Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die, Cherish, Perish by David Rakoff

After finishing this slim but oh so huge novel,
of stories told in verse; I was struck, "How colossal!"
I immediately mourned the author's death to my core;
I had not read David Rakoff before.

I wish he were still here, to create another,
to write more prose in poetry, to fill one with wonder.
I found myself lost in his words from time to time,

his stories of life, all set out in couplets that rhyme.

This novel is brief, barely over a hundred pages,
yet the strange title makes sense, with all its life images.

Stories of persons, seemingly unconnected,

Come together with sorrow and humour injected.

I savoured every phrase, every clever word trick,

brought the tale to life, in a manner so slick.

Always witty and smart but never highbrow,

A magnum opus for Rakoff's final bow.

The verse form is different but it's the real McCoy.

Read the novel and I guarantee it, you will enjoy.

* written with the help of an online rhyming dictionary. 

The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid

There are very few movies that improve upon being adapted from a book. And in cases where they do, usually the book wasn't that great to begin with. So I don't know why I was so disappointed watching the movie "The Reluctant Fundamentalist" last night. I guess expectations had a lot to do with it.

The post-9/11 novel was written as a first person monologue by Changez with a mysterious stranger met in a tea house in Lahore. I had loved the abstract & allegorical (& at times, playful) writing. Symbolism abound in the narrative, the more obvious of which was "Erica", a clear reference to America, both of which were obsessed with events in their history to the extent that Changez (pronounced "Chan-gez", but again, an obvious allegory) is unable to truly come to terms with or overcome. Both are ultimately denied to Changez for the same reason. The movie completely missed this point.

Clearly, it is difficult to adapt a abstract novel into a very literal visual medium such as film. For this, I make allowances. But what I detested was the liberties taken to change whole chunks of the novel & providing an ending, which wasn't even hinted upon in the book.

In the novel, issues Changez grapples with are core, such as whether he has sacrificed his identity in his pursuit of success - the American Dream, so to speak. We never learn the American man’s identity, even as Changez regularly interrupts the story to address him. We get a sense that he had been pursuing Changez, who may be a leader of anti-American protests. Apparently, the man is “on a mission” — and he may be carrying a weapon. There a a lot of questions unanswered in the novel but Changez's interruptions lend his monologue an Arabian Nights-style.

There is also an irony in the title that is lost in the movie. In his job on New York's Wall Street, Changez analyses the fundamentals of corporations to come up with financial valuations. Consequently, we ponder whether every critic of America in a Muslim country should be labeled a fundamentalist, or whether the term more accurately describes the American capitalists. 

And at the end, we wonder whether we have a fundamentalist & a potential assassin sitting at the table, where the end of Changez's story may mean the death of one or the other. A more capable director would have done a better job. Having said all that, the movie, on its own, is good. It's just not as good as the novel!

I Prefer the Kindle to Books!

The wolf's annual visit has ended, leaving me with the problem of trying to find space for the embarrassing number of books he tempted me with. Temptation to which I succumbed with nary a struggle. But hey, double layering the books on the shelves has worked so far. 

Books now haphazardly shelved, what do I do? Which shall I start with first? I pick up a couple & then it dawns on me & I am horrified. I prefer reading on the kindle than actual physical books! And here's why....

• I love the portability of the kindle. It weighs less than a book & I have hundreds in there. And in a pinch, there's always the kindle app on the iPhone or iPad, all of which sync to the page I was reading.
• I love the built in dictionary, so I can check the meaning with just a touch.
• I love that I never ever lose a book in the kindle. Can't say the same with books themselves, which seem constantly on a walkabout.
• I love that content can be shared between all the kindles under my account & there are quite a few under this roof. 
• I love how what I'm reading is private, away from prying & nosy eyes.
• I love that the largest bookshop in the world is available at my fingertips & books can be downloaded immediately , with delivery within seconds. True instant gratification.
• And if that wasn't enough, there's also the discounts & free books that Amazon has on offer constantly. These change all the time, but there are helpful sites that keep us all informed (e.g. Freebooksy, PixelofInk, EreaderNewsToday & readandsharebookreviews).

