Somah's Blog

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

The Dark Adventures of Nobody Owens
My review on Amazon

Nobody, or Bod, Owens was a toddler when he first entered the graveyard. He tottered up the hill from his house while his parents were being silently murdered by "the man Jack" who is known to be a meticulous and a perfectionist assassin.

Bod is taken in by Mr. and Mrs. Owens, a married couple in a ghost form who have lived many, many years ago and have always wanted a son. They adopted the boy and gave him the name "Nobody" because he "looks like nobody but himself." 

Bod's newfound otherworldly family grew to include what Megan Honik of the New York Public Library calls "a multigenerational cast of characters from different historical periods that includes matronly Mistress Owens; ancient Roman Caius Pompeius; an opinionated young witch; a melodramatic hack poet; and Bod's beloved mentor and guardian, Silas, who is neither living nor dead and has secrets of his own."

Bod grows up in the graveyard with special privileges and responsibilities. He can see and hear what his ghostly family sees and hears. He can make himself "fade" and he becomes a guardian of the graveyard. He is also instructed not to venture into some parts of the graveyard, but thankfully he disobeys those orders and in turn giving us [the readers] the most thrilling macabre adventures where the Duke of Westminster, the Emperor of China and the 33rd President of the United States (Harry Truman's name is never mentioned) are hideous ghouls hungry for Bod's flesh.

As a teen, Bod comes face to face with his parents' murderer as the final events unravel into a bittersweet ending.

Although not as good as "American Gods", and nothing really is, this book is wonderfully entertaining and the darkest coming-of-age story I've ever read. As a 34-year-old adult, I gotta say I enjoyed it immensely. It was hard to say good-bye to Bod at the end, but his story was so imaginative and enriching I was thankful to be taken on such a wonderful ride to begin with.

Another Gaiman classic for sure! Read it.

Thanksgiving by Edgar Albert Guest

Gettin’ together to smile an’ rejoice,
An’ eatin’ an’ laughin’ with folks of your choice;
An’ kissin’ the girls an’ declarin’ that they
Are growin’ more beautiful day after day;
Chattin’ an’ braggin’ a bit with the men,
Buildin’ the old family circle again;
Livin’ the wholesome an’ old-fashioned cheer,
Just for awhile at the end of the year.

Greetings fly fast as we crowd through the door
And under the old roof we gather once more
Just as we did when the youngsters were small;
Mother’s a little bit grayer, that’s all.
Father’s a little bit older, but still
Ready to romp an’ to laugh with a will.
Here we are back at the table again
Tellin’ our stories as women an’ men.

Bowed are our heads for a moment in prayer;
Oh, but we’re grateful an’ glad to be there.
Home from the east land an’ home from the west,
Home with the folks that are dearest an’ best.
Out of the sham of the cities afar
We’ve come for a time to be just what we are.
Here we can talk of ourselves an’ be frank,
Forgettin’ position an’ station an’ rank.

Give me the end of the year an’ its fun
When most of the plannin’ an’ toilin’ is done;
Bring all the wanderers home to the nest,
Let me sit down with the ones I love best,
Hear the old voices still ringin’ with song,
See the old faces unblemished by wrong,
See the old table with all of its chairs
An’ I’ll put soul in my Thanksgivin’ prayers.

The Blue Notebook by James Levine

A Devastating & Extremely Disturbing Account of Child Sexual Slavery in India
My review on Amazon

Batuk, the protagonist, was a real child prostitute living in Mumbai, India, and this book is her journal, translated into flawless and engrossing prose by Dr. Levine.

I found it very hard to finish this book, but thankfully, it's only 200 pages. I had to skim most of it for the vivid descriptions of child rape, sexual mutilation and unspeakable torture were just a bit much to visualize. At times, especially towards the end, I had to put the book down to catch my breath!

Reading this story will literally give you physical pain the next time you read or hear about child prostitution, molestation, abuse or human trafficking in India or anywhere in the world for that matter. Batuk's story is the story of all these children we hear about in the news. Reading this book will make their stories real to you, and not just sad, impersonal news items towards which we've become desensitized.

Batuk was enslaved at the tender age of eight (EIGHT!) when her father sold her to Mr. Ghali, who quickly sold her innocence to the highest bidder before sending her off to "The Orphanage" where her heart-wrenching story nosedived into visceral horror.

