Indian Literature Decoded

This might probably be the one book that I’d hesitate to blog on purely because  - a) I come from a culture where anything related to the S word is spoken in whispers and to speak out loud is unimaginable and b) doesn’t have great ratings either. Now as for the reason why I still blogged on this is that its speaks mostly of the history of Kamasutra itself…the timeline when it must’ve been compiled, and the possible identity of the authors behind the name “Vatsayana”. Setting that aside, the author provides good insights into the concept of Trivarga or the 3 goals – Dharma, Artha and Kama and the complex relation between the 3.

Next comes the definition of a Nagaraka or a city dweller, his ideal life and worldly indulgences. While describing the Nagaraka, frequent references are made to Bharata’s Natyashastra highlighting the seamless relation this book has with the Kamasutra. Most noteworthy of these references is the mention of the 9 rasas – joy and laughter, disgust, wrath, serenity, heroism, fear, grief, wonder with the last one being pleasure. And the monologue continues… with references to Krishna’s raaslila, the story of Shakuntala and Dushyanta and other classical dramas and plays from ancient India. Unfortunate souls like me who were thrown into schools that taught Telugu as first language will commiserate with me when I say we were probably the ones who were most exposed to literature with a heavy yet subtle veil of erotica right from Junior High through intricate prose and poetry.  Amen to that!

The downfall for the book begins after chapter 5 as the author James McConnachie, who by now has run out of material starts rattling on the life and pursuits of Richard Francis Burton, the gentleman who first introduced Kamasutra to the West. Described as one of the dark horses in the East India Company, his pursuits cover the rest of the chapters which is where it gets indescribably boring.

In any case, I can now commiserate better with Indian artists and dramatists and their reasons for producing such works, and with my mom for her utter frustration for having to quiz me on these wonderful works of literature in order to prep me for final exams. Perhaps I should point out these to the Board of Education in India!:) Pick this book only if you are interested in the history of Indian literature and its origins.

Gold Boy, Emerald Girl

cover page

I read this book awhile ago but couldn’t blog on it due to a blogger’s block that settled gradually and now refuses to budge. It was like entering this phase where I could only look at the topics just piling up but not get a single sentence out of my mind onto the paper. What’s even worse is I feel the block strongest whenever I attempted to complete my post on this title.

Gold Boy Emerald Girl dwells on the nondescript daily goings on in the lives of modern day China’s working-class men and women. The book as a whole deals with a combination of situations/emotions ranging from loneliness and despair to the characters’ never-ending quest for love and happiness while each story simply highlights one or more of these situations. The highlight of the book though is a short story titled “Kindness” which talks about Moyan, a 30 plus math teacher. Moyan goes through the emotions that are associated with being an adopted daughter and a biological orphan. Things don’t seem to get any better during her mandatory service in the army either. Emotions if any are displayed only during her schooling throwing me as a reader into a sense of despair for Moyan’s lack of reaction to the stimuli surrounding her.

The other stories presented are – A group of elderly widows start a detective agency out of boredom and also in hopes of helping women spy on their cheating husbands. An old teacher attempts to reach out to a perfect stranger who has been sued by his daughter for abandoning her and her mother. A happily married couple discover discontentment in their otherwise perfect marriage. And so on!

This book hits 2 major points at a high level – one is the clash between the modern and traditional values, and the other is how the emotions shape the thoughts leading to the trade-offs that people choose. I admire Yiyun Li for describing all these and much more in great detail weaving in plenty of thought to ponder upon. You can choose to analyze the stories in-depth or absorb it at face value. And if you’d like to know more about this book, do read Eva’s review for it helped me make the decision on adding/leaving this book to my TBR list. I believe that its definitely worth a read!

The Virgin Blue

Set in France, The Virgin Blue revolves around 2 protagonists – Ella Turner and her ancestor Isabel du Moulin or Isabel Tournier. Ella Turner is excited to settle in France and to the amusement of her husband, she embarks on a project to reconnect with her French relations. However, she begins to dream about the color blue, the shade worn by the virgin Mary.. In a parallel universe i.e. 16th century France, Isabel du Moulin or La Rousse is forced to give up her religion and marry the local bully Etienne Tournier, one of the descendants of the Huguenots clan. Its a tumultuous period as a wave of religious persecutions sweep across the country. The story switches between past and present like a pendulum clock showcasing Ella and Isabel’s lives, their personalities and similarities in their situations.

