புத்தகத் திருவிழா 2015 - 1

பெருமாள் முருகன் புத்தகங்களை வாங்குவதென்ற முடிவுடன் தான் உள்ளே போனேன். ஒரு வேளை காலச்சுவடு விற்பதில்லை என்றால் என்ன செய்வதென்று முதலில் இருந்த நியூ புக் லாண்ட்ஸ் அரங்கிலேயே மாதொரு பாகன், அர்த்தநாரி, ஆலவாயன் வாங்கிவிட்டேன். கடையில் இருந்தவர் கூளமாதாரி, ஆளண்டாபட்சி வாங்கப் பரிந்துரைத்தார்.”இல்லைங்க, அது ரெண்டும் இருக்கு” என்றவாறு நகர்ந்தேன். நேற்றுத் தான் உடுமலை.காம்மில் வாங்கினேன்.

கூட்டம் அதிகமாக இருக்கும் என்பதால் காலை பதினொரு மணிக்கே போய்விட்டேன். அவ்வளவாக யாரும் இல்லை, பொறுமையாகப் பார்க்க முடிந்தது. உயிர்மையில் அந்நிய நிலத்தில் ஒரு பெண் வாங்கும் முடிவோடு தான் போனேன், ஆனால் ஏனோ வாங்கத் தோன்றவில்லை. யுவன் சந்திரசேகரின் மணற்கேணி மட்டும் வாங்கிக் கொண்டு வெளியில் வந்தேன்.

வண்ணநிலவன் கவிதைகள் கண்ணில் பட்டது. புரட்டிக் கொண்டிருந்த போது அய்யனார் தன்னை அறிமுகம் செய்து கொண்டார். இருபது ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன் அன்னம் வெளியீடாக கவிஞர் மீரா கொண்டுவந்த நவகவிதை வரிசையில் வெளிவந்த கவிதைகளை இப்போது மீண்டும் பதிப்பித்திருப்பதாகக் கூறினார். அத்துடன் சுந்தர ராமசாமி அய்யனாருக்கு எழுதிய கடிதங்கள், அய்யனார் எடுத்த நேர்காணல்கள் மற்றும் சென்னை - சில சித்திரங்கள் ஆகிய நான்கு புத்தகங்களும் சேர்த்து 110 ரூ. தான் என்றார். வாங்கிக் கொண்டேன்.

தமிழ்ச் செம்மொழி நிறுவனத்தில் (Central Institute of Classical Tamil) குறுந்தொகை - Kuruntokai Text, Transliteration and Translation கழிவு போக வெறும் 480 ரூ. மொழி பெயர்த்தவர்கள் பட்டியலில்  A K Ramanujan, George L Hart இருந்ததால் வாங்கினேன். நூலகத்தில் இருக்கும் தரத்தில் அருமையான பதிப்பு. கண்டிப்பாக வாங்கவும்.

சாகித்திய அகாடெமி அரங்கில் ஏகப்பட்ட மொழிபெயர்ப்பு நூல்கள். செம்மீன் - தகழி சிவசங்கரப் பிள்ளை (தமிழில் சுந்தர ராமசாமி)  மற்றும் ப.ஜீவானந்தம் நூல் திரட்டு வாங்கினேன். கிழக்குப் பதிப்பகம் பிரம்மாண்டமான அரங்கு. உள்ளே சென்று சுற்றிப் பார்த்துவிட்டுத் திரும்பினேன்.

காலச்சுவடில் எதிர்பார்த்தது போல மாதொரு பாகன் விற்பனைக்கில்லை என்று சொல்லி விட்டார்கள். ஆனால் பெருமாள் முருகனின் மற்ற நூல்கள் இன்று விற்பனையில் இருந்தன. நாளை தெரியாது. கார், மிண்ணனு சாதன நிறுவனங்கள் பழுதான பொருட்களைத் திரும்பப் பெற Reverse Logistics வைத்திருப்பது போல தமிழ்ப் பதிப்பகங்களும் ஆரம்பிக்கலாம். பூமணியின் வெக்கை, பிறகு, கிழிசல் செட்டாக வாங்கினேன். பொய்த்தேவு (க.நா.சு.) இரண்டு விரல் தட்டச்சு (அசோகமித்திரன்), காதுகள் (எம்.வி.வெங்கட்ராம்) காலச்சுவடில் வாங்கிய மற்ற புத்தகங்கள். தி.ஜானகிராமன் சிறுகதைகள் முழுத்தொகுப்பு ரொம்ப யோசித்துவிட்டு வாங்கவில்லை. அநேகமாக நாளைக்கு வாங்குவேன்.

தமிழினியில் வாங்கியவை கிருஷ்ணப்பருந்து (ஆ மாதவன்), நிறைசூலி (மகுடேசுவரன் கவிதை). 

இதற்குள் மதியம் 1 மணி ஆகி கூட்டம் வரத் துவங்கியதால் வீடு திரும்பிவிட்டேன். புத்தகங்களைத் தூக்கிக் கொண்டு வாகன நிறுத்துமிடம் வரக் கொஞ்சம் கஷ்டமாகத் தான் இருக்கிறது. நாளை, நாளை மறுநாள் நல்ல கூட்டம் இருக்கும். காலையிலேயே சென்றுவிடுதல் நலம்.