But the kindle is not for everybody. It's not for kids, for instance. Kids need to develop the love of reading first & physical books is a far better medium for this, with interactive pop-ups, colourful illustrations & the like. I hear though that it's good for those with cataracts, who read better print on black.

Neither is the kindle good for all genres. Lovely 'coffee table' type books, cookery & recipe books are best as books.

So, dare I say it - I won't be visiting the wolf next year? Nah, I know I'm not that strong. 

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

"What if we had a chance to do it again and again, until we finally did get it right? Wouldn’t that be wonderful?"

That is the question posed in Kate Atkinson's Life After Life & our protagonist, Ursula Todd, does so in this ingenious narrative where the author time & again kills the protagonist & brings her back to the beginning, but each time the narrative takes a different path (as Ursula retains a somewhat subconscious memory of past mistakes), demonstrating how the smallest of decisions affect our lives.  

At times, it is like experiencing the different drafts of a novel or the creative process of the author. I imagine this is what writers do - create characters, hit a brick wall, then go back to the beginning & start again.

But this is quality, vivid writing. Though we backtrack to the beginning numerous times, the repetition is not dull. Instead it almost brings about a interactive aspect for the reader, in trying to spot the differences & figure the impact of the change. At times, you'll find yourself willing Ursula to steer clear of previous bad choices.

It is a series of "What ifs" & set against the backdrop of 20th century history, it forces the reader to consider "what if" certain things had happened, the biggest question of which is "what if Hitler had been assassinated before he had come into power in Germany?" The impact of this would have been tremendous, as if the holocaust had not happened, Europe, America & indeed the Middle East would be vastly different today.

Does it sound heavy? Or philosophical? Only to the extent that we allow it too. It is a beautiful exploration of the human spirit against adversity & it's capacity to endure, wrapped up in a Matryoshka doll.

It is an engrossing tale. And the premise is wonderful - having many takes in life, until you get it right & someone shouts "Cut! It's a wrap."

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

I must have read this about 20 years ago, thereabouts. I don't remember being impressed then.

And now having re-read it, I still don't know what the hoopla is all about. The chapters seem to follow a set pattern:

• Colonel Graff (& later, Mazer Rackham) worry about how hard they are pushing Ender. 
• Ender confronts challenges, both on a personal front as well as in battle school. 
• Back on Earth, Ender's siblings, Peter and Valentine, are influencing world opinion through the internet forums. 
• Ender overcomes both the personal & the battle school challenge. 
• Ender plays a videogame to destress. 
• Colonel Graff/Mazer Rackham feels that Ender is being pushed too hard but convinces themselves that it is for the greater good. 

Without fail, practically every chapter is the same. The only part where I started getting interested was towards the end, when Ender became the Speaker for the Dead. Based on this, I will move on to the next book in the series.

Perhaps it is dated. But then again, Arthur C. Clarke & Isaac Asimov are even older books & I still have fond memories of them.

Having said that, I still hope to catch the movie.

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

This is a somewhat splintered collection of inter-related short stories set out in 9 chapters. Spanning from the 1950s to present day, each chapter is told from the point of view of a different, seemingly unrelated, character whose connection to the main thread of the story is then slowly unveiled. On reflection, I don’t believe it matters whether you read the chapters in sequence, though the starting point must be the parable in the first chapter, the tone of which is reflected throughout the entire novel. The point is, it is disjointed & jumbling up the chapters would not make it any more so.

The clear pervasive theme is of complicated familial relationships and the way past choices haunt the present, demonstrating the far-reaching ripple effect of these choices. What may seem like a good idea at the time is, in hindsight, very far from it. I particularly like an observation made by one of the characters about the perilously thin line between a visionary & a fool. But then again, it isn’t a new insight.

I confess I did not finish ‘The Kite Runner’ some years back, having set it aside halfway through after I could not stomach what I perceived to be bad writing about a string of contrived coincidences. And though this time I did finish ‘And the Mountains Echoed’, I cannot say that my opinion of this author has changed. I would sum up this book as time wasted. For me, that is, as a reader. But no doubt legions would disagree with me.

