Book Review- Mrs. Dalloway

Title               Mrs. Dalloway

Author          Virginia Woolf

Pages             208

ISBN              978-81-7599-421-8

MRP              Rs 150

Publisher    F!ngerprint!  Classics

Rating          2/5 Stars

So finally, I am done reading ‘Mrs. Dalloway’ (1925) by this overhyped, Indo-phobic, semicolon fanatic goddess of incoherent writing known as Virginia Woolf.

This is a circadian novel thus traces the lives of all characters over a single day. Set in early 1900s, this 200 page convoluted work revolves around a 52 years old high-society English woman named Clarissa Dalloway, the wife of a politician in England. As she is constantly disappointed by her reclusive teenage daughter Elizabeth and her ever busy husband Richard, she busies herself in preparing for a party at her house because she has nothing better to do, even though out of some illness, she has turned weak and pale.

That morning, she goes to the market to ‘buy the flowers herself’ for her party in the evening and philosophizes pointlessly on everything around. This novel also describes the insane adulation masses had for the Royal family; everybody in the market goes nuts when a royal car stops for a second before passing by. Another character, a clinically depressed solider, Septimus Warren Smith, is busy conversing with the dead and imagining weird things while strolling in a park with his distressed Italian hat-maker wife. Yet another major character, Peter Walsh, Clarissa’s old lover is back, after serving five years in India’s ‘heat and dust’, to the life civilization and society of London and every woman, ‘even in rags’, seems pretty to him. Woolf’s writing degrades India and its people to dirt and many times, the book put me off. Walsh is staying at a hotel and broods constantly. He goes to meet Clarissa and she invites him to her party which he attends as he could not stop himself from loving her passionately.

Some major themes emerge-

1.  English Culture- The frivolity, snobbery and idiosyncrasies as well as the typical English shrewdness of characters comes to surface very clearly. Clarissa herself is shown as a very worldly, class-conscious and cold.

2.  Clinical Depression- It is one major theme that takes up much space. Described through Smith, Woolf throws much light upon the malfunctioning of a depressed mind. She herself suffered from it and had committed suicide just as Smith in this novel.

3.  Same-Sex Love- The very undertone of Clarrisa’s undying love for Sally, a wild and carefree friend of hers suggests the same.

4.  One-sided Love- This theme is described through Peter Walsh who is helplessly in love with Clarissa and remains unmarried and bitter when she rejects him for a far more successful Richard Dalloway.

5.  Hatred for India- India is described as a grimy land of uncouth barbarians after which London seems like heaven. The author also expresses sympathy for those who served in India while she exalts her country England as the epitome of civilization. By the way, Woolf was sexually abused for a long time by a ‘civilized’ English gentleman named George Duckworth who was her first cousin. Her fatal depression was a direct result of that exploitation. England is the harbinger of apartheid and this work shows many incidences betraying this outlook.

6.  Class Clash- Firstly, Clarissa is perceived as a spoilt, dumb, and wretched woman by her daughter’s underprivileged but erudite History teacher, Miss Kilman. On the other hand, Clarissa detests Miss Kilman for being independent, ugly, poor and single. Secondly, this occurs when Elizabeth feels ashamed of riding an omnibus in market. And lastly, Clarissa maltreats her ‘very poor’ cousin, Ellie Henderson and is shown to be ‘really very hard on her’.

The story describes the lives of people across all classes and sections of post World War- I England, especially focusing on war’s psychological effects. However, the writing is very knotty with truckloads of commas and semicolons, page long sentences, prolonged descriptions of minor characters, never ending musings and pointless philosophies. The outcome is a jumbled maze that annoys for most part. Some parts are good though.

The story ends with an unhappy, lonely and ill Mrs. Dalloway, despite being married and wealthy, drifting towards Peter Walsh, who despite being single and independent, is feeling sad and empty too, just like her.

PS- No more Virginia Woolf for me!

Book Review- Crime and Punishment

Title               Crime and Punishment

Author           Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Translator     Constance Garnett

Pages              584

ISBN              978-93-8653-805-5

MRP              Rs 250

Publisher       F!ngerprint!  Classics

Rating            4/5 Stars

Exactly a month back when I started reading this intense psychological thriller by the famous Russian writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) little did I know that this work will recast my notions about crime as well as punishment. As the name suggests, the novel revolves around the very concept of crime and the consequent punishment imparted for it. Without superfluous tracks in typical Dostoyevskian style, it questions a very basic thing- if one kills an epitome of the evil, a vile vermin to save hundreds of innocents, how can it be called a crime and who can decide the befitting punishment for the same?