ஒரு இனிய ஞாயிறு மதியம்

"ஏய், என்ன பண்ணிட்டிருக்க."

"ஒண்ணும் இல்ல. ஞாயித்துக்கிழமை மத்தியானம், வெட்டியா தான் இருக்கேன். நீ எங்க இருக்க"

"இங்க விண்ட்ஸர் வரைக்கும் சும்மா வந்தோம். Eton Antique book shop ன்னு ஒரு கடை பாத்தேன். அதான் உனக்கு எதுவும் வாங்கனுமான்னு ஃபோன் பண்ணேன்”

“Antique ன்னா அதிக விலை சொல்வானே.”

“இல்லை 20,30 பவுண்ட்ல எல்லாம் இருக்குது. சார்லஸ் டிக்கன்ஸ் கலெக்‌ஷன், இல்லஸ்ட்ரேட்டட் ஷெர்லக் ஹோல்ம்ஸ். என் colleague கூட Complete works of William Shakespeare 24 பவுண்டுக்கு வாங்கினாரு. 100 வருஷம் முன்னாடி ஸ்கூல்ல பிரைஸ் கொடுத்தது”

“அத எடுத்துக்கோ. 37 டிராமாவும் இருக்கான்னு பாரு. ஜார்ஜ் ஓர்வெல் எழுதின Animal Farm, 1984, ஜேம்ஸ் ஜாய்ஸ் எழுதின Ulysses, Finnegan's Wake இருந்தா வாங்கு”

சற்று நேரம் கழித்து

“அவன் கிட்டே கேட்டேன். ஓர்வெல் எல்லாம் வந்த அன்னிக்கே வித்துடுமாம்.”

“சரி, ஜேம்ஸ் ஜாய்ஸ்”

“அவன் என்ன கேவலமா பாத்துட்டு அதெல்லாம் படிக்கறது ரொம்ப கஷ்டம், அதுவும் Finnegan's Wake வாய்ப்பே இல்லன்னுட்டான். அவன் கிட்ட காப்பி இல்லையாம். அவனே வேற யார்கிட்டயோ ரொம்ப நாளா கேட்டுகிட்டு இருக்கானாம்.”

“நீ அவன் கிட்ட Dubliners படிச்சிருக்கேன் போடான்னு சொல்லியிருக்கனும்.  வேற என்ன இருக்கு அங்க”

“வின்ஸ்டன் சர்ச்சில் எழுதின World War II : Complete set இருக்கு”

“அது ஒரு வால்யூம் படிச்சிருக்கேன், ரொம்ப போர் அடிக்கும். வேற”

“Fall of Roman Empire. அது படிப்பியா?”

“அய்யோ. I have been waiting for it. கிண்டில்ல இலவசமா டவுன்லோட் பண்ணேன். ரெண்டாவது வால்யூம் இல்ல. அதுனால தொடர்ச்சி இல்லாம மூணாவது வால்யூம் பாதிலயே நிப்பாட்டிட்டேன். “

“ஆனா 195 பவுண்ட் போட்டிருக்கான், வாங்கவா?”

“195 ரொம்ப அதிகம். சரி வேணாம் விட்டுடு.”

“இரு, இரு. அதே ரெண்டு வால்யூம்ல 1952ல பப்ளிஷ் பண்ண வேற காப்பி இருக்கு. 38 பவுண்டு தான்”

“உடனே வாங்கிடு.”

Books read in 2014: 10-14

10. The Dharma Bums - Jack Kerouac
      This is Jack Kerouac's book about trying to follow the teachings of Buddha while living as a beatnik. Kerouac was the original beatnik - his book On the Road is considered the Beatnik Bible. This book is a mellowed down Kerouac in West Coast in the company of his poet friend and trying to live simple. There is no story, it is just a recording of his time spent as a wandering Buddhist. Behind the simpleness lies well honed craft, it isn't easy to hold the reader's attention while nothing happens in the story. The Matterhorn mountain hype is easily the best part of the book. Inf you have midlife blues, avoid this book. As the truck driver who gives him a ride says 

" there's sumpthin so darned sensible about 'em. Here I am killing myself drivin this rig back and forth from Ohio to L.A. and I make more money than you ever had in your whole life as a hobo, but you're the one who enjoys life and not only that but you do it without workin or a whole lot of money. Now who's smart, you or me?"

11. Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury


      This is one of the classics I have heard about for a long time, but read it only now. I wasn't prepared for the shock that this book gave me. It is set in a future where the fire department's sole job is to get rid of the books in the world by burning them. The novel starts with a bang, "It was a pleasure to burn". One of the firemen, Guy Montag, starts secreting books that he is supposed to burn, because he is intrigued by people who prefer to burn with the books rather than part with them. It is a scary world, that Bradbury portrays - people enamored with wall to wall televisions in which serials run 24 hours a day. He wrote this is 1950s. Burning the books isn't the scary part. The real scary part is stuffing people with peace and happines so that they don't want to read the books and think. As the fire chief Beatty explains to Montag 

 "Peace, Montag. Give the people contests they win by remembering the words to more popular songs or the names of the state capitals or how much corn Iowa grew last year. Cram them full of non-combustible data, chock them so damned full of "facts" they feel stuffed, but absolutely "brilliant" with information. Then they'll feel they're thinking, they'll get a sense of motion without moving. And they'll be happy, because facts of that sort don't change. Don't give them any slippery stuff like philosophy or sociology to tie things up with. That way lies melancholy"

Montag escapes the city and joins up with a rebel group each of whom has memorized some part of a book so that they are the last ones in the world to know that book. It is a scary book, and an absolute must read.