The Book Thief by Markus Zuzak

A heartbreaking tale of life for ordinary Germans in Nazi Germany during WWII. Ordinary Germans who were not card-carrying members of the Nazi party (although some were, as a mechanism for survival), nor did they feel love for the Führer or hate for the Jew. Just ordinary Germans trying to cope through tremendous hardships in their lives.

Extraordinarily though, it is narrated by the Grim Reaper. And with a difference, in that he's depicted as someone just doing a job. He's very matter of fact about it, death being part of the cycle of life & all that, but he can't help but feel concern about about some of his charges. Like those who he feels he's had to visit too early or the grief of those left behind after his visit. "It kills me sometimes, how people die." he laments.

He feels for humans - "Even death has a heart." he tells us. And perceiving  the human capacity to struggle onwards, he observes, "I am constantly overestimating and underestimating the human race - that rarely do I ever simply estimate it."

The protagonist is a young girl, given up to foster parents, who genuinely love her. She is a tenacious & spirited young girl, who will not be put down & fights all her own battles. Initially illiterate, her foster father teaches her to read & in books (and words), she finds solace & provides it to others. There are numerous sub-plots, which I won't go into, as that would be giving the story away.

And the narrator? In his own words, "I do not carry a sickle or scythe. I only wear a hooded black robe when it's cold. And I don't have those skull-like facial features you seem to enjoy pinning on me from a distance. You want to know what I truly look like? I'll help you out. Find yourself a mirror while I continue." And that, "I'm haunted by humans."

I did the audiobook version of this book & was in tears as it was ending. A really moving tale, although it's aimed at the Young Adult reader. Sadly, I hear from the reviews of the film adaptation that the movie has not measured up to the book. But then again, when has it ever?

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

771 pages. The length doesn’t bother me, so long as I’m engaged, a book can go on forever as far as I’m concerned. But when it’s 771 pages of meandering prose touching on everything in tremendous detail, it can get excruciating & sometimes desultory. TMI, as some would say.

Donna Tartt’s writing is beautiful and evocative and she seems knowledgeable in a myriad of subjects. If you love New York (as I do), her descriptions of Manhattan will take you right there. You’ll learn about Rembrandt & his students – most notably the artist who painted The Goldfinch (who, interestingly, existed) & whose fate is shared tragic comedy style with his painting. You’ll also learn about drugs (both illegal & prescription), alcohol & their dependencies, antique furniture & the painstaking steps in their restoration… you get the drift.

About 80% through, the ball falls for me. Everything was hollow & there's only so much that good writing can save. The protagonist seemed the most self-absorbed character I had come across in a long time. Although his childhood friend was previously an engaging & favourite character, his antics become increasingly implausible. Leaving me cold.

Even so, I kept willing for a rebound. There must be a reason for all the rave reviews it has received. I get it, it’s a Bildungsroman. But like the bird in The Goldfinch, he is forever chained to a single point in time. Life is hard, we all know that. But we get through & experience joy from outside ourselves. This seems impossible for the protagonist & in the final pages, he finally addresses us, the reader. A little too late though.

80% in was also the turning point at which I just wished for the end to come quickly. And now that I’ve come to the end, I can only say, it should have come sooner.

And this is The Goldfinch painted by Carel Fabritius, the painting that features prominently in the start & end of the book, just very cursorily in between.

The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton

The reviews had me intrigued, likening it to a mass confabulation that evaporates in front of us, like the waning of the moon.

The author's 'Note to the Reader' on the astrology of the book had me confused & apprehensive, wondering whether I was about to bite off more than I could chew.

But they were all smokescreens, albeit true, for a mysterious & enigmatic 'who-done-what' that ultimately dissolves into a sliver of a love story. And boy, was it thrilling!

Deserving of the Booker Prize, 832 pages flew by in a flurry of hat tips to the masters of the Victorian novel ... recognisably Dickens, George Eliot, Jane Austen, S.T. Coleridge & perhaps others. All the while delivering a gripping plot that comes full circle (or should I say orbit?) to a satisfying conclusion.

And who are the Luminaries? They are the sun & the moon, which when juxtaposed, create an eclipse. Even the cover of this book is clever!