a mere historical curiosity."

Farewell to The Sun and to the profane and wonderful enotes book blog. Someone hire Ben Lytal and Shane Mehling right this minute!

John Collier?just like Ray Bradbury, but "witty and sardonic and mean." Right on Ken Jennings! looks like you're not such a dummy after all.

I09 declares The Anatomy of Melancholy one of "The Longest Science Fiction Books of All Time." Never thought of it that way, but we'll buy that it "was the template for much experimentation in early speculative fiction" and that "Burton's analysis of his own mind and body was revolutionary in itself,connecting science directly with fiction."

If you're looking for a fictional pub crawl, you might want to start with The Midnight Bell, where much of the action of Patrick Hamilton's boozy Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky takes place.

Fort Greene may be the site of Brooklyn's next independent bookstore. Please write to Jessica or Rebecca with offers of retail space or cold hard cash.

What is Colin Firth reading...?

NYRB Classics: bringing together literate waitresses and "Victor Serge fanboys" since the other week. Also: how the predicaments of Soviet agents mirror that of politicians in St. Louis.

Susan Bernofsky (you may know her as Robert Walser's translator and soon-to-be biographer) has a blog.

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http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/typepad/nyrb/classics/~3/413255519/catch-all-for-1
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Aeschylus Translations and Another Giveaway

It was a busy weekend and I can’t even account for why. All I know is I didn’t get much time to read. That doesn’t mean I didn’t read at all, however. I began digging in to Aeschylus’ Orestia. I’m halfway through the first play, Agamemnon. The play itself is good so far. But I [...]

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http://somanybooksblog.com/2008/10/06/aeschylus-translations-and-another-giveaway
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Back to Magdalen

I am now officially a student again!

Not that I have the correct Student Card or a working college email address yet... spent this morning writing emails to the computing department and the student registration department, who were friendly but didn't find a solution to any of the above... so here's hoping that my new tutors aren't hoping to contact me. Doh.

So far my only activity as a graduate fresher has been attending the welcome dinner, which was pleasant, where I chatted to two tutors from my undergraduate days, and didn't really speak to the other English Masters student. That's right, there's only one other English Masters student at Magdalen... gosh. Tomorrow I'll meet the whole rabble, and hopefully lots of new Englishy friends to wave at in the library... (I also mentioned this blog to one of my tutors, but I rather hope he doesn't come by today, as this must be the least intelligent post I've written for some months.... back to more literary matters soon, promise.)

The most exciting news of the evening, I reckon, was that each Graduate Fresher gets book tokens. Guess how much? More. More than that. Oo, close. £120. !!!
I've never understood how people can hold onto book tokens for months or years, as mine tend to last until I'm next within running distance of a bookshop - but even I might have my work cut out in spending £120 immediately.

Speaking of book totals... I counted my books over the Summer, while doing the 'cataloguing'. Guess how many... go on, in the comments, and we'll see who's closest...


Read The Full Article:
http://stuck-in-a-book.blogspot.com/2008/10/back-to-magdalen.html

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Cybils: Call for Easy Reader Nominations

Nominations for the Cybils are pouring in. Many thanks to everyone who has nominated titles and/or helped to spread the word. It is clearly going to be a banner year! The fiction picture books, middle grade fiction, young adult fiction, and fantasy and science fiction categories are all going strong, and the nonfiction categories, while not as prolific, are holding their own.

However (as Gail Gauthier noted this morning), a couple of categories are rather sparse in terms of nominations, and that includes the brand-new Easy Reader category (for which I'll be a judge). Currently there are 14 eligible nominated titles (there are more comments, but some are duplicates, or have been moved to other categories).

Here is what category organizer Anastasia Suen had to say about the Easy Reader Category:

"Easy readers are books with simple words and short sentences for children who are learning how to read. While picture books are read to a child by an adult, easy readers are meant to be read by the child himself. Easy readers are the bridge between picture books and chapter books. (You'll know you've found an easy reader when you see the words "read," "reader," or "reading" on the cover.

Learning to read takes place on a continuum, and the books reflect that. Easy readers range from 8 page books with a single word or a simple phrase on each page to 64 page books divided into chapters. (After children have become fluent readers, they move up to longer chapter books.)

In the Easy Reader category of the Cybils, we are looking for high-interest books with active stories (whether true or imaginary) that are told with simple plot patterns, predictability, and repetition. The art in these books should support the child reading the book by clearly illustrating what is taking place in the story.

Did you find an 8-64 page easy reader book that a child just had to read again and again? Nominate it so we can read it too!"

Using this criteria, Clementine's Letter (while a lovely title) is not an easy reader. It's a middle grade fiction title that falls on the lower end of the 8 to 12 year old reading range. Books that are Easy Readers that I've reviewed and that are on the nomination list include Gail Gauthier's A Girl, A Boy, and Three Robbers, and Tim Egan's Dodsworth in Paris. We also have the latest Putter and Tabby and Maybelle books.

But surely there are other titles. Aren't there? I'm going to reiterate Anastasia's plea: "Did you find an 8-64 page easy reader book that a child just had to read again and again? Nominate it so we can read it too!" I would really love to see this category make a strong showing this year, and I hate to think that there are kid-friendly, parent-friendly easy readers out there that we're missing.

