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The Headstrong Historian is another story I read online in The New Yorker for 
Short Story September.
First let me take what interested me here before I give a brief sketch of the story. To begin with, it touches upon many issues. One about a headstrong woman who can stand upto anything. She stands up for her rights. For what is her due. And who makes a decision even though she is not comfortable with it. To send her only son to study in a missionary school. Then we see missionaries calling the traditional customs primitive and the people who practice those heathens. We also see the Nigerians who had studied in missionary schools taking to westernised ways, despising their own people and their ways. The issue of Colonisation is also touched upon along with slavery, which is blot on History.
It covers the entire span of Nwamgba, a Nigerian woman born in the late 19thCentury, who insists on marrying Obierika even though his family is cursed by miscarriages. After many miscarriages, she gives birth to a boy. But her husband dies soon after and she is harassed by his cousins. To protect her son of his rightful inheritance, she enrolls him in the Catholic missionary school. After studying there, he changes and he turns his back on the traditional ways, which he considers heathen way of living. Nwamgba is no doubt hurt by it. When her son’s wife gives birth to a second child, which is a girl, Nwamgba believes, she carries the spirit of her dead husband. She is extremely fond of this girl, who somehow has an inexplicable bond with here grandmother.
Although, Nwamgba makes pottery, she is also a great story-teller. Her grandaughter grace, is the one who finds her true calling. We see glimpses of Grace's future. In a way, she too is a historian, like her grandmother Adichie has written it in such a way that, it feels more like a novel than a short story. I recommend this to be read by all...
Does the changing season change your reading habits? Less time? More? Are you just in the mood for different kinds of books than you were over the summer?
What has season got to do with reading? Moods affect more on our reading habits than change in season. Books I pick up depend more on my mindset rather than the weather. Lately I have been reading short stories. Assorted, I should say. Not with any specific topic. I am just searching the net and look out for good stories and read them.
July and August were two months when I almost did not do any kind of reading. My mind was simply not in it.
In Neil Gaiman's Fragile things which is a collection of short fiction and wonders, The Flints of Memory Lane is a true account of a ghost story. Here Neil Gaiman starts with saying that some places are haunted and there is always a reason for that. Then the author speaks of his house, which was built in the grounds of the old house, he had been staying before it was sold by his father. He missed his old house. One night while he was going out to a friend's place, he saw an oddly dressed gypsy woman standing beneath the street lamp, staring up at his house. When he addressed her, she did not answer but looked at him and smiled in a nasty way, that chilled him.
In his own words, he was scared and he walked out of the drive and when he looked back and saw nothing. Profoundly scared, he went over to his friends place and asked his parents to take him home. Although he never saw that woman again, he could not find any reason of her being there. He couldn't find any kind of losure why she had been there. As far as he knew, the house and the grounds were not haunted.
All he remembered was her yellow-black smile under the sodium lamp of the street light and his chilled reaction. In his own words, this is not a great account but he still wrote it down although in his own words, this was not story shaped. Gaiman's story telling is very good. Even though it is not one of his best acounts, he still manages to make it interesting. While reading it, one does feel the chill he must have endured at the age of fifteen.
Natasha by Vladimir Nabokov is another short story I read online on The New Yorker for Short Story September being conducted by CB James.
Exiled from Russia, Natasha lives with he father Khrenov, who is very old and sick. He had lost his two sons and Natasha is the only one who has survived. Their neighbour Baron Wolfe, is attracted to Natasha and wished to be with her.
It has some elements of imagination and magical vision in it. And I felt that all the three characters lie to each other. Natasha says her father is getting well and goes out to spend a day with Wolfe. And Wolfe in turn lies about his travels to Afria and India. Natasha in turn tells him about her strange visions where she feels light and almost flying. It shows the power of imagination which can take us into journeys from our minds. The imaginations of all three is kind of concrete here. I liked the ending.....
Awake by Tobias Wolffe is a short story I read in The New Yorker yesterday for Short Story September being conducted by CB James. It seems I like exploring and reading online stories.