The protagonist Rodion Romanovitch Raskolnikov is a tall and handsome 23 year old former university student who lives in a suffocating cupboard-like rented room in St. Petersberg, Russia. He publishes an article describing his theory on crime along with a hypothesis relating crime and a high fever. Months later, he shockingly finds himself compelled to brutally murder an old pawnbroker who he considers to be a den of iniquity and a venomous insect. Despite poverty, fever and dilemmas, he comes out unscathed and manages to duck everyone. From police to his intellectual best friend, Razhumihin and from his shrewd landlady to his over-analytical doctor, everyone believes him to be innocent. However, it is his own conscience that he relentlessly grapples with. One day at a cheap tavern, his path entwines with that of a bankrupt alcoholic clerk Marmeladov and later with his dignified but consumptive second wife Katrina Ivanovna (she has three children from a previous defunct marriage) and his religious and timid twenty year old daughter Sonia from his late first wife. When Sonia destroys herself in providing for her starving step-siblings, he bows at her feet, much to the shock of everyone.

The novel also has other important characters like Svidrigailov, a 50 year old pedophile all set to marry a 15 year old, Luzhin, a devious narcissist and Dounia, the erudite and charming older sister of the protagonist, fighting her own demons. Raskiolnikov, till the end stays clear and unsuspected yet it is his inner voice that constantly bothers him and he ends up taking odd decisions in order to run away from his own crumbling self. His way of perceiving things is complex yet he manages to convince the reader into agreeing with him. Twists and turns keep the reader on the edge and the ending gives a nice closure to this powerful work. This novel also throws much light on the then Russian society and culture.

Not just another run-of-the-mill fiction, ‘Crime and Punishment’ requires contemplation on the reader’s part. It takes one inside the frenzied but brilliant mind of Raskolnikov and argues upon the fundamentals such as of crime, what defines it, who can be called a criminal, what the meaning of punishment is, who actually deserves how much of it in any society, in an era and who deserves to rule the masses. This book breaks old moulds of notions and makes one reflect, that too profoundly. It undoubtedly is a timeless classic.

Fyodor Dostoyevsky

PS-

*I found this translation to be a bit confusing and messed up at many places hence it is better to get another one from the many available ones.

*The scene of Katrina Ivanovna’s depressing death later in the story, literally shook me up and made me cry.

Book Review- A Basketful of Lies

Title- A Basketful of Lies

Author: Geetashree Chatterjee

Publisher: Creative Crows Publishers

ISBN: 9789384901687

MRP: Rs 199/-

When I received an autographed copy of this book, sent lovingly by the author, I was excited about the cover. You will come to know the reason by the end of this post. However, as and when I started reading the stories, the cover took a backseat and I could not stop wondering at the mesmerizing lyrical prose with which the author has clothed her brainchild. This work is her debut collection of short stories that revolve mainly around urban life and complexities in coming to terms with an inevitable change. Be it the old dignified ‘Maamone’, who chooses an austere life and self-respect over everything or a shrewd small town girl ‘Aninda’ who makes a whole career out of a yesteryear’s superstar, the characters in these 15 stories are very relatable and one can feel them popping out of the paper, for the portrayal is so real.

A few stories have spooky and surreal plots that are fun to enjoy and offer nail-biting twists. Some are about star-crossed lovers and those stuck in sepia memories buried under the nostalgia. Reading these, I felt a range of emotions, from a surge of sympathy for the sincere ‘Probir’ to pity for the old ‘Kaku’ managing a forgotten bookshop.

I will call this remarkable collection as a very ‘balanced’ one for many reasons. The plots are varied yet connected with a common thread, like beads in a string. The prose is lyrical yet it does not crash under its own weight; the passages are beautifully described yet the writing does not go overboard with unnecessary descriptions. The author has a very good command over the language too. So, in a nutshell, if you are a lover of meaningful, clean and well penned literature, this one is not to be missed. I am sure you will thank me after reading this book!

Regarding the cover, I am glad to have sketched the cover artwork. Each painting is done in color pencil and conveys the respective story-line. 

