Michael Moon begins his book review of Alison Bechdel’s graphic novel, Fun Home by rightly saying that “It’s hard to imagine a more ‘bookish’ graphic narrative than Allison Bechdel’s Fun Home.” Fun Home is a richly layered narrative with numerous allusions to the stalwarts of Western literary canon be it Joyce or Proust or Hemingway and so many others. Within these seething references to literary and artistic influences, lies Alison’s own story of growing up, coming to terms with her family’s eccentricity and most particularly her father’s own life trajectory too.  What is it about?  ..read more

Covid-19 pandemic ushered in major changes in the number of users (from teachers to students to parents) accessing e-learning platforms for their child’s education. Virtual classrooms have boomed whether it is schools conducting online Zoom classes or various other modes of e-learning that mushroomed to fill in the lacuna that Covid-19 lockdowns brought for education. E-learning offered not just classes on different school subjects but also classes and courses on various other skills from public speaking to coding to creative writing. Covid-19 lockdowns led e-learning forums to optimize on thi ..read more

6th September is when 3 years ago in 2018, the Supreme Court of India ruled on Section 377 and decriminalised homosexuality. Hence, today’s book review is this beautiful and evocative novel, Seahorse by Janice Pariat.  Seahorse by Janice Pariat is about the relationship and love that the alliterative protagonists, Nem and Nicholas shared. Rather the novel is about Nem’s memory of Nicholas and the void that Nicholas’ leaving created. Nem’s aching for Nicholas is not one of bitterness or surfeit weeping but one of a thoughtful and sharp reverie. Nem was a student of English Literature in D ..read more

Ismat Chughtai’s stories and characters cut through time and remain relevant even in the 21st century. She wrote in Urdu and was part of the Progressive Writer’s Movement. The movement focused on how art can contribute to the betterment of society by commenting on its evils and hypocrisy. Ismat Chughtai is well known for etching out female characters that did not fit any mould society cast for them. The characters are rebellious by their very nature or paradoxically through subverting the restrictions imposed on them. They dare to question. They dare to be themselves. Through s ..read more

Let’s continue with the celebrations of WomenInTranslation Month! Here is another great recommendation of a work written in Urdu and translated to English!   A Promised Land by Khadija Mastur is translated from Urdu to English by Daisy Rockwell. Srilal Shukla in his Hindi novel, Raag Darbari, satirically took on the might of the post-Independence Indian bureaucracy and its circular, never-ending red tape. A Promised Land is not satirical but an incisive, feminist critique of Pakistan after Partition. The novel proffers a critical look at Pakistan post-Independence and how the hopef ..read more

Here comes August! Please usher in another edition of WomenInTranslation Month! A great book to pick for WomenInTranslation Month is Where the Wild Ladies are by Matsudo Aoko. It is translated from Japanese to English by Polly Barton. I first read this collection of 17 stories last year on my Kindle, when I reluctantly, with a hint of excitement, gave this reader friendly device a try! It was definitely worth a read for its fabulous feminist themes and the slighly dry British humour and words that the translator, Polly Barton, brought in to the book.  Where the Wild Ladies are re-imagine ..read more

Terrarium by Urvashi Bahuguna is her debut poetry collection published by The Great Indian Poetry Collective. Her verses possess a singular and almost unnerving style of unraveling the magical from within the everyday. Terrarium’s poems touch upon the momentary motions of everyday life. Those motions may seem ephemeral but leave an immeasurable mark on all of us. For instance, the first part of the collection portrays how Bahuguna’s childhood experiences especially of moving to and living in Goa, shaped her perspectives. In doing so, Bahuguna, vividly depicts her surroundings such that ..read more

Han Kang’s The Vegetarian was a hit with the English-speaking audience when the English translation by Deborah Smith was published back in 2016. Her other novel, The White Book, which is also translated by Deborah Smith, defies any conceptions that a reader has of the form of a book. One could see The White Book as a novel, as a poetry volume with prose poems or even like a creative non-fictional journal where the author meditates about her surroundings and several other preoccupations that her churning mind throws up within. Because of the ambiguity around the form of the book itself, it imm ..read more

Ruskin Bond’s writing has always been a constant in my life since reading his stories in my English school textbooks. While the world only recently is going gaga over cherry blossoms, I still vividly remember reading in school about the quiet innocence and perseverance of Rakesh from the short story, The Cherry Tree, and how he planted the seed and despite all odds, was rewarded with the pink blossoms. The depiction of the utmost simplicity in the characters’ actions and the vastness and joy that nature provides them has made Ruskin Bond’s writing endearing and lovable. Most of his novels ..read more

This Mother’s Day, do remember to actually help out your mother and really understand her rather than pay her lip service! To remind you of her importance, read the South Korean novel, Please Look After Mom. Mothers are celebrated grandly across the world on this day. Motherhood is idealized as something pure and blissful. It might be that, but hardly does one get to see a different side of this ideal. This is the case in almost all societies. Patriarchy’s continuing firm grip on our lives is manifested when we only acknowledge her existence to celebrate; never acknowledge her existence to hel ..read more