Dear Readers,
Hope this finds you well and looking forward to a bit of rest over this three-day (or in many cases longer) weekend break.
If you're out and about (note: we're open Monday), swing by to check out our ongoing moving sale, with new items being added on the daily. And in case you're one for checking things off your list on the early side, Easter bunnies, books, and all sorts of spring-like merchandise (to match the weather?!) are on display as well.
In miscellaneous news, I'm linking to th e Pearl and 602 Blackwing pencils we keep mentioning on Instagram (we have boxes of both in stock, so give us a ring and we'll set some aside). Why do you need pencils that inspire delight? Well, John Steinbeck and Chuck Jones used them for one. And they pair so very well with the on-backorder-but-being-reprinted new Rick Rubin while elevating your every day tasks. Also, I know she made our up front letter last week but we seriously cannot get enough of Ada Limon and we're happy to share this link to her conversation with Krista Tippet who, after a sabbatical, is back in action with some terrifically thoughtful new episodes of On Being. On the audio front, our audiobook partner Libro.fm has some super fun playlists for browsing, perfect for road trips and around the town errands. Staff favorite Yotam Ottolenghi is on his game with a delicious new tray bake ,reminding us we still have signed copies of his fabulously useful new cookbook Extra Good Things in stock, perfect for adding zest to these gray winter days.
Cheers,
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Friday Five: Border Crossings |
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This week, we’re talking border crossings, inspired by the lead title, a translated work from venerated writer Geetanjali Shree, a Hindi-language novelist, and translator Daisy Rockwell. Borders — physical, mental, and perceived — are all showcased in this surprisingly playful and deeply engaging work. Read on see what else made the cut.
TOMB OF SAND: Discovered while shelving books a few weeks back, this new-to-me but not to the literary world novel is translated literature of the highest order. Shree's magnificent book happened to win the 2022 International Booker Prize and, not to be too trite, my heart.
All sorts of border crossing occurs in this wondrous piece of fiction. Mother reconnects with her long-shunned daughter. A community pariah becomes a trusted friend. Bodies told to act in a certain manner rebel, leading to all sorts of triumph and terror. Personified doors and walls reveal long-held observations about the dwellers within. Wounds left by Partition are addressed with words and action.
“Border, Ma says. Border? Do you know what a border is? What is a border? It’s something that surrounds an existence, it is a person’s perimeter. No matter how large, no matter how small. The edge of a handkerchief, the border of a tablecloth, the embroidery around my shawl. The edges of the sky. The beds of flowers in this yard. The borders of fields. The parapet around this roof. A picture frame.
Everything has a border. However, a border is not created to be removed. It is meant to illuminate both sides. You removed me. Should I leave? No.
A border does not enclose, it opens out. It creates a shape. It adorns an edge. This side of edging blossoms, as does that. Embroider the order with a shimmering vine. Stud it with precious stones. What is a border? It enhances a personality. It gives strength.”
I can’t say enough about this playfully terrific novel that begs the question of why we cling so closely to that which separates us from one another. Not everyone will appreciate its rambling, fluid style but for those willing to go along for the long and wondrous ride, they will be rewarded.
THE SORROWS OF OTHERS: As you may be aware, we booksellers often read months ahead, doing our best to curate an appealing selection of titles for your browsing pleasure. And while I often hesitate to include work that you can’t yet get your hands on, there is something exciting that exists in the anticipation, the waiting, and the support you can give to authors by reserving a pre-sale item. Ada Zhang’s new collection of short stories is worth the anticipatory buzz. Exploring the divisions that exist within families assigned and chosen, Zhang is at her best when writing about domestic partnerships that require intimacy of a physical sort given the sharing of space. In the collection's title story, a longtime widower and his new wife navigate crossings of age gaps, routine, and a new home. Zhang’s writing is crisp and smart but I most appreciate her ability to create beautifully readable stories about issues big and small that remind you what it is to be in the presence of an immensely skilled guide.
ALL THE FLOWERS KNEELING: I’m deep into two poetry collections that fit quite nicely into a Friday Five dealing with borders so it was a good old fashioned coin toss that placed the image of Vietnamese-American writer Paul Tran’s widely lauded 2022 collection in the visual carousel below. However, I’d be remiss not to mention CUSTOMS by Solmaz Sharif, a stunningly good collection that wrestles with the idea of living in between homes, transitional and liminal spaces like customs checkpoints. As for the featured work, poet Natasha Trethewey notes that Tran “writes from the most essential of places: the threshold.” Whether exploring questions of gender, inherited or experienced trauma, or a myriad of other topics, the reader is confronted by devastation and resulting resilience at every turn. I’m particularly interested in the idea that suffering isn’t random but wrought by a series of crossings — decisions by oneself or others — that may result in outcomes never anticipated. A difficult but important collection from a rising star.
EMERGENCY: Borders crossed between the small village of one’s youth and the increasingly connected globalized world are deftly explored in Daisy Hildyard’s terrifically dense work of autofiction. Shut inside the walls of her home during pandemic lockdown, the narrator recalls a pre-internet childhood spent in English countryside, arm-in-arm with number one friend Clare. School became a window beyond their small village: “Small differences were becoming more real at school, where the quick children were already being separated from the slow and the girls from the boys. The school computer divided us again.” The computer (now, once again becoming a hotly contested, headline-grabbing issue on the daily) was a relatively new addition to the school environment and Hildyard’s meditations on what that meant for the community suggests a clear line drawn between the before and after.
I AM FROM HERE: Some may question why people who don’t cook love cooking cuddle up with a cookbook at the end of the day and I think it can be traced to some sort of primordial yearning for the communal table. Chef Vishwesh Bhatt, a native of Ahmedabad, Gujarat and twenty-plus year resident of Oxford Mississippi personifies the joy found in bringing people together around delicious food, inspired by his cross-cultural heritage. Many highlighted ingredients are as at home on the Indian subcontinent as they are in the American South. It’s difficult to choose between the 130 temping recipes within but I’ll be starting with Peanut Curry, Masala Potato and Cheese Omelet and Gujarati-Style Charred Eggplant. To finish it off: Mom’s Rice Pudding — basmati rice, saffron, golden raisins, pistachios, anise, and cardamom for the win.
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*PRO TIP: Click the images to learn more +/or purchase a copy or two! |
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*PRO TIP: Click the images to learn more +/or purchase a copy or two! |
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