Chevalier’s meticulous research and knowledge of the old world shine through her articulate sketch of Isabel’s life, as she transports her readers instantly transported to France and to Isabel’s side, watching her go about her daily duties from the bylines. Turns out that the author’s inspiration came from her own family history – Tracy Chevalier is a descendant of the French Huguenots of the Cevennes region. She drew inspiration from her sister’s move to France, as represented by Ella Turner’s relocation. What followed is Chevalier’s own adventure which contributed the bulk of content for this book.

While the story’s backdrop is an amalgamation of many events that occurred in the 16th century France, the most noteworthy are: The St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre. There is one another aspect that is subtly described through Isabel’s life, that of the Human sacrifice…the later part of the story does constantly refer to the hearth of the house often throwing sinister hints of what lies beneath the hearth. More info can be found on the author’s website. Another theme that is a constant in the current fiction is that of relationships – marriage, adultery or finding love again. Having come across this theme in quite a number of books this year, I couldn’t help being annoyed by Ella’s demeanor at times probably when it came to the disastrous turn her relationship takes. As for Isabel, she could’ve chosen to reject the Tourniers or even flee from them but it doesn’t appear to be so. Instead she appears to have adhered to the family principles and suffered both mentally and physically for her choices. Again Chevalier has portrayed 2 extremities of the spectrum – A woman with a loving husband chooses a rustic life in France with a French dude whereas her ancestor chooses a life of fear, unhappiness and despair in order not to retain the sanctity of her marriage.

Setting aside these facts, I can only say that this book was a fast paced read for I completed it in a day. The Virgin Blue is well worth adding to your library for its unique blend of history and fiction not to mention a powerful story.

Pavilion of Women

Set at the turn of a century in Old China, Pavilion of Women begins with the 40th birthday celebration of Aileen Wu, the matriarch of the honorable Wu household. On completion of this significant milestone, Madame Wu announces her decision to retire from married life and proposes introducing a concubine into the household to her family. Waving aside their protests, Aileen executes her decision by bringing in Chi’uming, an orphaned girl into the house with a strong belief in her own wisdom. She also allows a foreign priest into the household with the intent of tutoring her son in foreign language. Her choices however result in the most dramatic consequences serving to create strain in the Wu household. At the same time, Aileen’s interactions with the priest helps her realize and rectify her mistakes. But some of the changes that Aileen makes result in a tragedy, one that helps her redefine her destiny.

The emphasis is certainly on the women of a traditional household, their thoughts, actions and their influence on the male members of the family. The most puzzling and probably not so endearing character is the protagonist herself. Aileen  with her unique mix of positive and negative traits dominates the story as its central theme. The author defines Aileen’s personality as a slender woman with a soft musical voice and a commanding presence but a somewhat unemotional and detached towards her family. She rules her household in subtle yet just manner leaving the readers perplexed on some of her actions. Her voice is highlighted in certain chapters as being the softest and gentlest yet persuasive leaving her family members with no choice but to accept her decision albeit reluctantly. Her reasoning over issues such as polygamy or even a wife’s duties would raise the ire of many women in today’s world for sure.  As a result there is disturbance and unhappiness in the family.

There are many other characters in this book – Rulan, Meng, Tsemo to name some…members of the household with extreme personalities but who are overshadowed and downplayed by Aileen. But then again it appears that the book is about Aileen more than anyone else. And as always Pearl S Buck gets away with creating yet another masterpiece featuring intensive drama. What surprises me is that this book hasn’t got as much publicity as the other works of Pearl Buck. The story however isn’t easy to read…you need perseverance and patience to get  through this book.

May I Hebb Your Attention Pliss!

Quite unsure of where I came upon this book but the blurb was too good not to mention I used to follow the author’s blog before…so I’m promptly ordered in through Amazon. I wasn’t disappointed at all with the book!

Arnab Ray describes at length the idiosyncrasies that make up India and its secular citizens. The topics are varied ranging from social networking sites such as Orkut/ Facebook to his Bengali style wedding to Indian movies & their evolution. Every chapter is brimmed with humor with hinglish statements that make any Indian feel at home. I believe that the book is a compilation of Arnab’s blog titled Greatbong. Considering the stressful lives that we constantly seem to lead, this book does make you laugh or at the least put a smile on your face. This book is certainly worth the money as you can read this anytime, anywhere!