12. Sophie's Choice - William Styron
      I picked this book up at random (also because it was listed in the best sellers and available for Rs. 6.00 in Kindle). Only later did I know that this was made into a movie with Meryl Streep winning an Oscar for her performance as Sophie. This book brings together three disparate characters -Stingo, a twenty two year old struggling writer from South; Nathan, a brilliant New York Jew who claims to be a researcher with Pfizer and is a tinder box of emotions; Sophie, a Polish Auschwitz survivor - in post war New York. Stingo is attracted to Sophie, but suppresses it when he find Nathan and Sophie in a passionate relationship. There are two parts to the novel - the roller coaster relationship of Sophie and Nathan and the Auschwitz portions. These are interspersed with each other so the reader has to make mental adjustments regularly. 

Styron doesn't get into the sickening details of the horrors of Auschwitz, but the evil of the choice Sophie is presented is far more sickening than any other torture. It is a riveting story. The narrator learns Sophie's story in small bits and pieces, so there is a shock value when the earlier assumptions are shown to be wrong because Sophie held back some crucial information. The drawback is the meandering writing style of Styron. The first 10% of the book is about Stingo's time in McGrawHill publishing house as manuscript reader and his getting fired. This is interesting but has no relevance to the story at all. Then there is another 30 pages of Stingo trying to get into bed with Lesley Lapidus, a friend of Nathan, which ends up in an unexpected climax (pun intended). However this portion does give us a great phrase "unearned unhappiness" about hipster angst.


13. The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire: Vol 1 - Edward Gibbon
      It was a pleasant surprise to find  this a easy read. Written in 1776, about the decline of the Romain empire from the period of Augustus onwards, I expected this to be a dreary book. But Gibbon's style is sharp and witty. It might be hard to believe, but this is a page turner. The sentences are long, but that is something you can bear with. This volume ends with the famous chapter on the growth of early Christian religion and Church. Gibbon writes some unpalatable truths as a historian and not as a Christian and no wonder he was pilloried by the Church for it. Reading through the list of Roman emperors was a little bit tricky as one had to remember varius 'us'es Tiberius, Commodus, Claudius and so on. I had to go back and forth a lot. Having read Robert Graves' "I Claudius" some time back helped in getting a grasp of the chronology. There are 6 Volumes, hope to finish them by this year end.


14. கலிங்கத்துப் பரணி - ஜெயங்கொண்டார் (முனைவர் ப.சரவணன் உரை)
      Kalingathu p Parani is a classic of Tamil literature, written in 12th Century AD. Parani is a genre in Tamil literature celebrating the heroic deeds of a King or a warrior. Kalingathu p Parani is written praising Kulothunga Chola I's victory over the Kalinga King in the Kalinga War. The book is sensual and gory in equal parts. The poet calls the women who are asleep after a night of carnal pleasure to open their doors and hear about the valor of the Chola army under Kulothunga I's general Karunakara Thondaiman. Then he details about the history of the Chola dynasty, the success of Kulothunga I, circumstances leading to the Kalinga war and gory details of the war field. It ends with demons partaking a great feast in the war field eating the dead bodies of the warriors, horses and elephants after submitting it to Goddess Kali(கூழ் அடுதல்). 

Dr. Saravanan's Tamil commentary is easy to read. He gives meaning of individual words, then the explanation of the stanza and relevant information. I have read his commentary on Silapathikaram and was impressed. He continues that rich form in this too. This book is a must read for Tamils who have an interest in their history.

Books read in 2014 : 1-9

1) கரும்புனல் - ராம்சுரேஷ் . Good one. Wrote a review in my blog.

2) புத்ர - லா.ச.ரா
La.Sa.Ra.'s writing is addictive. Once you are trapped in his words, there is no way out. This novel has his standard tropes - strong women, weak men, mystical experiences. One of his best.

3) Stalin's General: The Life of Georgy Zhukov - Geoffrey Roberts
For a self confessed WWII enthusiast, I had read very little about the Eastern Front. This biography of Zhukov filled that gap. I was surprised to know that the Russians lost 1.5 million men in WWII and a significant percent of them were shot by Russian Army while deserting or for indiscipline. More than the WWII portions, Zhukov's tribulations in post war USSR made interesting reading.

4) Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman - James Gleick
An absolute must read for a Feynman fan boy. This isn't a hagiography. Gleick presents Feynman with his faults. There is a lot of physics in this book (can't help when your subject was one of the century's greatest physicists) but I could get a broad understanding of it with my Engineering College level Physics. Path Integrals and Quantum stuff I pretended to understand. Biggest take away from the book - When attempting to solve a problem, start with as little assumptions as possible.

