In the sadness of my heart,
I will always think of you
Never mind that you cut me so deep.
I will always think of you
Because I'm my true self in your company,
Delighting in the freedom of minds.
And yet the cut bleeds torrential rain of anguish,
As I face rejection.
Humiliated, I try to escape and live.
And all I could think about,
Was our rudely interrupted chat that day,
The promise of something more,
The could've been.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
One Hundred Years of Solitude:a review
written by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, one of the Nobel Prize for Literature winners, this book is hailed as one of the finest novels of the 20th century. i cant agree more.
i was interested to read Marquez because when i was writing my MA dissertation on Rushdie's novels, there were a lot of critical essays comparing Rushdie to him. it was more of a curiosity on my part, as Rushdie is my favourite writer. i really wanted to find out their similarities.
the book sat on my shelf for a few months, because i have the habit of buying books for my collection (with every intention of reading each of them). what's more, literary texts arent the kind of novels that you can just read and watch tv at the same time.
and so, i brought the novel along with me when i was on the flight bound to kl, and i was surprised that i enjoyed reading it.
it is a story of a prominent family set in South America, from its first pioneering ancestor with the ambition of an alchemist, to its last descendant who commits incest and therefore brings the downfall of the family. each generation has its great moments, and also suffering. a lot of things happening at once that i was overwhelmed, and confusion arose as the descendants were named after their forefathers, so i lost track of who's who. but Marquez did a good job of weaving the story, and i found the similarity between Marquez and Rushdie. both employ magic realism in their writing, and the ending of this book is almost similar to that in Rushdie's Midnight's Children, as both protagonists are overwhelmed by the multitude and let themselves be "swallowed".
i thought about the book for more than a day. that's a great compliment, because the only other book that affected me that way was Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance.
thumbs up.
i was interested to read Marquez because when i was writing my MA dissertation on Rushdie's novels, there were a lot of critical essays comparing Rushdie to him. it was more of a curiosity on my part, as Rushdie is my favourite writer. i really wanted to find out their similarities.
the book sat on my shelf for a few months, because i have the habit of buying books for my collection (with every intention of reading each of them). what's more, literary texts arent the kind of novels that you can just read and watch tv at the same time.
and so, i brought the novel along with me when i was on the flight bound to kl, and i was surprised that i enjoyed reading it.
it is a story of a prominent family set in South America, from its first pioneering ancestor with the ambition of an alchemist, to its last descendant who commits incest and therefore brings the downfall of the family. each generation has its great moments, and also suffering. a lot of things happening at once that i was overwhelmed, and confusion arose as the descendants were named after their forefathers, so i lost track of who's who. but Marquez did a good job of weaving the story, and i found the similarity between Marquez and Rushdie. both employ magic realism in their writing, and the ending of this book is almost similar to that in Rushdie's Midnight's Children, as both protagonists are overwhelmed by the multitude and let themselves be "swallowed".
i thought about the book for more than a day. that's a great compliment, because the only other book that affected me that way was Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance.
thumbs up.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Sweetness in the Belly
This book by Camilla Gibbs is about the inner-conflicts of an English muslim nurse. born to hippie parents who dont believe in rooting themselves in one place, Lily is cared by a Muslim sufi guru, and is taught to read the Quran in Morocco. she then makes a journey to Ethiopia, and begins another life as a young woman there, teaching Quran to children, and falling in love with a Sudanese doctor whose modern outlook sometimes contrasts with her more Islamic views. she later loses touch with him as she flees Ethiopia, becomes a nurse and returns to her homeland, England, only that she finds herself unable to assimilate with the culture because of her dislocation. when an Indian doctor expresses his interest in her, she has to face the conflicts, and later comes to terms with the issue and finally lets go of her love.
this is a tender love story that also grapples with the political issues of Ethiopia as well as postcolonial issues of rootlessness, dislocation and relocation of a person that affects her identity. this story also exposes the readers to the world of Sufism , and a closer look into the Islam world through the everyday lives of Muslims.
i'll give this 7 out of 10.
this is a tender love story that also grapples with the political issues of Ethiopia as well as postcolonial issues of rootlessness, dislocation and relocation of a person that affects her identity. this story also exposes the readers to the world of Sufism , and a closer look into the Islam world through the everyday lives of Muslims.
i'll give this 7 out of 10.
