Recent Memorable Literary Reads

I read my way through the 2017 Man Booker Prize finalists, except for the one that ended up winning (Lincoln in the Bardo). Of the ones I read, one book shot up to be my most favorite of all time (will write about it soon), and the remaining four made an impact on me. I think they are all worth reading. In the order of my preference, recording some of my thoughts on these books:

Exist West might seem like yet another book on the woes and complexities of immigration. But it's different from the ones I have read so far, in that it's not a narrative that follows just one main perspective - that of the protagonists'. The book's narrative structure is the most interesting aspect. Written in third person, it's style is part documentary, part essay, with just a little bit of traditional story telling. I think it works! This type of narrative is devoid of explicit or too much emotion, and I think it's a deliberate choice to be as detached and objective as possible while Hamid points to the multiple tentacles that wrap and distort the issue of immigration. Through vignettes of different people's stories, he showcases how each person is affected by the issue, and how when viewed through their lens, their reactions and fears are understandable. Immigration is complicated because the stories of people are so varied, their motivations to move (even metaphorically speaking) are so different. Trying to put them all in a couple of buckets is a gross simplification. 

Can a world without borders truly exist? What does it mean for immigrants to assimilate and settle into a new country? Everyone wants to feel connected, to belong, including the native population. Driven by the need to associate oneself with their "home" and cultural identity, if immigrants keep holding themselves apart from the new country, isolating themselves, setting up their own mini-borders and communities, aren't they perpetuating the differences and the divides? Open borders do not mean human beings will open their minds and hearts to the borders they create within themselves. It's a subtle and nuanced discussion in the book.  I am a fan of Mohsin Hamid for many reasons, but primarily for his writing - he knows how to use minimal words to convey much - my polar opposite! 

History of Wolves is an emotionally difficult read, but a powerful and thought-provoking one on the role of faith (especially religious faith) in our lives. It explores the deep murky waters of morality and spirituality. Our decisions have a ripple effect on other lives, and sometimes the consequences veer out of our control regardless of how pure our intentions and motivations are. Through two stories, the author presents the classic question at the apex of morality - in the end, do intentions/belief matter or the actions/consequences? "Both" is a non-answer, and "circumstantial" is an easy answer, because articulating the underlying definition of good and bad is still convoluted. What if we believe something, and then act in a different way? Our thoughts and actions need to ideally align and resonate with each other for us to live true to ourselves. But what is its implication on morality?

It's scary and disturbing how much of an illusion we cocoon ourselves into in the name of faith. Everything gets rationalized, is attributed to higher purpose and meaning, when the reality is our choice to be ignorant and disillusioned. In this case, it's more straightforward to see the biases and illusions of blind faith or misguided thoughts. But we all live and operate under so many biases and illusions, and often we don't even realize them because they are not as stark or obvious as religious faith. 

Although I liked the book for its themes, I did not like the writing. Everything is cast in gloom, every description focuses on the unflattering, uglier side of things. The author makes her point about not glossing over the dirt that is underneath superficial beauty, but the prose became off-putting after a while. I also wish there was a deeper discussion of religious faith from a different lens, not the one that is clearly clouded.

Elmet is another disturbing, but powerfully written book. It's the heartbreaking story of one oppressed family that is struggling to survive amidst social and power conflicts. It is reminiscent of several stories and movies of ruthless landlords crushing the underdogs. What was impressive to me (and hence biased me) was the excellent writing and characertizations. This is the author's debut novel, mostly written during her commute to work! 

Autumn deals with the impact of changes - changes to our land, our country, our home, our family, and to ourselves. Change to the macro does seep into the micro. It's a poetic but mostly abstract narration on how bigger changes to society (Brexit in this case) slowly trickle down to our individual journey. This book is less about the story, and more about the characters and the writing. It was brilliant in places, but quite obscure in other places. This is part of a series of 4 books, so I'm guessing the things that were vague will have threads of continuity in the other books. It is worth reading for those pages and paragraphs that leap out with brilliance and insight and leave you with a mental punch.

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Hate You Give is an unapologetically forceful and masterful book on racial discrimination and police brutality in the United States. Closely following the shocking real-life stories that have dominated the news, the author alternates between righteous indignation and clear-eyed objectivity in analyzing the stereotypes that are so entrenched in our psyches that people don't even realize the extent of rash judgments they provoke. 

What I really liked about this book was the way the author brings out the slippery slope of logic and rationality. Anything, if worded and meticulously arranged a certain way, can be made to seem perfectly logical, reasonable, and rational. This is the real danger, the terrifying threat that's facing us today - discrimination is reduced to one tiny aspect of its elemental state; it is coldly rationalized without compassion. The radical solutions are propagated as practical, sensible, and even fair-minded. We are not as rational as we want to believe; our feelings and emotions bias our perceptions and construct seemingly cohesive narratives of "logic" that are riddled with holes! 

I think it's the belief that one is right because one is logical and rational, that results in a breeding ground of twisted fundamentalism and extremism that is almost impossible to logically argue against. The only way out is openness to dialogue, openness to understand different experiences by  weaving in empathy and compassion along with logic.

 A very relevant and poignant read. 

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Finally, despite all the depressing and disappointing state of affairs around the world, there is always hope, goodness, and the prevalence of our better nature to overcome the darkness.

All The Light We Cannot See is a beautiful, heart-wrenching book on the purity of thought and actions amidst a scenario as vile as possible - the second world war. The book grew on me gradually, and I appreciated it more as the echoes of the story and characters washed over me long after I finished the book. We all hold the power to directly and indirectly make a difference in people's lives - even a complete stranger. It's a sobering and uplifting realization to motivate us to always do the best that we can, to always resurrect our better nature, even during dire situations of life and death. Such goodness is often not visible, it is not glaring in its gloat, for it demands no grandeur or pomposity. It comes in quiet, subtle ways, and leaves a lasting impression that can only be felt and realized. 

News of the World is another simple story of goodness and compassion. It's the story of a dutiful military man and an orphaned girl struggling to find her footing in an ever changing, unsettling landscape. Sometimes, the struggle is realizing and recognizing when and in what ways we have the opportunity to positively impact someone's life. And most often, goodness is symbiotic, and is not a one-way street.

So much of our world is now focussed on the visual and loud nature of things - everything needs to be seen, to be loudly beautified in its representation and glorification to be believed and internalized as "good". But there are so many gestures of everyday living that have the potential to add to up to something significant; something that can't be measured or captured in a tangible form. The very hope, the trajectory of our existence, rests on such goodness and light that cannot be seen, but does live around us and within us.