At "The Orphanage," Batuk is raped by the Yazaks (i.e. guardians; you believe it!) all the while witnessing other children go through harrowing accounts of unbelievable torture and even murder. She writes about a boy who was caught hiding twenty rupees from his Yazak:

"Justice was immediate and occurred in the open. Using his right hand, the Yazak lifted the child, age eleven or twelve, by his hair off the ground and with his left hand cut his throat with a Damascus blade. Before the second spurt of blood had shot from his neck, the Yazak had thrown the boy to the ground just as you might throw away a sweet wrapper."

It was also at "The Orphanage" that Batuk met Puneet--a frail young boy with delicate features and effiminate mannerisms--for the first time. Both were lucky enough to be given to Mamaki (a woman as vile physically as she is morally) to work in her brothel in Mumbai's red-light district. It's there where most of the story's heartbreak takes place.

Batuk and Puneet's relationship is yet another devastating account of lost innocence, damaged souls and shattered dreams. Depressing as it is, I was glad to know that these two had glimpses of happiness along the way.

The last thirty pages of the book were the most painful to read. In the end, I was distraught by the story and by the fact that this horror is still going on today, at this moment, in India and elsewhere. One thing I hope you get out of this book is a renewed zeal to do whatever you can to fight child exploitation and abuse of any form here at home and worldwide.

Angel Time by Anne Rice

An Engrossing Medieval Story with Modern Resonance
My review on Amazon

Toby O'Dare is an assassin by choice. After suffering a harrowing ordeal in his birth city of New Orleans, he took off to New York where he got to learn about his insatiable appetite for ending lives. Such appetite drew attention from a man whom Toby grew to call, The Right Man, who fed Toby's hunger for murder and loved him all in the same measure.

Toby is twenty-eight years old and was in the process of becoming a Dominican priest back in New Orleans. Before his macabre career took off, he was an exemplary child to a drunkard of a mother, whom he took care of restlessly, and a caring older brother to his siblings, whom he loved endlessly. In his senior year at Jesuit High, Toby fell in love with Liona--a Jewish girl that attended a nearby prep school. They were deeply in love; a love that Toby managed to sabotage.

Everything changed when left to New York.

Though he has become an impressive and adroit murderer, Toby never really gave up praying. And one night, at a moment of great despair, he prayed for an Angel of God to help and guide him.

Low and behold, an angel called Malchiah (interestingly similar to the Arabic word for angels malaika) descends and offers Toby an opportunity to redeem himself even after all the deaths he's caused. Broken and eager for redemption, Toby agrees to do whatever Malchiah asks of him and so the Malchiah takes him back in time to 13th century England.

Toby's mission is to use his intelligence and skills to help the Jewry of Norwich, England, survive an impending catastrophe that is upon them. He was sent back in time as a Dominican priest or frair (from the French word frère meaning brother) to resolve a volatile situation in which the Christians of Norwich accuse a Jewish family of murdering their own daughter after her alleged conversion to Christianity. What follows is an eye-opening narrative of the state of the Jewry in Europe and religious relations in the Medieval times.

What I found fascinating about this book was Toby himself. His character was very well developed with all its complexity and conflicts. The other fascinating thing was the history of the Jewry in 13th century England and the societal dynamics of that time.

Although not her best, Angel Time is still a good historical read. It's a little preachy and contrived at times, but that didn't bother me that much. I was completely taken by the Christian and Jewish relations at that time and how much they were governed by rigid religious beliefs, myths and hate. Sounds familiar?

The historical narrative made the book for me and for that alone I recommend it.

Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East by Robin Wright

Objective Look at The Future of The Middle East
My review on Amazon

Robin Wright has always been my favorite reporter on Middle East affairs. The stories and accounts she has written in The Los Angeles Times and The New Yorker have consistently been impressive in quality and effortlessly impartial. Robin has a unique ability to leverage her vast network of resources to tap into the most intimate thoughts and feelings of that region and relay them uncensored to her audience. So needless to say, I was pretty excited to read this book to learn from her what future my people have and how they might get a shot at it.

I was very impressed, and now like the author, hopeful.

Robin takes on the most volatile players in the Middle East (Palestine, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Morocco and Iraq to be exact) and paints with words the most descriptive portrait for each. Having grown up in the region, I know how revealing those portraits are for those who dare peruse them. Her intimate knowledge of Egyptian politics, culture, modern history and collective psyche is astounding. It's evident that her superb soft skills have allowed her to penetrate these cultures and gain the trust of the people who told their story and to whom she listened. 