5) Roosevelt:The Lion and the fox
My knowledge of FDR was from the time of his Polio attack up to his 4th term as US President. This book covers a lot of ground about his early years in Politics. At the end of it, I was cleared of a lot of misconceptions and FDR became just another politician. As a Supreme Court Judge remarks in the book "Second rate intellect but a First rate temperament".

6) The Confession - John Grisham
A mistake. In my defense, this was forced upon me.

7) Norwegian Wood - Haruki Murakami
An arresting novel. Completely different from Kafka on the shore. You can see it as a coming off age novel, but it is much more than that. The novel traces a couple of years in the life of a 19 year old college student in 1969 Japan. It is a love story that pains your heart. Thanks to the novel, I learned that Norwegian Wood is a famous Beatles song. Hearing the song after reading the novel, it is mesmerizing to see how the 5 stanza song and the novel complement each other.

8) The Great Gatsby - Scott Fitzgerald
This was a re read. Murakami keeps referring to Gatsby in Norwegian Wood often. That made me go back to this novel. What is left untold is as important as what is told in this novel. Murakami rates this as the important novel of his life and translated this to Japanese. At the heart of the novel is the age old dilemma - selling your soul to achieve an ideal which turns out to be made of dust instead of gold.

9) The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
This was the first novel of Wilde I read apart from his quotes. Then I found out that this was the only novel he wrote (other than poems, plays and journalism). What can I say? The wit, the philosophical questions - this novel hasn't dated a bit.

Narcopolis - Jeet Thayil

Narcopolis is unlike any novel I have read so far. It is a loosely structured story of a group of addicts in Bombay over two decades. But calling it just a story of addicts doesn't do justice to the novel. It is an engrossing book about a side of Bombay that most of us rarely ever interact with.

Through the opium dens and red light districts, Jeet Thayil paints a portrait of Bombay and how it changes over the decades from1970s to 1990s. Bombay is an important character in the novel, along with Rashid the opium den owner, Dimple the eunuch, Mr. Lee the China man and Rumi the man with a hammer.

Narcopolis isn't an easy read. The reader has to put in effort, to follow the meandering sentences, to overcome the revulsion of graphic description of sex and violence, to keep oneself sober in the opium filled pages of the novel. However difficult it is, the book doesn't let you abandon it half way through. There is a strange pull that defies explanation.

Right in the middle of all the violence one is treated to a passage that is poetic. The excursions of Mr. Lee and Dimple to Chowpatty beach is one example. Humor strikes out where it is least expected. The crowd waiting in a queue for the African drug courier was particularly hilarious. Rumi reflects "not even in LA, where, believe me, weird things happen on a daily basis, not even there did I wait in line for a Negro to shit"

Narcopolis is a good roller coaster  ride, if you are adventurous enough to get on to it.

Amazon link

Karenina in Kindle

For a long time I resisted the temptation to buy a Kindle. I called myself a luddite, and that I loved the paper books too much to settle for electronic ones. But the new Kindle Paperwhite made me a convert. One look at the picture and I decided I had to buy it. However it wasn't available for sale in India. So I turned to Lazygeek, who inspired me to start blogging. He is in Seattle now. I asked him to buy one for me and send it across. He bought it in December, but I had to wait till March for some one to bring it to India. I am floored is to say the least about it. No other gadget I bought has made me so giddy with pleasure.

I am yet to load up new books from the Amazon store. I am loading it with the classics that I have always wanted to read but never did. First up is Tolstoy's Anna Karenina (Constance Garnett's translation). The prblem with the paper version of the classics is their sheer size puts you off. But an ebook reader removes the fear of the size. (Oh, does that sentence read awkward or what?). I have completed part one of the eight part novel and it is easy going so far. I really love his prose. Only now did I learn that this novel was serialized in a magazine, which explains the interesting hooks at the end of each chapter.

For some one who started reading English literature pretty late, my initial introductions came from Tamil novels. The first time I read about Jonathan Livingston Seagull was in one of Sujatha's serialized stories where the heroine rides a bike jumping red light at all the signals in Mount Road wanting to "soar away like Jonathan Livingston Seagull, up up and above". That description stuck with me and I searched and found the book when I could. Similarly the first time I read about Anna Karennina was in Balakumaran's Karaiyora Mudhalaigal where Swapna says that her husband asked what she wanted for her anniversary / birthday  she said Anna Karenina and her husband searched all the saree shops in Chennai for that saree. It made an impression and I always wanted to read Anna Karenina. Now finally, thank to Kindle I am reading it. Next up is another monster - James Joyce's Ulysses.

My top ten Tamil Novels

This year's Chennai Book Fair is being held at YMCA Nandanam from January 11-23. BAPASI waited till I moved out of Alwarpet to bring the book fair to Nandanam. At this time I thought I will put up a list of my top ten Tamil Novels. Usual disclaimers - this is my list based on the novels I have read, I haven't read a lot of published writers, if you feel this list is awful go ahead and put up your own list.

