Looking Back: February

I bring to you the second of a seven or so part series, looking back on my 2011 pre-blogging reads.

February was a much better month for reading than January.

Total: 9 books
7 fiction                          78%
2 nonfiction                   28%
5 female authors           56%
3 works in translation   33%

Algerian White, Assia Djebar*** This memoir was good, and I would have enjoyed it more if I had any idea who or what she was talking about. It's the author's recounting of Algeria's struggle for independence,and many of the intellectuals who lost their lives during the events. I definitely want to read more by Djebar, especially An Algerian Cavalcade, which has been on my TBR list for well over a year.

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, Alison Bechdel***** Graphic novel about a young woman growing up, coming out as a lesbian, and discovering her father was gay. Really, really good. Bechdel is also famous for the Bechdel movie test, which a film passes if it has 1) Two named female characters 2) who talk to each other 3) about something other than a man. It's scary how many movies fail, big time.

Circle of Magic: Daja's Book, Tamora Pierce****I was running out of reading material and had these on my shelves, leftover from my classroom library days. I had heard Tamora Pierce wrote really strong, well rounded female characters, so I gave these a try. I was pleasantly surprised.
Circle of Magic: Tris's Book, Tamora Pierce****See above.
Circle of Magic: Sandry's Book, Tamora Pierce****See above.

I am the Messenger, Markus Zusak***Disappointing. I really liked The Book Thief, but this was not as strong. Just...enh. Not bad, but not anything I'd read again, or gush over.

Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands, Jorge Amado**** Cute, fun story with magical realism elements dealing with what makes the title character a happy wife.

The Death of Artemio Cruz, Carlos Fuentes***This was really well written, but the graphic subject matter got to be a bit much for me. I'd give Fuentes another try, though. 

What We Talk About When We Talk About Love, Raymond Carver***I was stranded at the airport and started chatting with a guy in the same position. He was a reader, and insisted I borrow this for the flight home. I read the whole short story collection on a 2 hour flight. It was good, but I wish I had more time with it to better reflect my thoughts.

Assia Djbar. I just really like this picture by Irmeli Jung, so I'm posting it.

Wouldn't that be nice

Source: blog.hgtv.com via MJ on Pinterest

Today is one of those days where I wish I could just hide away in my private library and read all day.

Persepolis

Persepolis

Persepolis
Written & Illustrated by Marjane Satrapi

Yes, I know I am quite late to the Persepolis party. Oops. But I suspect not a few readers haven't gotten around to this famous graphic novel yet, so take this post a a reminder to go track it down.

Persepolis is the memoir of Marjane Satrapi's growing up in the Iranian Revolution. Her parents are Communists who supplement her school education with books like a comic edition of "Dialectic Materialism," which contains arguments between Rene Descartes and Karl Marx. Marjane is intrigued that Karl Marx resembles her God:

Marjane is a willful, stubborn child growing up in a violent, confusing world. Her parents attempt to walk a fine line between keeping her safe and protected from knowledge that may hurt her and telling her information that's necessary for her to have an idea what's going on.

When it seems that they can no longer keep her safe in Iran, Marjane's parents send her to school in Europe. That's where Persepolis ends and where Persepolis II begins.

I am really happy that I finally read this. Satrapi did a wonderful job telling the story of the revolution from a child's perspective, while still writing a sophisticated, adult book. The emotions of all the characters are perfectly communicated through a combination of dialogue and illustration. If you haven't gotten your hands on this yet - Go!

(You can buy this title through  this affiliate link)

Book Beginnings

Book Beginnings via A Few More Pages

How to participate: Share the first line (or two) of the book you are currently reading on your blog or in the comments. Include the title and the author so we know what you're reading. Then, if you would like, let us know what your first impressions were based on that first line, and let us know if you liked or did not like the sentence. The link-up will be at A Few More Pages every Friday and will be open for the entire week.

Mr. Fox & Helen Oyeyemi

This week I'm reading Mr. Fox by Helen Oyeyemi. Here are the first few lines:

Mary Foxe came by the other day - the last person on earth I was expecting to see. I'd have tidied up if I known she was coming. I'd have combed my hair. I'd have shaved. At least I was wearing a suit; I strive for a sense of professionalism.

From the cover, you know that Mary is the narrator's muse, so I love how he just casually talks about her like she's a real person who simply dropped by for a visit. You get the sense that she's been absent for awhile, and she might be back to stir up some trouble. I'm almost halfway through and this point, and I'm really enjoying it. I can't wait to keep reading!