The book is written for a Western audience, who might find the information provided in it completely conflicting with what they thought they knew about the Middle East. The accounts and stories presented in the book aren't clouded with opinions, agendas or spins. The facts are stated and the quotes are relayed. It's pure and simple journalism.

I also believe that another audience might benefit greatly from reading this book--the very people this book is about. Middle Easterners will find in this book a candid reflection of their current affairs. It's imperative for people to know how they are perceived in order to complete their perception of who they really are. We give this feedback to friends and family daily, but nations and cultures don't do that with each other frequently. Here is a chance that I hope doesn't get wasted.

The book in general voices optimism in the future of the Middle East, despite the war in Iraq and despite the rise in Islamic fundamentalism. Painful stories from across the region about fledgling dreams trying to make it and desperate youth fighting to dream are recounted so vividly by the author, who uses her magic to point out the silver lining in each of these stories and in turn keeping our hopes alive for a better tomorrow in the region.

It was definitely an entertaining, informative and thought-provoking read. I highly recommend it.

Annals of Football (soccer) Hooliganism: Egypt vs. Algeria

The history of football hooliganism is well-documented and dates back to 12th century England, where football (or soccer) was banned because it was strongly believed that it led to social unrest and even treason. The recent hooliganism demonstrated by both Egyptian and Algerian soccer fans prove that time (eight centuries of it to be exact) has done little to assuage the primal, borderline barbaric sentiments triggered by the sport making its impact on social unrest and diplomatic tensions ever so evident.

Algeria beat Egypt 1-0 at their much-anticipated and much-publicized game in Sudan yesterday after an impressive Egyptian win on Saturday. Hoards of Egyptians fans made it down to the neighboring country to support their national team but found themselves dealing with something far worse than fervent Algerian fans--they dealt with mobs of violent, vicious Algerians even after the game ended with Algeria's win.

The recent violence has muffled the hollow and hackneyed cries of Arab unity and brotherhood echoed by both nations for over half a century. It has also exposed a deep-seeded resentment that both nations have harbored for each other for twenty years now. In 1989, an eerily similar situation took place when Egypt beat Algeria in the World Cup qualifier, triggering widespread fights and an incident where an Algerian player gouged out an eye of an Egyptian fan with a broken glass bottle.

This violence is a symptom of deeply depressed societies, in my very humble opinion. Both countries are emasculated by their political regimes and imprisoned by their own cultures and traditions. Nationalism carries a heavy emotional weight but rarely any substance in the Arab world. Add to that the highly emotional and histrionic nature of both peoples and you have a recipe for disaster. Historically, soccer has been the best platform to which this explosive recipe is applied, and its always heightened when the opponent is another Arab country.

Both Egyptians and Algerians have stooped to a new level with these recent actions and have done irreparable damage to their already marred public and international image. When I hear the term "football hooligan" in the future, I'll longer envision a young English drunkard yelling "bloody murder" but rather I'll be thinking of a mob of histrionic North Africans who lost all hopes in country and God and took refuge in yelling at and terrorizing others.

UPDATE (Nov 20, 2009): It looks like FIFA started an investigation over the Algerian bus attack in Cairo, Egypt. Meanwhile, the tension is rising rapidly between the two countries. I've never seen such hatred in my life! Sick. 

The National Book Award of 2009 in Fiction Goes to ...

Let The Great World Spin by Colum McCann. The complete list of all the National Book Awards winners was published today.

The 15th Anniversary of D'EUX

One of my all-time favorite albums, and evidently, "the best-selling French-language album of all time", is getting re-released on December 1st with remastered tracks and video content.

Originally released in 1995, this album, and particularly the song "Pour Que Tu M'Aimes Encore," were the reason I asked my dad to send me to France to study French. I simply had to learn that seductive language expressed ever so beatuifully in this song. A few months later, I was living in Chambéry, France, studying the language of love. To this day, every time I hear the song (once a month or so) I reminisce about the time I spent in the South of France and all the people I met and the friends I made. More importantly, the song always reminds me of the power of music and its cultural relevance and influence, transcending borders, conflicts and even language.

It's worth mentioning that every single song on this album is amazing. I never really liked Céline's English efforts; She feels cold and unauthentic, maybe because English isn't her native tongue. In French, though, she's brilliant and real. I have all her French albums and none of her English ones. "D'EUX" and "1 Fille & 4 Types" are my favorite, but they're all really great. I headlined my review of "1 Fille & 4 Types" with "A Testament to the Transcendence of Music." This is true of all her French music!