புயலிலே ஒரு தோணி - ப. சிங்காரம்   Tamil Review  Buy it here

விஷ்ணுபுரம் - ஜெயமோகன் 

கொற்றவை - ஜெயமோகன்

ஜே.ஜே. சில குறிப்புகள் - சுந்தர ராமசாமி

ஆழி சூழ் உலகு - ஜோ.டி.க்ரூஸ்

கூகை - சோ. தருமன்

என் பெயர் ராமசேஷன் - ஆதவன்

மோகமுள் - தி. ஜானகிராமன்

சாய்வு நாற்காலி - தோப்பில் முகமது மீரான்

18வது அட்சயக் கோடு - அசோகமித்திரன்

I have read கி.ராஜநாராயணன் (amusing story teller), நகுலன் (he requires a lot of hard work to read and is interesting but his நவீனன் டரிக் குறிப்பு didn't give a complete experience as a novel), நாஞ்சில் நாடன் (If I rate short story writers, he will undoubtedly be at the very top but not as a novelist), எஸ்.ராமகிருஷ்ணன் (only உபபாண்டவம் which didn't impress me much though it had some great moments), வண்ணநிலவன் (கடல் புரத்தில், கம்பா நதி, காலம் - all delightful short novels, was really hard to leave out his novels in the list) இரா.முருகன் (அரசூர் வம்சம் was a good read) before compiling this list.

I plan to read the older generation writers'  novels this year க.நா.சு (அவதூதர்), எம்.வி.வி. (காதுகள்) கரிச்சான் குஞ்சு (பசித்த மானுடம்) so may be this list will change. I haven't read சாரு நிவேதிதா, இமையம், கோபிகிருஷ்ணன் and many others. So, do you have a list to share?

The Emperor of All Maladies - Siddhartha Mukherjee

Cancer, the very word strikes fear in the hearts of those who hear it. My fixation with Cancer started when I was on the verge of being a cancer patient. I wrote about it here.  There were a couple of distant relatives who passed away due to cancer, though I wasn't affected much. Then there was Lalita Mukherjee. It was with her death that I truly felt the impact of the disease.

Siddhartha Mukherjee, an oncologist by profession understands this fear. It is a tough profession, to watch most of your patients die. He wrote "The Emperor of All Maladies" out of the notes he wrote as a practicing oncologist.

It is difficult to slot this book. Siddhartha Mukherjee reaches into history, literature and social studies to present a complete picture of Cancer. Interspersed with anecdotes about his patients, it makes a interesting read. He details the initial struggles by doctors to understand the disease. Some thought of it as caused by black bile, some thought it could be cut out of the body by surgery. He then leads us into the War against Cancer, how it went down the wrong path and the course corrections.The chapter on Cigarettes and how the manufacturers tried to stall the warnings make for chilling reading, especially when the same game is being played out in Asian countries.

The later part of the book has details about the current developments in cancer cure. This chapter with DNA - RNA and chemical reactions might tax the reader a little. However, even I, whose last class in Biology was in High School, was able to understand it. He leaves the reader in a positive frame of mind writing about the new drugs that have increased the life span of cancer patients.

For me, what stood out was Mukherjee's empathy with the patients. He gently chides some of the doctors who treat only the disease without understanding how it affects the patients. He writes about palliative care and how it enables terminally ill patients to die with dignity.

If any one of you wants to understand about Cancer, this is the book to read.

Tamarind City - Bishwanath Ghosh

The biggest obstacle for any one wanting to write about Madras / Chennai is the Madras Man S.Muthiah. His articles and books on Madras and its history are so comprehensive that they make one wonder what more is there to write. 

Bishwanath Ghosh side steps this problem right at the outset. As he says in the foreword, this is not a complete guide to Chennai. Ghosh makes his book a series of anecdotes interspersed with various personalities who are part of  Chennai. There is an obligatory article about Carnatic music season, but there are surprises too. From sexologists to trans-sexuals to dalit activists to actress Saroja Devi, there is a varied bunch of people in this book whom you will not find in any book written about Chennai. Ghosh's take on Chennai is not sentimental as Muthiah (on Marina beach, it is hard to imagine S Muthiah writing about kaikku anju, vaikku patthu.), nor irreverent like every other Amit.

Being an outsider to the city, he looks at it wondrously and his love for the city is evident from the sensitivity he brings to each topic. For citizens of Chennai, you may not learn anything new about your city from this book, but you will see it through an outsider's eye in a different perspective. Ghosh's first book Chai Chai was a disappointment for me, but with this book he won me over completely.

Chennai Book Fair 2012

I spent just over 1 hour in this year's Chennai Book Fair, that too with the kids in tow. I knew that I will not be able to browse much, hence had zeroed in on the books I wanted to buy and the publishers to visit. This is the list of books I bought

1. வண்ணநிலவன் கதைகள் - முழுத் தொகுப்பு
2. கருக்கு - பாமா
3. தேய்பிறை இரவுகளின் கதைகள் கீரனூர் ஜாகிர் ராஜா- (impulsive purchase of the year)
4. லா.ச.ரா கதைகள் - 3ன் தொகுதி
5. ஒன்றுக்கும் உதவாதவன் - அ முத்துலிங்கம்

Nanjil Nadan gets Sahitya Akademi award

I was glad to hear that Nanjil Nadan is the Sahitya Akademi award winner in Tamil this year. As with any award given by the Government there have been some strange choices over the years. This year however the Akademi has chosen the right person.