In this short story, Richard, a student is thinking about his relationship with Ana, an improvised Russian waitress. She is very fond of reading the classics and he has only pretended to like those. He is lying beside her while she is sleeping and is filled with desire for her. However, he knows not to wake her up. To drive away thoughts about his need for her, he thinks of the various classic literature brought by Ana and kept in his room. He even gets up to read a few lines. However, nothing seems to hold his interest save Ana, who is sleeping peacefully by his side.
What drew me on was the conversations Richard has with himself in his mind. I am reading a lot of books like this lately. He is analysing his relationship with Ana and thinks he met her too soon in his life. He loves her yet he does not. Maybe if he had met her later on in his life, he would have been able to claim her love as his right. I liked this part, somewhat. Can we really speculate on what should have happened? Or what should happen? Is his insecured feelings about Ana keep him awake? Ana is an immigrant, yet she knows what she wants but Richar being in his own country does not. It is not a story which stands out. Yet it interests us in its own way.
Read Awake by Tobias Wolffe by clicking on it.
Do you treat books carefully, or do you just treat them as any other object? Do you have certain things you refuse to do with books (write in them, etc)? If so, what are they?
Ill-treating, a book, any book is kind of sacrilege for me. It does not matter whose book is it. Yes, I used to write on my text books when I was in school or college. Even now I write in the margins of the reference books I use for my students.
I avoid turning the books so as not to spoil the spine. I do not dog-ear my books. I use book marks. I even made a few bookmarks which are a hug hit with my family and friends. I hate turning corners. I do write my name and date of purhase, other than that nothing. I even put dust covers on my books. Not the hardbound ones but the paperback ones. I cringe if I see a spine damaged. For me, it is death of a book.
However, when I was in school, we used to tear apart each and every page of any romance novel and read it! Those days are long gone! I still possess a lot many of my old tattered books whcih I have lovingly repaired over the years. I can't imagine tearing apart any book now.
Books need to be cared for and looked after. I cherish my books too much to cause real damage to those.
Title: Dear John
Author: Norma L Betz
ISBN: 9781434310712
Publisher: authorhouse/2008
Pages: 206
Andi of Andilit sent me copy of Dear John by Norma L. Betz to guest review it for her. I liked reading this.
Plot summary from Back Cover:
When financial aid administrator Susanna Smith goes to Massachusetts to settle her aunt's estate, she doesn't suspect that her well-ordered life is about to take an unusual turn. Susanna and her faithful Weimaraner companion, Quincy, embark on a journey to the past that not only reveals a connection to a famous ancestor whose circumstances parallel her own, but also results in an important discovery about her own life.
What did you like most about the book?
Although it is fiction, it relates to history, that is star of The American Revolution and tells us about women in the eighteenth entury who were very liberated. I liked the letters Abigal wrote to her husband. They are the main stay of the novel. As we get to know about the historical significance via the letters. These letters are what make Susanna realise her roots as they provide great insight into her ancestors mind.
What did you like least?
It tends to get long winded at places. I felt too much detailing spoiled the flow at times. However, it is a well researched novel.
What did you think of the writing style?
Her writing style is good. Not very complicated, very readable and sucks us into it.
What did you think of the main character? What is the central character’s biggest problem?
Susanna is an independent woman who has only herself to care care of save her dog, Quincy. She is very fond of him and thinks of him as her dear friend. She even talks to him as if with another human being. He also responds in a similar way. Her biggest problem is she does not wish to get emotionally closer to any other human being. Not even her aunt when she was alive.
What effect do the people in the book have on one another?
William Shaw had a great relationship with Susanna's aunt. He transfers his affection to Susanna. Mrs O'Hara is a very motherly woman who loves Susanna for what she is. John, William's son develops some kind of feelings for her. And then the Local librarian is also a very likeable character. The local police too is very co-operative. There is a community feeling and all are supportive of each other. Jerry is the only villain here.
Any other particularly interesting characters?
I found the dog, Quincy very interesting. He can understand whatever Susanna says. He loves his mistress to distraction and is very protective of her.Do you recommend this book? If you use a rating system, what’s your rating?
Yes, I do recommend this book to anyone who is interested to read about history with a bit of mystery and also to those who wish to learn about woman's rights in the eighteenth century. I would rate it 3.5/5.