Rating- 4/5

The book is available on Amazon and Flipkart

The author blogs @ Panacea

Book Review- Sputnik Sweetheart

Title:     Sputnik Sweetheart 

Author:  Haruki Murakami

Transl.:  Philip Gabriel

Publ.:     Random House

ISBN:      978-0-099-44847-1

MRP:      Rs 499

Pages:    228

I was looking forward to reading more works by the famous writer Haruki Murakami after I read the very inspiring ‘What I Talk about When I Talk about Running’ about a year back. It is still one of my favorite non-fiction works. My latest read was ‘Sputnik Sweetheart’ which was originally penned in Japanese. It has his characteristic elements such as loneliness, alternate reality, unrequited love, Greece, and of course, cats. The novel does not have a concrete ending and leaves the reader wondering about many possible outcomes, may be similar to the satellite Sputnik- II’s remains still floating in the outer space.

In a nutshell, the plot goes like this-

The author, a school teacher, is in love with his best friend, an eccentric girl named Sumire who is a struggling writer and lives alone in a small apartment. He longs for her but she falls for Miu, a much older businesswoman. Sumire is open and unapologetic about her sexual orientation but the author cannot let go of his love for her. Sumire travels to Europe on a business trip with Miu for whom she works and then disappears suddenly on a remote and non-descript Greek island. Author reaches Greece and Miu reveals a strange and eerie incident happened 14 years ago that had changed her life forever. As he returns, he gets into trouble when one of his students is caught shoplifting. This incident alters his relationship with his girlfriend and he returns to his apartment, pondering over many things.

The novel ends on a very abstract note and is somewhat philosophical in certain parts but not stuffed with long convoluted and didactic sentences. What I could gather from the linear plot narrated in first person is that we all are broken and move in our orbits. Sometimes, we come across each other for brief moments much like the remains of Sputnik II and then go our own ways, all alone. I think the author is trying to convey that in an alternate plane (which was earth for Sputnik II where it was one whole) we live a whole and perfect life the way we desire but in reality, we all are broken pieces, revolving all alone within the orbits of our banal and mundane lives.

My rating is 3.5/5.

Haruki Murakami is a Japanese writer. His books and stories have been bestsellers in Japan as well as internationally, with his work being translated into 50 languages.

Book Review: Night

Title:         Night

Author:    Elie Wiesel

Publ.:       Grapevine

ISBN:       978-9381841891

MRP:        Rs 125

Pages:      173

This book starts with describing the spread of anti-semitic feelings and the subsequent seize of that small town where Elie Wiesel, the author lived with his family, by the Nazi troops. The Jews of his town are taken overnight to a concentration camp, leaving everything behind. He and his father are separated from rest of the family and endure torture, beatings, violence and constant fear of being thrown alive in a furnace. The author describes how the old, sick, infants and little children were thrown alive by truckloads in a furnace (with a tall chimney) that exuded a stinking black smoke all the time. 

The author and his father are made to shift between various camps in stifling rail carriages and on long foot marching and he watches his father die a very slow and painful death. This book does not describe other macabre conditions (like gas chambers) of the Auschwitz camp but focuses on an emotional relationship between a father and a son in adverse times. Wiesel was rescued by Americans with other inmates of the camp. 

It is difficult to believe how cruel man can become. One will surely start hating Nazis for their atrocities on Jews. Elie Wiesel (1928-2016) won the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize. This book has been translated from French (originally written in Kiddish) by author's wife, Marion Wiesel.

Rating 4/5

Book Review: Lajja

Title:         Lajja (Shame)

Author:    Taslima Nasrin

Publ.:        Penguin India

ISBN:        978-0-140-24051-1

MRP:         Rs 250

Pages:       216

The Sanskrit word ‘Lajja’ literally means ‘Shame’. This book makes one think about the basic tenets upon which a nation must be built. The firebrand writer Taslima Nasrin shot to fame with this novel that first came out in Bengali language in 1993 and was banned by the Bangladesh government after a few months of release. Since then Ms. Nasrin has come in the hate-radar of Islamic clergy and fundamentalists. This novel is more of a mirror that shows the society and the government of Bangladesh their real faces that are indescribably ugly. However, despite getting numerous death threats and after years of exile, the author still refuses to apologize or to be silenced. I think Ms. Nasrin can be called a writer in the truest sense because her work is powerful and deep enough to bring a change in thinking, to show a whole nation its ugliness and to make a dent in the rotten perceptions, changing their track to some extent. That is why Lajja is considered an important book.