Nanjil's short stories are the product of his land. Not for him the magical realism wave that swept Tamil literature in the 80s or the post modernism of 90s. He is like the village story teller, recounting tales of his travel. His stories are based on simple day to day events, but his writing is like alchemy that transforms these plain events into universal truths.

Of all the serious writers in Tamil today, he is the one of the easiest to read. (Asokamithran is the other name that comes to mind). Nanjil's forte is short story. His novels read like an extension of his stories. Reading his short story collection is like reading his biography - starting from Nagercoil, working as a travelling sales man in Mumbai and then the move to Coimbatore to settle down.

A real tribute to him would be to get more readers to read him. So if any Tamil reader of this blog is interested, I can lend my copy of Nanjil's short story collection for a week.

My previous posts on Nanjil Nadan

Tamil writers and Spirits

The idea for this post came to me when tasting Glen Fiddich for the first time. It felt profound, as does any thought while under the influence of alcohol.

First come the Beer writers - with lots of fizz, bubbly and gregarious. They are fun to have on a hot summer afternoon and don't tax you much. Kalki is the doyen of this kind of writers, like Kingfisher (I am sticking only to Indian beers). Then there are Rajeshkumars of the world, godawful but they sell a lot. Like Haywards 5000.

The IMFL (Indian made Foreigh Liquors) writers - pretending to be the real stuff, falling short and found out after repeated tasting. I put Balakumaran, Stella Bruce and others in this category.

The Toddy writers - Nanjil Nadan and Ki Rajaranayanan are my choices. They are honest and their earthly flavor leaves you wanting more.

The Blended Scotch whiskey writers - they are influenced and inspired by a variety of sources, but the final mix has their indelible stamp. Sujata makes this category his own.

The Single Malt writers - each one has a unique taste, and they aren't easy to like. They require the consumer to put in efforts to appreciate their quality. They are to be taken in small sips. Let their taste linger and engulf your being and they will take you to another level. I will put Pudumai Pithan, Thi Ja, La Sa Ra, Sundara Ramaswamy (his two novels and poems alone), Jeyamohan, Pa Singaram (he wrote one and a half novels, but that was enough for him to top this category).

Where does that leave my favorite writer Asoka Mithran? He is like the finest of vodkas, colorless, odorless, transparent but he pulls you into his orbit without you even recognising it. You start noticing the black humor, the irony, the satire - all done without any dazzle.

P.S. - I haven't included Charu Nivedita, S Ramakrishnan and many others as I haven't read much of their fiction. This is a list of those writers whom I have read.

Silappathigaaram - Amits vs Madrasis, 2000 years ago

I have been reading Silapathikaram, the greatest tamil epic poetry. All tamil students know the outline of the epic as it is part of the school curriculum and common reference point whenever there is a discussion on Tamil Culture.

However, once you look beyond the fantastic story, the poetry of Ilango Adigal captivates you. Sadly, it took me 35 years to read the epic in full. The epic poetry with commentary written by Dr. Saravanan is published by Sandhya Publishers (044-24896979). He has put in years of efforts to read through the original and the various commentaries written so far. I will try to translate a few of the poems in this blog.

I knew much of what happens till Kannagi burns Madurai. I was only vaguely aware of what happens next - Cheran Senguttuvan conquered kings up north and made them carry stones from Himalayas to erect a statue of Kannagi. Vanji Kaandam details of his preparations to wage war and how he was like death personified for the opposing kings. I especially liked this poem. As Senguttuvan moves north, he first meets an emissary from an allied king. The emissary says

வட திசை மருங்கின் வானவன் பெயர்வது
கடவுள் எழுத ஓர் கற்கேஆயின்
ஓங்கிய இமையத்துக் கல் கால் கொண்டு
வீங்கு நீர்க் கங்கை நீர்ப்படை செய்து - ஆங்கு
யாம் தரும் ஆற்றலம்

"If the reason for your highness venturing north is to get a stone for your goddess, our king will be pleased to select the best of stones from the Himalayas and have it sanctified by washing it in Ganges and send it to you"

to which Senguttuvan replies

பாலகுமரன் மக்கள் மற்று அவர்
காவா நாவின் கனகனும் விசயனும்
விருந்தின் மன்னர் - தம்மொடும் கூடி
அருந்தமிழ் ஆற்றல் அறிந்திலர் - ஆங்கு என
கூற்றக் கொண்டிச் சேனை செல்வது

(This is my translation in current lingo. Traditionalists are welcome to take offence).
"That isn't the only reason. Up north, those amits (Kanagan & Vijayan), while boozing with their buddies, made fun of our tamil bravery. It is to put the fear of death in those loose tongued morons that I am waging war on them."

Somethings never change.

Author vs Author putdowns

In Twitter I found this link to the 50 best author vs author putdowns. The best one was

Tom Wolfe's A Man in Full, according to Norman Mailer (1998)

The book has gas and runs out of gas, fills up again, goes dry. It is a 742-page work that reads as if it is fifteen hundred pages long....

