Category: reading

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P is for Pearl S Buck

1892-1973
I discovered Pearl S Buck quite by chance in a bunch of long forgotten books left behind by my aunt. I read The Good Earth and Letter to Peking. That was my first introduction to China, a country that intrigued me no end. I then thought they were written by a Chinese author, so authentic were they in their portrayal. I wasn’t too far from the truth. Buck spent much of her life in China. 
I loved her simple story telling style. Much later I found that she was the first American woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Her life

Pearl S Buck was the daughter of American missionaries who lived in China. They came to the US for her birth and then moved back when she was merely three months old. That remained her home for almost 40 years. Till she was almost 15 she had a Chinese tutor who taught her not just the language but also about great Chinese thinkers like Confucius. Chinese was her first language. She was also a huge fan of Charles Dickens and reread him almost every year.
After she married John Lossing Buck she moved to a small village in China. There they lived among the poorest of people and it was these people who figured in The Good Earth. The couple had a daughter Carol who was diagnosed with an illness PKU. Buck was immensely saddened by that and by the fact that she couldn’t have any more children. She left Carol in America where she could be well looked after and returned to China. It was to enable Carol’s care that Pearl started writing. 
She adopted 7 children and remained a champion for adoption of Asian kids all her life.

Her subjects

Since she knew China best she decided to make that her subject. And so East Wind West Wind about a Chinese girl who learns about the Western world was written. The Good Earth was her second book. Said she, “I used to say to these young people, “Why don’t you write about your peasants? They are wonderful people”. And they would say, ‘Oh nobody would be interested.’ And so I said well I’m gonna write that book then. If none of you will do it, I will write it. So I wrote ‘The Good Earth’.

The Good Earth

Pearl S Buck won the Pulitzer Prize for this book. It tells the story of a Chinese man Wang Lung and his wife O Lan. It is the story of the rise and fall of his fortunes – his struggles with famine, his abject poverty that forces him to beg and steal and finally his rise again.
A big reason for the book’s amazing success was its timing. It was published during the time of the Great Depression and to people in America it was offered some consolation that there were people worse off than them. 
Of course there were critics. They maintained Buck painted too simplistic a picture of the country, that the book was no authority on China and the Chinese way of life. They said it was just about one kind of China at one period in time. That was of course true. However in the absence of much popular literature on China during that time, her books did remain an authority on the country. 
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Are my clues getting too simple or am I in the company of the best read people? Shiva, Suzy, Sreeja… good going. And I thought Pearl Buck wasn’t a popular choice.  
As for tomorrow’s clue do not wrack your brains friends. It’s a surprise, a surprise you’ll like, I hope. So take a break from the guessing and drop back in tomorrow for some fun.
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This post is part of the April A to Z Challenge, 2014 for the theme AMAZING AUTHORS.

Also linking to the Ultimate Blog Challenge.

 

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O is for Orwell, George

1903 – 1950
If you’re a writer you could not have missed this author.. Eric Arthur Blair.. or George Orwell and his famous rules for writing. Two of his most famous books Animal Farm and 1984 are stuff that’s taught in classrooms.
Animal Farm, inspired by the Stalin Era in the Soviet Union is an easy interesting read with way deeper connotations. However, I have to confess, I found 1984 extremely depressing. The dystopian totalitarian state Orwell describes in his book is so suffocating, so frustrating that I put down the book often only to go back to it looking for that one tiny spark of hope but none came. That is not to say it isn’t a powerful read. Sometimes you need to delve into the uncomfortable too. This was one such.

His life

Orwell was born in Motihari Bihar in British India. His father was a British civil servant. He studied in England and joined the Indian Imperial Police in Burma. However soon he resigned to become a writer. He moved to Paris but had no success with his writing and had to take up menial jobs.  His first book Down and Out in Paris and London, published in 1933 talks of his experiences.

A few years later he travelled to Spain to fight for the republicans. He was forced to flee in fear of his life from Soviet backed Communists and turned into an anti Stalinist for life.

In 1945 he wrote Animal Farm followed by 1984. His other fiction works include Burmese Days, A Clergyman’s Daughter and Coming up for Air. He continued writing for various periodicals and also worked for the BBC.

He passed away in 1950 of tuberculosis.
 

His inspiration

Authors find inspiration in varied places for Orwell it came from “a feeling of partisanship, a sense of injustice. When I set down to write a book, I do not say to myself, “I am going to produce a work of art’, I write it because ther is some lie that I want to expose, some fact to which I want to draw attention, and my initial concern is to get a hearing…” That’s quoted from him essay ‘Why I write’.

