I should also mention that I finished listening to "Stone Cold" by David Baldacci. These audiobooks, for the record, are wonderful brain candy for a person with a long commute (a couple times a week).
"Stone Cold" left me feeling like I needed a character web to follow along, but once I grew accustomed to the characters and to their relationships with one another, I was able to just relax, drive, and enjoy the story.
Happy listening!
Friday, November 27, 2009
Interpreter of Maladies
I finished the last available Jhumpa Lahiri book Wednesday. It is a short story collection titled "Interpreter of Maladies." Like her other short story collection, An Unaccustomed Earth, and her novel, The Namesake, Interpreter of Maladies focuses on the lives of Bengalis, primarily, as well as Indians. Every story centers on a single relationship: man and wife, man and landlady, impoverished old woman and her community (x2). The stories are short and well-written, in Lahiri's typical laid-back, easy style, but the storylines seemed tired and overdone. Two stories about old, unmarried women neglected by their communities? Seems a little redundant.
Unlike "An Unaccustomed Earth", which featured a variety of stories in a variety of locations, "Interpreter of Maladies" seemed to spend copious amounts of time in dirty hallways or on lonely benches. The stories lacked the spark of culture clashes, and it failed to deliver a certain amount of modernity. The stories felt old, I think.
Still, this read, though, for me, a bit banal, comparatively speaking, is a light and pleasurable read. I did not devour it voraciously, as I did the first two books, but I enjoyed it nonetheless (just over time).
On tap: I really do not know. I have a small pile of books gathering beside my bed. Perhaps I will read "And Then There Were None" by Agatha Christie. This would fulfill a promise I made to a student, and I do love a good mystery.
Happy reading!
Unlike "An Unaccustomed Earth", which featured a variety of stories in a variety of locations, "Interpreter of Maladies" seemed to spend copious amounts of time in dirty hallways or on lonely benches. The stories lacked the spark of culture clashes, and it failed to deliver a certain amount of modernity. The stories felt old, I think.
Still, this read, though, for me, a bit banal, comparatively speaking, is a light and pleasurable read. I did not devour it voraciously, as I did the first two books, but I enjoyed it nonetheless (just over time).
On tap: I really do not know. I have a small pile of books gathering beside my bed. Perhaps I will read "And Then There Were None" by Agatha Christie. This would fulfill a promise I made to a student, and I do love a good mystery.
Happy reading!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
First Family
I have also been listening to audiobooks on my drives to Massachusetts and back. I listened to First Family, a novel written by David Baldacci. The story unfolds as the President's niece is abducted and brought to a farm/mine in Alabama, the mother of one of the investigators is murdered, and the First Lady plots to hide dangerous family secrets.
The mystery unravels over twelve CDs, and, I have to say, listening to the rendition really makes a drive go more quickly. In fact, with First Family, I found myself looking forward to getting into my car, grateful for trips to the grocery store because they meant twenty more minutes of story time.
I think this goes to show that humans are never too old to be read to. Since First Family, I began my second foray into Baldacci, and I am now listening to Stone Cold. It is a little more confusing (characters abound!), but now that I am five CDs in, the story is becoming clearer.
Happy reading-- and listening!
The mystery unravels over twelve CDs, and, I have to say, listening to the rendition really makes a drive go more quickly. In fact, with First Family, I found myself looking forward to getting into my car, grateful for trips to the grocery store because they meant twenty more minutes of story time.
I think this goes to show that humans are never too old to be read to. Since First Family, I began my second foray into Baldacci, and I am now listening to Stone Cold. It is a little more confusing (characters abound!), but now that I am five CDs in, the story is becoming clearer.
Happy reading-- and listening!
Identical
A student recommended I read Identical, a collection of poems written by Ellen Hopkins. The story is told via poems written by identical twin sisters. Essentially, the collection functions as a modern-day epic poem, relating in poetry a story that would normally be told through basic prose. But the poetic form gives life to these girls and to the struggles they face. They are not typical teenagers. Instead, they are the daughters of a prominent politician mother and a renowned judge father. They endure the public facade erected by their parents, and they battle internally with demons no one should ever battle.
I was disturbed the entire time I read the book. Switching from one twin to the other and back, I felt, as a reader, that I was on a roller coaster with them. One minute a girl binges to swallow her pain, and the next another is purging to force it out. A boyfriend with sweet intentions contrasts several with the worst. Through it all, a father and mother neglect and abuse their children with truly reckless abandon. I cringe simply thinking about it.
In so many ways, I'm afraid this is reality (in some form) for many of my students, and that disturbs me in every imaginable way. It is the harsh reality of our world, the sick reality of some people in it, and the impossible reality for young people trying to survive.
Poetry was a powerful vessel to deliver the message. Feeling intimate and vulnerable and connected to these girls' words means living their terrifying experiences. A short story told from their first-person points-of-view would not have the same power. The vessel would not be fluid enough to represent the chaos of their lives. For this reason, I believe Identical's unique format gives it a structureless structure and allows the story to be told eloquently and viscerally, drawing the reader in even as it makes her want to turn away.
I was disturbed the entire time I read the book. Switching from one twin to the other and back, I felt, as a reader, that I was on a roller coaster with them. One minute a girl binges to swallow her pain, and the next another is purging to force it out. A boyfriend with sweet intentions contrasts several with the worst. Through it all, a father and mother neglect and abuse their children with truly reckless abandon. I cringe simply thinking about it.
In so many ways, I'm afraid this is reality (in some form) for many of my students, and that disturbs me in every imaginable way. It is the harsh reality of our world, the sick reality of some people in it, and the impossible reality for young people trying to survive.
Poetry was a powerful vessel to deliver the message. Feeling intimate and vulnerable and connected to these girls' words means living their terrifying experiences. A short story told from their first-person points-of-view would not have the same power. The vessel would not be fluid enough to represent the chaos of their lives. For this reason, I believe Identical's unique format gives it a structureless structure and allows the story to be told eloquently and viscerally, drawing the reader in even as it makes her want to turn away.
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