At certain points, reading the work can even be said to resemble the act of making love to a three-hundred pound woman. Once she gets on top, it's over. Fall in love, or be asphyxiated. So you read and you grab and you even find delight in some of these mounds of material. Yet all the while you resist -- how you resist! -- letting three hundred pounds take you over.

If only some one creates such a list for Tamil Literature. The hottest show in town right now is Jeyamohan vs Charu Nivedita. A year back there was S Ramakrishnan's outburst against his erstwhile friend Venkatesan's Kaval KOttam novel, calling it a 1000 page absurdity (ஆயிரம் பக்க அபத்தம்). In the collection of Asokamithran's writing I read his subtle put down of Sujatha. Critic Venkat Saminathan too is well known for his acerbic reviews of Tamil literature. Any one interested in preparing a collection of literary spats?

Books

The Dork Trilogy - Sidin Vadukut

I have been a regular reader of his blog since the Travails post. So I knew what to expect, still he managed to surprise me. Dork tracks the 1st year of Robin "Einstein" Varghese as Management Consultant in a shady consultancy firm, Dufresne Partners. It is a laugh a minute book, with Einstein getting into impossible situations and getting out of them with implausible solutions. If you like college humour kind of books, you should definitely read this.

Chai Chai - Bishwanath Gosh

I met Gosh once when we were part of Chennai Metblogs. I have been a fan of his writing style, both in his blog and his Sunday Spin column in Indian Express. So it was with a lot of expectation I picked up his book - a travelogue about the railway junctions that most of us pass through and the small towns behind them. It was a great premise for a travelogue. I was disappointed with the inconsistency of his writing. His write up on Itarsi and Shoranur were good, but Arakkonam and Guntakal felt like labored writing. Also the repetitive pattern of settling in a lodge and visiting the shady bars started to get boring. I expect a good travelogue writer not to pass judgement on the characters he meets. So when I read this sentence on his meeting a prostitute, "People generally spend one hour with a human being who is a prostitute. I had spent one hour with a prostitute who was a human being" (I type from memory, I don't have the book with me right now) it was jarring to say the least. Sorry BG, I sincerely wanted to like the book, but couldn't.

This and That

Went to the Sujatha remembrance meeting held by bloggers in Marina Beach. I knew only Prakash and Badri. Era. Murukan,Venkatraman and Dr. Bruno were some of the others I could identify. The meeting was agendaless, so there was more general talk than about Sujatha's writing. Venkatraman was critical about Sujatha's science articles. Badri talked about the irrelevance of metred poetry in modern Tamil literature and got into a serious discussion with Srikanth on aesthetics and purpose of poetry. My contribution was to mention that Sujatha's earlier writing in Kanayaali were more powerful than his later day Kattradhum Pettradhum. My next point silenced the group for a few moments - that Sujatha's articles were laced with a sort of condescending humor (is that the correct word for அலட்சியம்?) towards his readers. Some agreed with me, and those who didn't agree stared at me. In between all this the discussion veered from Dosais in Vaishnavite temples to Tho. Paramasivan's cultural studies to Kamalhassan's Vikram. As my family was waiting nearby, I left the meeting after an hour.

When talking about Sujatha, can one miss his ardent fan Lazy Geek? He has been trying his hand in Tamil short stories. His recent short story has come out really well.

CC is on a nostalgia trip with Ilayaraja's songs. He had translated a couplet from the வெள்ளைப் புறா ஒன்று song and asked me how I would have done it. Here is my version

நீயும் நானும் சேர்ந்த போது கோடை கூட மார்கழி...
பிரிந்த பின்பு பூவும் என்னை சுடுவதென்ன காதலி...
துடுப்பிழந்ததும் காதல் ஓடம்
திசை மறந்தது பைங்கிளி..
போகும் வழி நூறானதே... கண்ணீரினால் சேறானதே..
இல்லாத உறவுக்கு நான் செய்யும் அபிஷேகம்..


When we were together, even summer was pleasant as spring
My love, now that we're apart, even the blossoms sting.
Our coracle of love lost its oar
and spun away, sweetheart.
The way ahead is lost to me
My tears make it murky.
These tears are my consecration,
of our love that is no more.

Why bother?

Why do I write about Tamil literature in English? It sounds pointless to review a Tamil novel in English, when there aren't translations available.

One reason is I assume that a majority of my blog readers(whose numbers must be in early teens if I am right) are English speaking Tamils, who have hardly read anything in Tamil other than the mass magazines. If I am able to get atleast a few of them interested in Tamil contemporary literature (NOT Ponniyin Selvan, Thank You), I feel that I have achieved my objective.

However reviewing a Tamil novel in English is difficult. It is like trying to explain Madras summers to some one in Arctic. I find that my reviews of Tamil novels are hardly more than cliches strung together. Well known Tamil critic Venkat Swaminathan used to write English reviews of Tamil novels in Delhi based literary magazine Thought in 1960s and 70s. At that time his review was awaited eagerly by Tamil writers of that era as he was ruthless in his views. I wonder if any collection of those reviews are available.