Through a fictional story, the disastrous effects of the ‘Babri Masjid’ demolition upon Bangladeshi Hindus are shown. Many true-life incidents and census analyses have been provided so that each point made has a factual backing.

The story revolves around one Dutta family that resides in a place called ‘Tikatuli’ in Bangladesh. Dr. Sudhamoy Dutta, the head, I think, represents the ideal fundamentals upon which the country was conceived. A true patriot and honest to the core, Dr. Sudhamoy fervently takes part in all the national movements but is left alone, ill and paralyzed in his later years; his idealism fails him and he gets reduced to a mute spectator to the crumbling principles, increasing hate-crimes and death of secularism in his beloved country after its liberation. This is what Bangladesh has been shown to become after gaining independence- weakened by injustice, stripped of idealism and paralyzed by genocide.  

His son Suranjan Dutta represents the educated and optimistic Hindu youth. At 33, he remains unemployed because of hatred and unfriendly laws against Hindus and thus unmarried as well. He is somewhat of an idealist too and loves his country ardently. However, just like most Hindu youths, he gets nothing but discrimination and antipathy. Finally, his spirit of secularism dies out leading to depression. The way he takes his revenge on a street-worker Shamima, is heart rendering.

Kironmoyee Dutta, Suranjan’s mother is a silent, religious, sacrificing, but unhappy woman who broods in the background throughout the novel, though she puts up in any and every situation stoically with her family, esp. her husband. She represents the under-privileged Bangladeshi Hindu masses that love their country but desire to leave for a ‘safe’ place like Calcutta. After a point, her tears dry out and she submits to her husband and her fate.

Twenty-one years old Maya, the youngest child of Duttas’, is a beautiful and educated young woman and represents the dignity of Hindu women that gets brutalized and lost in the sacrilege and torture inflicted upon the Hindus by their own Muslim brethren.

The family keeps holding on to its idealism, loyalty, and patriotism even when they face poverty and destruction by Muslims enraged over the Babri demotion. However, when the old bonds get strained by bias and intolerance, their hopes hit a hard ground and start cracking up. Apprehensively, Duttas arrive upon a decision they could not even think of earlier.

It is surprising that the book has been written by a Muslim as the author rips apart the hypocrisy of the Bangladeshi government, hell-bent upon Islamizing the entire country and their apathetic and barbaric behavior towards the very same Hindus who once stood by their side in various movements against the oppressors. She openly accuses the religious fundamentalists and even the common Muslim citizens of a prejudiced behavior. There are no purple passages because the purpose of the book is altogether different. Interestingly, Ms. Nasrin completed this book in seven days.

Lajja is not only revealing because of the facts and figures given but it makes one think about the disastrous effects of power going in the hands of fundamentalists. It shows how intolerance, fanaticism and bigotry eat-up secularism and peace in such a nation. 

Book Review: Far From The Madding Crowd

Title:         Far From The Madding Crowd

Author:     Thomas Hardy

I have my late grandpa’s 1952 unabridged, printed in Great Britain HB copy of this novel published by Macmillan & Co, that I really cherish. The story is set in late 1800s in a fictional place named Whetherbury and revolves around a beautiful, strong-willed and independent girl named Bathsheba Everdene who has three men in love with and chasing her. An orphan Bathsheba’s life gets transformed when she inherits her heirless uncle’s farm and becomes a rich farm-owner. 

The three men –simple and diligent Gabriel Oak, rich and passionate Boldwood and smart and temperamental Francis Troy, fancy Bathsheba and she chooses one of them as her husband. However, things take a turn for the worst when a juvenile valentine-card prank goes wrong and after her marriage, old skeletons along with a horrible secret, tumble out and create an emotional mayhem leading to a fitful murder. 

The story is well woven and keeps the reader glued. The metaphors are lovely but long descriptions of how farms, sheep-rearing and farm-markets operate seem to be over-stretched. Overall, the book is wonderful! 

Book Review- Wet Silence

Title:           Wet Silence

Author:       Sweta Srivastava Vikram

Publi.:         MHP

ISBN:          9781615992560

MRP:           Rs 314/- (Kindle)

It is not every day that one comes across poetry that can touch one’s very soul. 
The book ‘Wet Silence’ by Sweta Srivastava Vikram is piquantly stirring and rips apart the hypocrisy of our so called morals. It throws much light upon a subject that reeks of pain and gloom, and calls for urgent reforms. 

