My business partner got me this little gem for Christmas and I've really enjoyed it, and will enjoy it for years to come. It's the kind of book you could pick up and just read one little entry, but for this first reading, I read it all the way through. Basically, the author is talking about the power of coincidence, how if you look at the synchronicity of coincidence, you might find grace. She even suggests that you can cultivate "meaningful coincidence" in your life by looking for it in your everyday world. The author is a Mormon, which isn't really a factor in reading the book, except that I happen to know tons of Mormons and this author seems the most open and accepting Mormon I know!! (You'll know why when you read about her life story!) Still, I really loved the openness and gentleness that is obviously part of her life and will look forward to looking for grace in small places now.
White Tiger has gotten great reviews, and I believe won the Man Booker award last year. I picked it up at our local bookstore after I heard the owner (my friend) say they were struggling. I started feeling guilty for all those "Amazon Kindle" downloads and bought the actual book! I really loved it. I've read a lot of books about India, or with India as a "subject", but never one like this. Even the gritty "Shantaram" had a totally different flavor. This is India from the mind of the servant, the forgotten, the despised caste. It's a totally different look. And although the main character isn't exactly faultless (okay, he's almost downright despicable), neither are the upper class anything to write home about. This is India, down dirty and real. It's very engaging - and an easy read, even though it took me weeks to read. That's more about my life than it is about the book!! And THAT is a whole other blog.A word about "Oscar Wao": As you may notice in my sidebar, I gave up on this book. I usually give books to 50 pages to hook me in. Oscar Wao won the Pulitzer Prize for crying out loud, so I figure it has to be good right?? I gave it to 100 pages. I wanted to like it, I really did. But at 100 pages, I could care less about what happens to these characters. This book commits the one crime I can't stand. I love to read about other cultures, but I hate it when the author assumes that I know all about it, the slang, the nuances. What results is a book that I can't even follow. Oh, and the lengthy footnotes don't help either. I'm glad Junot Diaz got critical acclaim, and the book probably deserves it. Call it reader ignorance.
2 comments:
I picked up a copy of White Tiger on a whim and will read it one of these days. It really sounds like something I would like, and so I was glad to hear that you enjoyed it.
I am sorry Oscar Wao didn't work for you. I haven't decided yet if I want to read it. I've heard so many mixed reviews about it.
Glad to see you liked The White Tiger - I found it engaging too. I have a feeling I will end up seeing Oscar Wao just like you do - I hate books that try to be so hip and assume the reader knows all about what they are talking about (another one that struck me this way was Only Revolutions by Danielewski - critics loved it and I had no idea what the heck it was about. I gave up on it in less than 20 pages *laughs* It was impossible to read!
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