Beginning of April means it is time to take stock of my reading over the last two months. The past two months saw me tackle a diverse range of books across different mediums. I completed my first audible book: The Lost Daughter by Ferrante. Simultaneously, I read Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo on the Kindle. Also on the Kindle, I read Pip Williams' The Dictionary of Lost Words and in actual book form I read Ancient Stone Riddles by Srikumar M. Menon and The Eighth Life by Nino Haratischvili.
Reading The Lost Daughter and Kim Jiyoung at the same time was a real serendipitous pairing in that the two of them are united by the theme of the toll motherhood extracts from women—the sacrifice of their dreams and aspirations and how this can push them over the edge. The two are stylistically and culturally very different books—the former a conventional novel set in Italy, the latter in South Korea where each assertion is backed by meticulously collected statistical data. By the time I was finished reading them, I was quite angry about how unfair it is that being a mother means constantly having to choose between oneself and one's child!
In contrast, The Dictionary of Lost Words which does question patriarchy in England does so though a gentler narrative. A book about the creation of the Oxford Dictionary it serves as a commentary on how women in England were treated as inferior to men reflected in the way the way they were treated and paid in the work place. The book also raises the issue of the gendering of language with the only words used by a section of society (namely upper class male) making its way to the dictionary, resulting in a fascinating read!
My non-fiction read was Menon's book on Megaliths—a very well written and illustrated book where the writer's enthusiasm for his subject is so evident. This would serve as a wonderful introduction to the Megaliths of South India—I just wish it was available for purchase (according to the writer there are plans to reissue it as an ebook—hopefully soon)!
March saw me hooked to The Eighth Life: a meaty (at 934 pages) old fashioned novel tracking a family over the generations. Set in Georgia the book offers a novel perspective on the Soviet years—that from the periphery and yet not quite! I highly reccomend this book if you are looking to get lost in the pages of a tale for quite a while 😊.
Reading The Lost Daughter and Kim Jiyoung at the same time was a real serendipitous pairing in that the two of them are united by the theme of the toll motherhood extracts from women—the sacrifice of their dreams and aspirations and how this can push them over the edge. The two are stylistically and culturally very different books—the former a conventional novel set in Italy, the latter in South Korea where each assertion is backed by meticulously collected statistical data. By the time I was finished reading them, I was quite angry about how unfair it is that being a mother means constantly having to choose between oneself and one's child!
In contrast, The Dictionary of Lost Words which does question patriarchy in England does so though a gentler narrative. A book about the creation of the Oxford Dictionary it serves as a commentary on how women in England were treated as inferior to men reflected in the way the way they were treated and paid in the work place. The book also raises the issue of the gendering of language with the only words used by a section of society (namely upper class male) making its way to the dictionary, resulting in a fascinating read!
My non-fiction read was Menon's book on Megaliths—a very well written and illustrated book where the writer's enthusiasm for his subject is so evident. This would serve as a wonderful introduction to the Megaliths of South India—I just wish it was available for purchase (according to the writer there are plans to reissue it as an ebook—hopefully soon)!
March saw me hooked to The Eighth Life: a meaty (at 934 pages) old fashioned novel tracking a family over the generations. Set in Georgia the book offers a novel perspective on the Soviet years—that from the periphery and yet not quite! I highly reccomend this book if you are looking to get lost in the pages of a tale for quite a while 😊.