Saturday, November 3, 2007
The English Patient: A Review
i was at a second hand book shop and was browsing through the literature section when i came across this book. yes, the title is familiar, and it's written by Michael Ondaatje, whose novel Coming Through Slaughter we studied for 20th century literature class. well the price was good, so without anymore thoughts i bought the book. only when i was in the staffroom did i realised that the cover of the book might be a tad intimate. i asked my friend "is this provocative for our school?" she nodded vehemently with a grin "yes it is provocative". so i covered the book, which reminds of the days when i was in seri puteri (my students would roll their eyes and groan if they read this recollection of the days in seri puteri), when we used to cover our romance novels (banned in school) with white paper.
okay, back to the book. yes, it has an english patient. but the english patient, as immobile intelligent and cultured man as he is, is not the protagonist. in fact, the protagonists are his nurse, and the Sikh sapper who only makes his appearance in the book after a few pages. thus, he decentralises the role of protagonist from the assumption reader will deduce when reading the title.
ondaatje uses the technique of flashback skillfully, which gives a reader an intimate look into their lives. this is a sensual book, of how love is expressed not sexually, but through intimacy, and is understood and accepted unselfishly.
1 plus point, i like ondaatje's painting of words which he has done beautifully. there are beautiful phrases in the book, which i should mention later on (should i remember). this book won the man booker prize of 1992.
okay, back to the book. yes, it has an english patient. but the english patient, as immobile intelligent and cultured man as he is, is not the protagonist. in fact, the protagonists are his nurse, and the Sikh sapper who only makes his appearance in the book after a few pages. thus, he decentralises the role of protagonist from the assumption reader will deduce when reading the title.
ondaatje uses the technique of flashback skillfully, which gives a reader an intimate look into their lives. this is a sensual book, of how love is expressed not sexually, but through intimacy, and is understood and accepted unselfishly.
1 plus point, i like ondaatje's painting of words which he has done beautifully. there are beautiful phrases in the book, which i should mention later on (should i remember). this book won the man booker prize of 1992.
Romeo and Juliet: Star-Crossed Lovers
Romeo and Juliet is bard's most famous play in the world, and it is now being studied by students taking Literature in English paper for SPM for the new cycle which started last year. last year, one of my students studied the play while the rest did Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. this year, i hope that my current Literature student, Keshen Antioni, will work hard and finish his novel asap before we can embark on this play.
most people shun away from Shakespearean plays. my first introduction to Shakespeare was by reading Charles and Mary Lamb's painless summary of the play at the age of 12. when i was in Seri Puteri and was actively involved in the English Soc., we had to stage A Merchant of Venice when i was 15, and A Midsummer Night's Dream when i was 16. thus, my passion for literature began.
the play Romeo and Juliet is about the innocence of love. Romeo is just 15 and Juliet is 13. both come from warring families, Romeo is from the house of Montague and Juliet is a Capulet. on their first meeting, Romeo falls in love at first sight and wishes to kiss Juliet:
Romeo: If i profane by my unworthiest hand,
This holy shrine, the gentle sin is this,
My lips two blushing Pilgrims ready to stand,
To smooth the rough touch with a gentle kiss
...
Juliet:Saints do not move, though for grant for prayers sake.
Romeo: Then move not while my prayer's effect i take, from my lips, by thine my sin is purg'd.
Juliet: then have my lips the sin they have took.
Romeo: sin from my lips, O tresspass sweetly urg'd: give me my sin again.
Such is the passion these lovers have. However, they learn the cold hard truth about their families:
Romeo: Is she a Capulet, oh dear account! My life is my foe’s debt.
Juliet: My only love sprung from my only hate,
Too early seen, unknown, and known too late,
Prodigious birth of love it is to me,
That I must love a loathed enemy.
Thus a tragedy strikes, the tragedy of twisted fate that surrounds them. And yet, youth’s optimism and love do not fail. Romeo, lovesick after meeting Juliet at the mask ball, steals into the Capulet garden and thus begins the most romantic scene in theatre history – the balcony scene.
Romeo: but soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
It is the East, and Juliet is the Sun.
….
Juliet: O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name
Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,
And I’ll no longer be a Capulet.
The hatred of both families is so great, and yet these lovers represent the hope for a truce with their innocent love, which can outweigh the hatred. The love is deep, says Juliet “My love as deep, the more I give to thee, the more I have, for both are infinite.”
Later, the two lovers are married secretly by Friar Laurence, who sees the union of these two as the instrument of bringing peace between the two warring houses.
Friar Laurence: In one respect I’ll thy assistant be:
For this alliance may so happy prove,
To turn your households’ rancour to pure love.
