Me and Harry Potter

For years – years – i’ve resisted the pressure to read Harry Potter. It’s not that I had anything against the Pottster, it’s just that i was never really drawn to the books. I was a little bit older than most when they first came out and there have just always been other books I’ve wanted to read more. (To be clear, there are still other books I’d like to read more.)

Nostalgia by M.G. Vassanji

Nostalgia is not your typical Vassanji fare. Quite often his novels move back in time, not so with Nostalgia. It’s a futuristic, dystopian tale – something I never thought Vassanji would do – and it’s pretty great. In spite of it’s setting and time period, it is, in many ways, a classic Vassanji novel. He’s dealing with the same themes – immigration, identity, belonging, but in Nostalgia they are speculatively based instead of factually based. 

Loner by Teddy Wayne

I read Loner by Teddy Wayne in one day. It’s not a long novel, but it still indicates how much I enjoyed it.

Here’s why I loved it:

The Spawning Grounds by Gail Anderson-Dargatz

I should probably start by saying that The Cure For Death By Lightning, one of Anderson-Dargatz’s earlier novels, was a real winner for me. I read it a thousand years ago, when it first came out, but i remember reading it in almost one sitting. Then I gave it to my mom and received late night phone calls saying she couldn’t put it down.

The Spawning Grounds is not that novel. Times have changed. I have changed and undoubtedly Anderson-Dargatz has changed. 

The Parcel by Anosh Irani

I’ve long had a mixed relationship with Anosh Irani and his new book, The Parcel continues to make me feel the same way. Irani is a beautiful writer tackling the harsh realities of the poor and marginalized in Mumbai, and he does so again with The Parcel. That is to say, it, like his other works, is a heartbreaking tale that is beautifully written.