Since ‘being heard’ was his primary objective he kept his writing style simple. Yet he managed to leave an impact that stays with you for a long while. He aimed at making ‘political writing into an art’ and he did.

His essays

I discovered his essays pretty recently while reading Vinod Mehta’s biography Lucknow Boy, which by the way is also an amazing read. Mehta counts Orwell as his favourite author whose essays are ‘his bedside read’. That got me going and I found some very interesting ones..

He seemed to have picked up varied topics as diverse as..

Bookshop Memories  – I loved this one where he talks about the kind of people who came to him while he worked at a book shop, the kind of books they read versus the kind of books they bought. Also how working at the bookshop put him off books – even that wonderful smell that we all love.

A nice cup of tea – A tea lover himself he talks about how to make that perfect cup of tea.. a fun read.

The Hanging – A chilling account of his Burma days when he witnessed a hanging.

… And many many more. Check them out here.

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My dear friend Shilpa of A Rose is a Rose is a Rose got in first and got Orwell right.
*Clap clap clap*

Tomorrow’s author was born in American but spent most of her life in China and that’s where she picked her stories from. Oh and she’s the winner of the Pulitzer Prize as well as the Nobel prize for Literature. Guesses anyone?

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This post is part of the April A to Z Challenge, 2014 for the theme AMAZING AUTHORS.


Also linking to the Ultimate Blog Challenge.

 

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N is for Nicholas Sparks

Born December 31, 1965
“The first thing I did when I sold my book was buy a new wedding ring for my wife and asked her to marry me all over again”. Aww.. isn’t that romantic? But then it has to be, coming from an author who writes the most romantic stories. That’s Nicholas Sparks. I first read Message in a Bottle and loved it right away. Interestingly, he refuses to be slotted as a ‘Romance writer’. But for me he’ll always remain master of mush.

Slow start

Success took a while to come to him. While in college he wrote two novels that never got published. He gave up writing and turned to other careers including real estate appraisal and waiting at tables. Five years later he co-wrote a non-fiction book that got published. However that wasn’t really the start of his writing career. He went on to sell pharmaceuticals. While on the job he wrote a book in his spare time, inspired by his wife’s grandparents with everlasting love as it’s theme. Luckily for him, that book was picked off from the bunch of unsolicited manuscripts by a publisher’s assistant and Sparks landed his first book contract for The Notebook.

Since then he has published 17 novels, 8 of which have been made into films. How’s that for success?

Message in a Bottle

My favourite, however, remains Message in a Bottle. It was his second book. In the film Kevin Costner as the grieving widower is just perfect. I was heartbroken at that very sad ending apparently like many other readers. I couldn’t believe real life could ever be that cruel. However, Sparks says the book was inspired by the life of his father. When Sparks’ mother died his father was shattered. He wore black for four years and turned a recluse. It took him seven years to get into a new relationship and finally he found someone and was engaged. Two weeks later he died in a car crash. That’s where the story came from. 

He says the message he’s trying to put across is not a tragic one. Rather, it is one of hope – that people do get second chances at loving. Sigh!

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First: A round of applause for the lady who got Nicholas Sparks right Sreeja Praveen. She blogs at The Alter Ego. Do drop by people. Take a bow Sreeja. 

Now for tomorrow: My next author is miles away from mush and romance. This clue should give it away – one of his most famous protagonist is an animal named Napoleon. So tell me now.
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This post is part of the April A to Z Challenge, 2014 for the theme AMAZING AUTHORS.

Also linking to the Ultimate Blog Challenge.

 

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M is for Mark Twain

Mark Twain with his characteristic mop of
shaggy hair and his famous cigar. He is said 
to have smoked 22 to 40 cigars a day and once said, 
“if smoking is not allowed in heaven, I shall not go.”

1835 – 1910

When I was young we had a book of comprehension that had short passages from various books. It was such a great way to whet a young reader’s curiosity – give her a tiny glimpse of a wonderful world then wait for her to go looking for the book.

That’s how I sought out this author ­- Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known as Mark Twain author of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of  Huckleberry Finn. I remember well, the passage where Tom Sawyer trades an apple to ‘allow’ his friends to paint the fence instead of him. Brilliant! His other best selling work Huckleburry Finn was an offshoot from Tom Sawyer and tackled the issue of slavery. Twain had seen slavery up close in his homestate Missouri. The books remain popular among readers even today.

It is not possible to do justice to him or to his books in a few hundred words here. I do hope, however, that like my language book I manage to whet your appetite through this post, to seek him out on your own.