Even among Tamil bloggers, blogs dedicated to book reviews are very few. Suresh Kannan's blog is one of my regular haunts, but he writes more about movies than books. One of my latest finds is this blogger who reviews contemporary Tamil literature extensively. If you are interested in contemporary Tamil literature, you should subscribe to her RSS feeds.

Aazhi Soozh Ulagu - Joe De Cruz

Aazhi Soozh Ulagu (ஆழி சூழ் உலகு) by Joe De Cruz is one of the important Tamil novels in recent times.

The story is set in one of the fishing hamlets of the south India, just below Tiruchendur. The novel starts with three fishermen lost in the seas in 1983. Then it switches back to 1933 and moves towards 1983, with interludes about the lost fishermen. Though the local dialect proves to be difficult in the beginning, the novelist succeeds in getting us overcome this as the story moves on.

The main difference between this novel and others that have covered the same locale, like Kadalpurathil by Vannanilavan, is the sea. Vanna nilavan's novel focused more on the shore, with sea as the background. In this novel, the sea becomes one of the important characters of the novel. Joe De Cruz's description of whale hunting in a catamaran rivals that of Hemingway's Old Man and the Sea.

The characters that populate the novel have all the human frailties and are well sketched. The Paravar community's characteristics and their attitude towards life are brought out with a good economy of words. The novel deals with their religion, their exploitation by the Catholic priests and the inland people, the shift of economic power from Paravars to Nadars in Tuticorin - all as part of the plot. Through out all this, the sea is there with them, forever nurturing life and taking life. The story is brought to a close when amongst the three fishermen struggling for life, the youngest one survives and is found by a passing ship.

This is one of the most important novels in Tamil in recent times. If you accept that a good novelist is a chronicler of his people and time, then do not miss this.

You can buy it online here.

Chennai Book Fair 2010

This year the book fair was advanced to 30th Decemeber - 10th Jan, from its regular schedule during Pongal. The scheduling of Sangamam, the street festival during Pongal might have been the reason. This new schedule meant I could visit only the first three days of the book fair.

This year I played safe and went early in the day to avoid the crowds. There was a marked absence of spiritual peddlers this year. These are the books I bought this year.

1. ஜெயமோகன் - காடு, சிறுகதைத் தொகுப்பு, இன்று பெற்றவை

2. இரா.முருகன் அரசூர் வம்சம்

3. தேவதேவன் - கவிதைகள் முழுத் தொகுப்பு

4. நகுலன் - நவீனன் டைரி

5. மனுஷ்யபுத்திரன் - அதீதத்தின் ருசி

6. நாஞ்சில் நாடன் - என்பிலதனை வெயில் காயும், சதுரங்கக் குதிரைகள்

7. ஜோ டி குரூஸ் - ஆழி சூழ் உலகு

8. லா.ச.ரா - அபிதா

9. இந்திரா பார்த்தசாரதி - வேதபுரத்து வியாபாரிகள்

Books to read in 2010

It is the time of lists. Instead of looking back at the best and worst of '09, let me try to put down a list of books I want to read in 2010. My reading habit has always been haphazard. I read whatever I can lay my hands on. It is only in the last few years have I started looking out for specific books.

Tamil books I want to read in 2010:

ஜெயமோகன் - ரப்பர், காடு, கொற்றவை, சிறுகதைத் தொகுப்பு. (His novel Vishnupuram was the best I read in 2009, I am almost a fanboy now. Have to write a post on the novel and a visit to Thiruvattar temple after reading the novel.)

நாஞ்சில் நாடன் - தலைகீழ் விகிதங்கள் (I have read his collection of short stories and was able to relate to them at a personal level. This is supposed to be his best novel)

ஜி.நாகராஜன் - குறத்தி முடுக்கு (Have read a lot about him, but haven't read him S.Ramakrishnan's write up on this novel made me add it to this list).

சு. வெங்கடேசன் - காவல் கோட்டம் (This is a 1000 page wrist breaker. S Ramakrishnan lambasted it as a 1000 page absurdity, Jeyamohan considered it as one of the great historical novels in Tamil, sort of Tamil's first War and Peace. With such conflicting reviews, my interest was piqued)

எஸ். ராமகிருஷ்ணன் - யாமம் (Though I am regular reader of his blog, I haven't read much of S Ramakrishnan's fiction other than a few short stories. So want to start with this novel. An added bonus is that it is about the history of Madras)

தேவதேவன் - கவிதைகள் (I have read a few of his poems and read a lot about him by Jeyamohan. So this is the poetry book of the year I am planning. He is from Tuticorin too, though I haven't met him. Am wondering how he could write such one-with-nature poems living in this dry and dirty town.)

ஜோ டி க்ரூஸ் - ஆழி சூழ் உலகு (Have heard a lot about this novel. Last two years have brought me in close contact with the fishing community, about whom this novel is.)

Completing the above list will take some time as some of them are 1000 page wrist breakers. Hope to finish them by Jan 2011.

As far as English is concerned, I am far removed from the contemporary scene. There are more than enough classics that I am yet to read. I plan to read Amitav Ghosh's early novels and try my hand again at Ulysses.

The idea for this post came from here.