I'll also point out, this notion borrowed from Gail, that if you nominate a book in a category that only had a few nominated titles, your choice is much more likely to be the winner than if you are nominating in a category that already had 90 titles. So, think Easy Readers, Poetry, and Graphic Novels. And head on over to the Cybils blog to nominate your favorites. (It's not a popularity contest, however, so there is no advantage to nominating a book that is already on the list. One nomination per person per category, please.) Nominations close at the end of the day on October 15th.

Go CYBILS!

Read The Full Article:
http://jkrbooks.typepad.com/blog/2008/10/cybils-call-for.html

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The allure of eggs and nests

A nice piece at the Science Times that includes a good plug for what is undoubtedly one of the most lovely and fascinating books I have read for some time, Rosamond Purcell et al.'s Egg and Nest, which I first heard about at Gwenda's blog.

Miscellaneous other light reading: George R. R. Martin's The Armageddon Rag (very enjoyable, but not a patch on Lewis Shiner's extraordinary Glimpses); Cornelia Read's Field of Darkness; Joe Haldeman's The Accidental Time Machine (slight but pleasant); Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys, an irresistible reread in preparation for The Graveyard Book (lovely, lovely writing); and Tana French's The Likeness, which I liked very much indeed.

Thumbs down on Pineapple Express. Thumbs up on the Mythbusters episode with the water heater rocket - this show is excellent, causing me to be ashamed of my near-total ignorance of the pleasures of television....

Read The Full Article:
http://jennydavidson.blogspot.com/2008/10/allure-of-eggs-and-nests.html

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Rounding Up the Beast

During a day packed with news of a panicked Wall Street, a number of Internet writers still covered the debut of The Daily Beast--Tina Brown's first step into webby journalism.

In this big launch, the author of The Diana Chronicles and former New Yorker editor crossed The Huffington Post, the content aggregating site Digg, and a glossy magazine from a happier era.

At Politico, Michael Calderone asked Is Tina just following Arianna?, and explored the new blog's influences.

Maud Newton cheered on the new site, pointing out her own book and publishing coverage on the site.

Paid Content noted the clever book industry tie-ins:

"One quick-hit way to get top names up there: the Buzz Board featuring what 'smart people recommend' and led by Bill Clinton on launch day recommending 'three bailout-related books.'

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media

Read The Full Article:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/editors/rounding_up_the_beast_96696.asp?c=rs
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October 6 - Bolen's Books

I went to John Schreiber's book launch tonight for Stranger Wycott's Place, the newest volume in the Transmontanus series by New Star that Terry Glavin edits. I finally got to meet Terry, which was a treat, as well as the impressively named Sage Birchwater, and I greatly enjoyed listening to John talk about the book and the experiences that went into it. Plus I used up a birthday gift certificate, and (predictably) spent a little extra as well:

• ed. W.F. Garrett-Petts, The Small Cities Book: On the Cultural Future of Small Cities ($18.99 - a New Star Book that uses Kamloops as their example to "[localize] questions of globalization and cultural identity at the municipal level... [and to] explore notions of social capital" - exactly my thing, in other words)
  
• John Schreiber, Stranger Wycott's Place: Stories from the Cariboo-Chilcotin ($19)
  

As Schreiber says in the first chapter of his book, "Through learning where we are, we may learn who we are" (p.11); this is an awfully brief way of explaining why I study what I do.

I'm not sure yet if Schreiber's motto justifies my birthday gift of Granta 102 (on "The New Nature Writing," about which Keith Talent alerted me some time ago), but it definitely authorizes the other gift: a limited edition, boxed, signed hardcover of Roderick Haig-Brown's 1960 The Living Land, which - needless to say - I'm greatly enjoying already.

Read The Full Article:
http://boughtbooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/october-6-bolens-books.html

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Minnesota Review Extinction

The Minnesota Review is in danger of shutting down, due to Carnegie Mellon's intransigence regarding funding. It's an age-old struggle between English departments squeezed for money, who want to shift funds to other seemingly more tangible benefits, and literary journals that are rarely self-supporting.

David Kaufer, the head of the English department, insists that The Minnesota Review should seek outside funding, but most literary journals operate on a budget funded by three roughly equal sources: revenue from sales/advertising, outside grants/funds, and university support. If you take away the last leg, most university-affiliated journals would collapse.

The Chronicle of Higher Education weighs in on the situation in a blog post, and the student newspaper offers a more extended take, including extensive quotes from all involved.

Read The Full Article:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Bookfox/~3/413170469/minnesota-review-extinction.h
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One Week to Go!

Okay, so here is the "before" picture.  I'm going to apply myself diligently this week and see if I can actually manage to finish Les Misérables by the end of Saturday.  As you can see I'm quite far along and don't have too much left to read.  Sometimes it's that last dash that's the hardest.  As you can see I've planned it all out.  If I can read 60 pages every day (yellow tags to be removed as I go), I can finally move on to a new book!  So I'm going to take a big deep breath and take the plunge and completely immerse myself in ca. 1832 Paris.  My bag is going to feel awfully empty with only one book, but unless I want to be reading this during my winter break from work, it has to be done.  You have no idea how brutal this feels to someone who likes to juggle a stack of books! 

Read The Full Article:
http://danitorres.typepad.com/workinprogress/2008/10/one-week-to-go.html

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