His books are special

With his wife and three daughters. He fell in love with his
wife when he saw her picture with his future brother-in-law.
… because he was one of the wittiest authors ever. His wrote funny books that would appeal to young kids even while there would be a sensitive, intelligent undercurrent running through them. His books contain a satirical commentary on the society and the human nature which cannot but appeal to adults as well.

A man of many trades and many names

Mark Twain’s father passed away when he was 11 and he started working when he was just 12 at a printing press. He took up various jobs including that of a steamboat captain (where he got his name Mark Twain) and a prospector before he took to writing. How he got his pen name is one of my favourite stories. While he was a river pilot the cry of ‘Mark Twain’ implied it was safe to sail because the water’s depth as measured by a ‘mark’ on a line was two ‘twain’ fathoms (12 feet). He used other pseudonyms too inluding Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass, W Epaminodas Adrastus Blab, Sergeant Fathom and Rambler.

Did you know?

– That Mark Twain was a great speaker? He was often invited to talk shows which he would present in his quintessential witty style. These were solo ‘acts’ almost like the current day stand-up comic shows.

– And that he had a keen interest in Science and Technology? He even patented three inventions – a replacement to suspenders for trousers, a history trivia game and a self-pasting scrap book. How’s that for creativity?

– Also, he was a master of quotable quotes
Next time you need a quirky quote search for Mark Twain. Sample these..

  • Go to heaven for the climate, hell for the company.
  • Good friends, good books and a sleepy conscience: This is the ideal life.
  • My mother had a great deal of trouble with me but I think she enjoyed it.
  • Familiarity breeds contempt and children.

The Comet Connection

He was born in 1835 two weeks after the Halley’s Comet made its closest approach to the Earth. He believed he would go away with the Comet as well. And he did just that – he passed away in 1910 one day after the comet again made a close approach to the earth.

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Ladies keep your handkerchief’s at the ready for tomorrow as I host a Master of Mush. A contemporary gentleman who has penned some of the most poignant romances you’ve ever read.

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This post is part of the April A to Z Challenge, 2014 for the theme AMAZING AUTHORS.

Also linking to the Ultimate Blog Challenge.

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L for Louisa May Alcott

It’s back to my childhood and back to a 19th century lady with L. Today it is Louisa May Alcott. If you didn’t read her Little Women series in your childhood it’s not too late to pick up a copy. Make sure you save it for your daughter too. If you do not have daughters well then you can just skip this one for here’s one author who is pretty much a girl thing.

I started reading her in school and they had the right amount of gyan to appeal to the Irish nuns who ran our school and yet had that tiny dash of very ‘propah’ romance to keep me glued.

Louisa Alcott’s life was ‘Little Women’

She was the second of four sisters  born to an educationist father and a social worker mother. She was taught by her father and his intellectual friends who included writers and educators like Emerson, Hawthorne and Thoreau.
The family went through a rough patch when all the sisters had to take up work to support the family finances. Louisa worked as a teacher, a seamstress, governess, a writer and a domestic helper…  a lot like the girls in Little Women.
She started off writing passionate books for adults that told dramatic stories of revenge (the ones I never got to read). And of course there were her books for kids. Once her kids’ book became popular she never returned to adult writing.
A scene from her book Little Women
Little Women, Good Wives, Little Men and Jo’s Boys formed a perfect series. I also read a set of two – Eight Cousins and Rose in Bloom.
A lot of Louisa’s family values spilled into her books. Principles like ‘Plain living high thinking’, inculcating good habits, dignity of labour — all formed a conservatively perfect mix for young girls.

Louisa and Jo

Louisa modeled Jo after herself in Little Women. She had Jo’s rebellious streak. Jo turned writer, just like her. Also, she shared a rivalry with her youngest sister quite like Jo and Amy in the book. However when her sister passed away at childbirth she took in her daughter, also called Louisa, and cared for her till she herself passed away.

Unlike Jo, who gets married, Alcott remained a spinster all her life. Remarking on her spinsterhood she says, “I am more than half persuaded that I am a man’s soul put by some freak of nature into a woman’s body… because I have fallen in love with so many pretty girls and never once the least bit with any man.”

Did you have a favourite sister from among Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy?

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And now for tomorrow’s clue. Oh I enjoy this bit tremendously. So tomorrow’s author is a man, a very witty one. His most well know book has a young protagonist who shares his initials with me.. hee hee! Well it’s my blog, I get to behave like a megalomaniac here once in a while.
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This post is part of the April A to Z Challenge, 2014 for the theme AMAZING AUTHORS.

Also linking to the Ultimate Blog Challenge.
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