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Nervous Conditions Author, Tsitsi Dangarembga Review by Jarad Johnson I’m taking a course on narratives in African Literature this semester, and part of that means reading books by authors that probably would not normally fall under my purview. Part of being a reader is, by default, being a lifelong learner, and I’m very pleased when I get exposed to new ideas, cultures, and experiences…one of the reasons I took this class (it’s also taught by one of my favorite teachers). The course focuses on narratives, which is a topic that this blog likes to focus on as well.
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This is a book that I picked up on a whim when I was at the library last week. I had heard very good things about it, and I decided to give it a try. Going into the book, I knew it was a science fiction story about a pastor who travels to another world to preach to the native population on that planet while Earth descends into chaos. This did not sound like it was something I would enjoy, but several reviews said it wasn’t a novel about religion, so I decided to try it anyway.
When we review books here at Sacred Chickens, we don’t always like them. We’re very well aware of the fact we have particular and occasionally odd tastes and that you might like books that aren’t for us. When you read our reviews, keep that in mind. We will not only tell you what we thought of the book, we’ll try to make sure that you can make an educated choice about the book in question and decide for yourself. This review is about one such book, a book that left Jarad a little cold, but that a lot of people like. If you did love the book, let us know! We might even publish your review.
Jarad’s take: This little book is one that I’ve been hearing about for some time now. I’ve heard it called poignant, meaningful, and genre-defying. It is a short book, coming in at only 150 pages. It seeks to examine a father and sons’ grief at the death of the wife and mother of the family. One day, the husband is visited by a crow, a personification of grief, who won’t leave until he isn’t needed anymore. The book is sometimes painful, sometimes humorous as the father struggles to get through the days after his wife’s death and the circumstances of her demise slowly unfold with the story. The crow speaks in metaphor and a rhythmic poetic language mixing a novella format with lyric poetry. I saw this book some time ago and was intrigued by the title. Reading the back of the cover, I was even more interested. A book about a taxidermist whose daughter finds him dead in his shop? Sounds right up my alley. I was interested, but I also had no real idea what to expect. In cases like these, I often look to the covers of the book to give me some insight into what’s going on inside. The cover of the copy that I was bright green with a flamingo on it, so there were no clues there. Nothing to do but delve into the pages.
Some people want to visit Paris. Others London or Spain. I myself would like to go to Amsterdam. So, when I saw that this book was based in Amsterdam, I immediately picked it up; however, this book is set in seventeenth century, not exactly the Amsterdam I’m familiar with…or would like to become acquainted with. Instead of the liberal, accepting city that exists today, the Amsterdam of this book is governed by an oppressive, puritanical religious code. It is a city where neighbors keep a watchful eye on each other, and where homosexuals are drowned at the pier. As we know, even in the most pious societies, there are those who break the rules. This is a book about rebels, my favorite kinds of people. It’s a book full of secrets, lies and betrayal.
Everybody dies. That's a fact of life. But it's how we deal with that inevitability that separates us. In From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death, author and YouTube Channel celebrity Caitlin Doughty travels the world over researching differing societal death rituals. Doughty is a mortician based in California who makes her mission to give people access to different and more affordable options considering their own, or a relative's, death. Her YouTube show, Ask A Mortician, doles out the hard-edged questions that people want to know but are too afraid to ask: What happens to gold teeth during cremation? What's the worst way to die? What happens to breast implants after you die? Doughty handles all of these and more with great enthusiasm. She's bubbly, honest, a bit goth, a bit kooky, and her shows are always highly informative as well as entertaining.
We here at Sacred Chickens are very concerned with narratives- we love exploring, creating and analyzing them. So, when we run into a book, tv show or movie that challenges us on a narrative level, we get pretty excited. Given that, the Netflix series Russian Doll is perfect for us- it challenges our ideas of what a human story looks like in time and space and plays with that notion. Jarad’s review is for those of you who haven’t seen it. Julie has some thoughts and questions afterwards for those of you who have. Jarad’s Review (for those of you who haven’t watched the series yet):
Julie was the one who introduced me to this series (I’m not much of a TV watcher) and once I started watching it, I couldn’t stop. I actually stayed up till three o’ clock in the morning trying to finish it, something I don’t do very often. The narrative of the series is complex, and a gift to any book lover. It centers on Nadia, a woman who dies on her thirty-sixth birthday. Again, and again and again. She repeats the day of her party on a continuous loop, and no matter how hard she tries, she still dies at the end. Also, her cat is missing, and I’m conflicted as to which issue is more important. Without giving too much away, I will say that Nadia is a darkly funny, sarcastic character, and her deaths match her personality. The series, in a nutshell, examines what it means to exist. Heavy I know, but also not really. Nadia is in the midst of an existential crisis; however, the episodes don’t feel like we’re in a philosophy lecture (the Philosophy department at my college is the most humorless group of people I’ve ever met. Even Socrates knew how to laugh people!). This series is impossible to summarize. I would just tell you to watch it yourself, but I do have to write a post. Nadia, although smart, funny, and an overall interesting person, is deeply unhappy, both because of past trauma and present issues. She, as many people do, doesn’t see the good in her life and what makes it worth living. The universe is trying to teach her something, I think. It’s funny, smart, poignant, and it’s got great cast of characters. If you’re not interested yet, I suspect you’re from the philosophy department. My Year of Rest and Relaxation Author Ottessa Moshfegh by Julie Carpenter and Jarad Johnson Jarad's Take:
This is a book that Julie lent me to read recently, and when I heard the premise I was immediately interested, but I didn’t know what to expect. I read the blurb and wondered how you could fill an entire book writing about a woman who was sleeping. So, I cracked the book open this week and I was surprised. I didn’t like any of the characters, although they are objectively hilarious (Spoiler alert: not every character has to be likeable to make a good story), but I was still hooked. Once Upon A River Author, Diane Setterfield by Jarad Johnson We are fully into summer now, and I find that some books are best for the season. Easy, engulfing books that can distract from the oppressive heat. This is one such book. The first that struck me when I picked it up was the cover with a cool blue river snaking across the cover. Ah! Cool and blue. A summer book.
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