A Short Story for Ghana Lit Week

The Prophet of Zongo Street

Kinna over at Kinna Reads is hosting Ghanaian Literature Week, and the list of #GhanaLit posts keeps growing. Kinna was kind enough to send me a couple links to Ghanaian short stories, as I had trouble locating anything in print in my area.

Last night I read "Mallam Sile," a short story by Mohammed Naseehu Ali, which was published in The New Yorker back in 2005. As I read it, I realized I'd read this before, although  I couldn't tell you when. I thought it was a charming story the first time through, and thought so again upon a reread.

The title character, Mallam Sile, is a tea seller on Zongo Street, a fictional community in Accra, Ghana. He's from the northern part of the country, and is treated rather roughly and unkindly as an outsider. His customers have no interest in engaging him in conversation. Eventually,

The tea seller learned to swallow his words, and eventually spoke only when he was engaged in a transaction with a customer. But nothing said or even whispered in the shop escaped his sharp ears.

He's an astute, successful business owner, but he's lonely. It seems that he's resigned himself to perpetual bachelorhood, until one day he makes a drastic change and finds a wife. Abeeba enhances his life in ways that he never expected - or did he? He may seem naive, but his actions have shown otherwise.
I enjoyed the realistic characterizations and the playful treatment of gender roles. I 'd like to read more from Ali, especially if he continues along these themes. This story is part of his collection The Prophet of Zongo Street. Short story collections can sometimes be hit or miss, but if even a few are as good as "Mallam Sile," I'd consider the book a success.

Order The Prophet of Zongo Street from an Indie bookstore near you. (Affiliate link: ie, I will earn pennies if you buy this.)

Looking Back: January

I started blogging in July, but I started tracking my reads in January. I've reviewed a few of the books I read pre-blogging, but I wanted to do a summary of this years' reads that I haven't talked about yet. Also, I'm interested in doing my normal breakdown as to gender/fiction/translation. So, here goes! This is January's installment, and since I only read four books, it'll be brief.

Total: 4 books
2 fiction                          50%
2 nonfiction                   50%
2 female authors           50%
1 works in translation   25%

Out of Africa, Isak Dineson: One star, aka, I'm ready to send you to prison for writing this.
Dear lord I hated this book. First of all, it's a bunch of annoying ramblings from a white European woman managing a coffee plantain in Kenya. I gave up trying to count all the different ways she compared "the native" to various animals. There are parts where the writing is really beautiful, but it just wasn't worth it. Stick with the movie, if you must visit this story: gorgeous scenery, Robert Redford, Meryl Streep.

Still from Out of Africa. Credit

Bleak House, Charles Dickens: One star.
Yes, I hated this, too.  I read this for my book club, a collection of lawyers who just had to read Dickens' polemic raging against the Chancery court. I predicted pretty much every plot resolution from the first few pages. Static, two dimensional characters, healthy dose of misogyny, way too many coincidences - blerg. 

Eat Me, Linda Jaivin: Two stars.
Honestly, I'm embarrassed to admit I read this. As a rule, I don't read erotica. A friend, who shall remain nameless, passed this one to me, promising that while the first chapter was rather explicit, the rest didn't rise to that level. That may be so, but I can be a bit of a prude when it comes to my books. It was pretty funny in some places, and I thought it was a nice representation of women taking control of their sexuality. If you are into erotica, this probably isn't a bad choice.

Eating the Dinosaur, Chuck Klosterman: Four stars.
Have you read Chuck Klosterman? No? You should. His essays are funny and charming. Some are a bit dated, but I don't really care about that. Yeah, he's kind of annoying, and over privileged, but he's got a healthy sense of self awareness, so that takes the edge off.

Don't Take the library!

Amid all the news about the eviction of the Occupy Wall Street protesters from Zuccotti Park was the rumor that the protestors' library had been destroyed. Commentors all over the internet were up in arms - and for good reason.

Books = Knowledge = Power

The OWS library was, from what I've heard, remarkably well organized and staffed by actual librarians. Books were donated from all kinds of sources, from individuals to publishers. There's something incredibly sinister about the government coming in and confiscating (and possibly destroying) all of that reading material.

Well, it turns out that the books were not destroyed. (Update: No, it looks like a good portion of them were.) However, the exact sequence of events makes me wonder if the public outrage over the library and comparisons to totalitarian regimes played some part in Mayor Bloomberg's decision to refrain from having the books destroyed. I suppose we'll never know. I have heard that this eviction, and the disruption of the library in particular, have led people to actively support the movement. These are people how may have leaned towards support before, but hadn't taken an active or vocal role.

One lesson? Don't mess with the books.

Stacks of books from the #OWS Library