You can pre-order the album on Amazon right now. The Product Description goes as follows:

It's been a decade and a half since the album D'EUX (released March 1995) was written and produced by JEAN -JACQUE'S GOLDMAN for CÉLINE DION! D'eux is the best-selling French-language album of all time, selling 6.5 million copies worldwide and over 700,000 copies in Canada. To commemorate the 15th anniversary, Legacy has created a remastered version with three new demo songs from Jean-Jacques Goldman's personal archives (Pour que tu m'aimes encore, J'irai ou tu iras and Le ballet) plus two PBO versions of Pour que tu m'aimes encore and Vole, new liner notes, a 40-page booklet featuring never-before-released photos and a reproduction of Jean-Jacques Goldman's handwritten lyrics of Pour que tu m'aimes encore. The DVD contains three legendary videos: Pour que tu m'aimes encore, Je sais pas and an alternative version of J'Attendais along with behind-the-scene footage with Jean-Jacques Goldman on Les derniers seront les premiers'Live A Paris.' All this, and a special live-recording of the famous 1995 Spécial Dimanche program (which aired exclusively in Quebec), presented by Sonia Benezra bringing Céline Dion and Jean-Jacques Goldman together for the very first time. On the show Céline delivers live performances of 5 songs (2 of which are duets with Goldman) along with interviews from that era. Sony. 2009.

Here is the lyrics to the song that made me fall in love with the French language:

J'ai compris tous les mots, j'ai bien compris, merci 
Raisonnable et nouveau, c'est ainsi par ici 
Que les choses ont changé, que les fleurs ont fané 
Que le temps d'avant, c'était le temps d'avant 
Que si tout zappe et lasse, les amours aussi passent 

Il faut que tu saches 

J'irai chercher ton cœur si tu l'emportes ailleurs 
Même si dans tes danses d'autres dansent des heures 
J'irai chercher ton âme dans les froids dans les flammes 
Je te jetterai des sorts Pour que tu m'aimes encore 
Pour que tu m'aimes encore 

Fallait pas commencer m'attirer me toucher 
Fallait pas tant donner moi je sais pas jouer 
On me dit qu'aujourd'hui, on me dit que les autres font ainsi 
Je ne suis pas les autres non non non 
Avant que l'on s'attache, avant que l'on se gâche 

je veux que tu saches 

J'irai chercher ton cœur si tu l'emporte ailleurs 
Même si dans tes danses d'autres dansent des heures 
J'irai chercher ton âme dans les froids dans les flammes 
Je te jetterai des sorts Pour que tu m'aimes encore 

Je trouverais des langages pour chanter tes louanges 
Je ferais nos bagages pour d'infinies vendanges 
Les formules les magiques des marabouts d'Afrique 
Je dirais sans remords Pour que tu m'aimes encore

Je m'inventerai reine pour que tu me retiennes
Je me ferai nouvelle pour que le feu reprenne
Je deviendrais ces autres qui te donnent du plaisir
Vos jeux seront les nôtres, si tel est ton desir
Plus brillante et plus belle pour une autre étincelle
Je me changerai en or Pour que tu m'aimes encore.

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

It Takes 10,000 Hours of Practice To Excel at Anything
My review on amazon

That was pretty much the only revelation I had by reading this book. The high rating goes to the amount and kind of research that went into explaining why successful people are the way they are. Mr. Gladwell has a knack for making dull statistical data interesting and entertaining. It's fascinating to learn about how one's date of birth can seriously affect his hockey career, or academic excellence for that matter. It was also great to reaffirm what we already know about the role of culture and community in the success (and failure) of the individual. 

The book was mostly reiterating what most educated people know about success. Even the revelation I had about the 10,000 hour rule is nothing more than the old adage "Practice makes Perfect." The stories the author uses to support his findings are in and of themselves a compelling read. I certainly enjoyed reading them and re-learning why common sense and perseverance are the only true measures that will bring you success in the end.

This is a great book of entertaining statistics and not a how-to to success.

Happy 40th Birthday, Sesame Street!

It's hard to believe that one of our favorite shows as children is now 40-years old! Keep it up, guys. We love you! I wonder how old Electric Company is?! Is it still around?

Check out how Google is celebrating Sesame Street's big birthday. All the images have a hi-res version available. Enjoy!