Scarcely after getting married, Romeo is banished from Verona for killing Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin. Lord Capulet intends to marry Juliet to a young man called Paris, thus Juliet is in a dilemma. The only solution is to drink a potion that will render Juliet deathlike. The news of Juliet’s death reaches Romeo, unfortunately Friar’s messenger fail to deliver the message to Romeo that this is only a ruse. He buys a poison from an apothecary and sets to Verona to gaze at his beloved for the last time, drinks the poison, and dies beside Juliet. Juliet then wakes up from her deep slumber and finds a cup:
Juliet: What’s here? A cup clos’d in my true love’s hand?
Poison I see hath been his timeless end:
O churl, drunk all? And left no friendly drop
To help me after, I will kiss thy lips
Haply some poison yet doth hang on them,
To make me die with a restorative.
Thy lips are warm.
For Juliet, life has no meaning without her Romeo, who represents hope and happiness amidst the family feuds. Thus, she exercises the marriage vows “till death do us part” and kills herself with a dagger, not wanting to live without her Romeo.
However, the lovers death bring peace to the Montagues and the Capulets, but with a heavy price.
And thus concludes the love story of Romeo and Juliet, who love with a passion but are victims of fate.
most people shun away from Shakespearean plays. my first introduction to Shakespeare was by reading Charles and Mary Lamb's painless summary of the play at the age of 12. when i was in Seri Puteri and was actively involved in the English Soc., we had to stage A Merchant of Venice when i was 15, and A Midsummer Night's Dream when i was 16. thus, my passion for literature began.
the play Romeo and Juliet is about the innocence of love. Romeo is just 15 and Juliet is 13. both come from warring families, Romeo is from the house of Montague and Juliet is a Capulet. on their first meeting, Romeo falls in love at first sight and wishes to kiss Juliet:
Romeo: If i profane by my unworthiest hand,
This holy shrine, the gentle sin is this,
My lips two blushing Pilgrims ready to stand,
To smooth the rough touch with a gentle kiss
...
Juliet:Saints do not move, though for grant for prayers sake.
Romeo: Then move not while my prayer's effect i take, from my lips, by thine my sin is purg'd.
Juliet: then have my lips the sin they have took.
Romeo: sin from my lips, O tresspass sweetly urg'd: give me my sin again.
Such is the passion these lovers have. However, they learn the cold hard truth about their families:
Romeo: Is she a Capulet, oh dear account! My life is my foe’s debt.
Juliet: My only love sprung from my only hate,
Too early seen, unknown, and known too late,
Prodigious birth of love it is to me,
That I must love a loathed enemy.
Thus a tragedy strikes, the tragedy of twisted fate that surrounds them. And yet, youth’s optimism and love do not fail. Romeo, lovesick after meeting Juliet at the mask ball, steals into the Capulet garden and thus begins the most romantic scene in theatre history – the balcony scene.
Romeo: but soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
It is the East, and Juliet is the Sun.
….
Juliet: O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name
Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,
And I’ll no longer be a Capulet.
The hatred of both families is so great, and yet these lovers represent the hope for a truce with their innocent love, which can outweigh the hatred. The love is deep, says Juliet “My love as deep, the more I give to thee, the more I have, for both are infinite.”
Later, the two lovers are married secretly by Friar Laurence, who sees the union of these two as the instrument of bringing peace between the two warring houses.
Friar Laurence: In one respect I’ll thy assistant be:
For this alliance may so happy prove,
To turn your households’ rancour to pure love.
Scarcely after getting married, Romeo is banished from Verona for killing Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin. Lord Capulet intends to marry Juliet to a young man called Paris, thus Juliet is in a dilemma. The only solution is to drink a potion that will render Juliet deathlike. The news of Juliet’s death reaches Romeo, unfortunately Friar’s messenger fail to deliver the message to Romeo that this is only a ruse. He buys a poison from an apothecary and sets to Verona to gaze at his beloved for the last time, drinks the poison, and dies beside Juliet. Juliet then wakes up from her deep slumber and finds a cup:
Juliet: What’s here? A cup clos’d in my true love’s hand?
Poison I see hath been his timeless end:
O churl, drunk all? And left no friendly drop
To help me after, I will kiss thy lips
Haply some poison yet doth hang on them,
To make me die with a restorative.
Thy lips are warm.
For Juliet, life has no meaning without her Romeo, who represents hope and happiness amidst the family feuds. Thus, she exercises the marriage vows “till death do us part” and kills herself with a dagger, not wanting to live without her Romeo.