Her poems on Hindu widows reflect the depth of suffering, be it psychological where a widow is expected to mourn and be as “brooding like soot on windows”, or sexual and societal, when she is considered a “toxic waste”. For no fault of her own, a widow is perceived as an ill-omen and a “crude metaphor”. Even in today’s world where we boast of ultra-modernism, in some places in India, esp ‘Vrindawan’, widows are forced into so pathetic a life that it can shame the Satan himself. 

The author captures the breadth and depth of this topic very well. Some poems like 
“The Question” present a unique way to look at traditional myths. The words, like a high definition camera, capture every emotion perfectly and to say that I loved this book will be an understatement. 

Random Excerpts-

-"I hate that the hand wiping my tears aren't yours"

-"Winter blankets my longing arms

    whispers he is never coming"

-"Like a sack of rice in pantry,

   I am sitting quietly"

-"Here I am called a crude metaphor

   for not wanting to wake up under fouled sheets"

Check out 'Wet Silence' here

Book Review: The Golden Gate

Title:         The Golden Gate

Author:     Vikram Seth

Publ.:        Faber&Faber

ISBN:       9780571200382

MRP:        Rs 295

Pages:       307

                                        

Today I wish to review my very latest read for you

It’s a novel in verse by the inimitable Vikram Seth

About young pals-John, Liz, Janet, Ed, Phil and Sue

Set in 1980’s, story unfolds in city of the golden gate

When a lonely John sets out to look for an apt partner

Pressed by Janet, his ex-a sculptor and band drummer

They come across a plethora of people and situations

Find old friends, heartbreaks, odd and taboo relations

Apart from jealous cats, wines, iguana, art, revolution,

Sleights, breakups, confessions, marches and confusion

Author’s lucid verses keep the reader glued to the tale

He finely etches all characters and lives in good detail

Our author was born in Kolkata, West Bengal in 1952

Though an economist, he entered literature, a field new

His first novel, this came out in 1986, by Faber&Faber

And since has won hearts of its readers the world over

Composed in 14-line sonnet form; inspired by Pushkin

After author read both translations of ‘Eugene Onegin’

So now, I have one more title to appreciate and collect

No brownie points for guessing, it is ‘The Golden Gate’

                                                                  

TWT Review

Thank you dear uncle Ashok Prasad for this review of 

'The Wedding Trousseau and Other Short Stories'  :) 

'Before I embark on reviewing this volume,let me make a declaration. Ankita is known to me and I treat her like a daughter. I have been a witness to her growth in the literary circles and it was a matter of enormous personal satisfaction and pride. to note that her first volume of short stories has been released . If therefore ,to some,if this review is lacking in total objectivity,I humbly plead guilty.

Debutante story tellers often tend to start off with diffidence and it is only with the passage of time they muster requisite confidence to be able to convey their message with elan. One of the strongest aspects of this volume is that Ankita does not suffer from this handicap. She retains a flow through all the stories and I doubt if anyone ,unless so advised, would be able to decipher that this is her first effort. For that attribute alone, she needs to be commended.

The 11 stories in this compilation cover different situations but Ankita has been able to deal with them with equal flourish. By far the most moving of the stories was The Wedding Trousseau -in terms of the plot, the narrative,the flow ,the excellent and eminently readable vocabularic selection and a thoughtful conclusion.

One other story The Site Visit dealing with the issue of  adultery was perhaps the most moving but its conclusion left the reader wanting to know more. Leaves was another very commendable effort dealing with a day to day situation that most can identify with in a deeply analytical manner.Perhaps Ankita should have taken up psychotherapy! My own edited compilation viz Literature and Psychotherapy has one story which deals with a very similar theme but Ankita does it here with more sophistication.

She also has not fallen into a trap that debutantes often do i.e. meticulous concentration of quality in the earlier stories which tapers as the book ends.Her last compilation Just Perfect is an example of an author who has striven for uncompromising quality control throughout.

I can foresee a budding story teller with abundant promise. I wish her the very best!'

A Virtual Cup Of Coffee!

Sometimes having coffee can be such a wonderful experience! However, here I am talking about 'A Virtual Cup Of Coffee' with madam Geetashree Chatterjee that was an interview that we thoroughly enjoyed. 

I am posting the link of our wonderful chit-chat regarding publishing, writing and my book 'The wedding Trousseau and Other Short Stories' along with her lovely review. Do check out!

Over A Virtual Cup Of Coffee and  Book Review