However, the lovers death bring peace to the Montagues and the Capulets, but with a heavy price.
And thus concludes the love story of Romeo and Juliet, who love with a passion but are victims of fate.
Note to Nash: this is a spur of the moment thingy, so you can see that i didnt include any critical analysis hehehe...i've my own reasons for writing this.
A Book Review on Rushdie's Shalimar the Clown
contrary to it's title which sounds like the story of a clown straight from a children's book, rushdie's novels are never intended for children. his novels deal with the changing faces in postmodern societies which include cultural hybridity, liminal spaces, national identity, and sociopolitical stands which include Nehru's secular model as well as communalism which he dislikes.
if in midnight's children the hybrid space is his beloved city bombay, and in the moor's last sigh it's Palimpstine, then in shalimar the clown, the hybrid space is kashmir. he writes abt the beauty and the harmony that existed in kashmir as different cultures and religions co-exist, and the marriage of boonyi kaul with and shalimar the clown proves this. rushdie also speaks of elements which threaten the peace of kashmir - which include communalism and the arrival of mat sallehs.
the story ends in a morbid note though. killing secularism and the chances of cultural hybridity is the same like killing ourselves. may be that's his message. on a personal note, i dont quite like this novel for its morbidity. i prefer Midnight's Chiildren for its brilliance and exuberance. which, of course, won him the Booker of the Booker prize...
if in midnight's children the hybrid space is his beloved city bombay, and in the moor's last sigh it's Palimpstine, then in shalimar the clown, the hybrid space is kashmir. he writes abt the beauty and the harmony that existed in kashmir as different cultures and religions co-exist, and the marriage of boonyi kaul with and shalimar the clown proves this. rushdie also speaks of elements which threaten the peace of kashmir - which include communalism and the arrival of mat sallehs.
the story ends in a morbid note though. killing secularism and the chances of cultural hybridity is the same like killing ourselves. may be that's his message. on a personal note, i dont quite like this novel for its morbidity. i prefer Midnight's Chiildren for its brilliance and exuberance. which, of course, won him the Booker of the Booker prize...
memoirs of a geisha: a review
the movie came out earlier this year. i've yet to watch the movie, but according to gina, it's slooowww. well, i can just imagine that it's as slow as the da vinci code. i read memoirs of a geisha to gauge how good the book is. my honest opinion? it's too slow for me.
yes, the story opens a new world to us - the world of the geishas and their lives as entertainers (and as dignified upperclass gros). when i read the book, i wasnt too excited to know wat's going to happen next. i had to force myself to read more than 10 pages a day...and that says a lot, since i had to read a lot of difficult literary texts when i was doing my masters.
just like the da vinci code which received a lot of hoo haas from worldwide readers, this book didnt leave me a lasting impression. in fact, there's no impression at all, except that it's the type of light reading you can take up when you're at the beach or when there's a flight delay.
i remember reading kazuo ishiguro's the remains of the day which won him the booker prize in the 90s. sure, it's not as exciting, but the difference between a good read (usually that means literary text) and just plain pulp fiction is that a good read will lead you to ponder about life - truly ponder about life. the remains of the day is a story about an english butler, so dedicated to his work that he never realises the love the housekeeper has for him...later in his life when he's growing old does he realise his feelings for her. and then it's too late.
another tip: good writers dont present us the story, they want us to interact with it, so they dont reveal everything and let us wonder.
yes, the story opens a new world to us - the world of the geishas and their lives as entertainers (and as dignified upperclass gros). when i read the book, i wasnt too excited to know wat's going to happen next. i had to force myself to read more than 10 pages a day...and that says a lot, since i had to read a lot of difficult literary texts when i was doing my masters.
just like the da vinci code which received a lot of hoo haas from worldwide readers, this book didnt leave me a lasting impression. in fact, there's no impression at all, except that it's the type of light reading you can take up when you're at the beach or when there's a flight delay.
i remember reading kazuo ishiguro's the remains of the day which won him the booker prize in the 90s. sure, it's not as exciting, but the difference between a good read (usually that means literary text) and just plain pulp fiction is that a good read will lead you to ponder about life - truly ponder about life. the remains of the day is a story about an english butler, so dedicated to his work that he never realises the love the housekeeper has for him...later in his life when he's growing old does he realise his feelings for her. and then it's too late.
another tip: good writers dont present us the story, they want us to interact with it, so they dont reveal everything and let us wonder.
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