Saturday, February 1, 2014, 2:00 PM, San Leandro Main Library

The Big Read 2014

Maharaja's turban ornament.

Last Saturday, January 25, 2014, the San Leandro Main Library hosted "Passport to India," the kickoff event for this year's Big Read. We were treated to a slide show about the influence of the maharajas in India's art and culture, which was presented by Kalpana Desai from the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. The presentation was followed by samples of traditional Indian sweets and savory snacks and a display of typical spices of Indian cuisine courtesy of Santos Spice Products of San Leandro. There were also demonstrations of henna tattooing, of sari tying, and of the board game Pachisi, the national board game of India. More news about this year's events can be found at the Big Read Blog.

 

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

Saturday's Readers Roundtable group will be the first of the book discussion groups for this year's Big Read selection, The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri.This is the story of a first-generation Bengali immigrant family and was also the selection of the month for the Readers Roundtable in May of 2005. The handout material for the Big Read references a 2003 "Fresh Air" interview with Jhumpa Lahiri, which can be found here.

The Namesake was also made into a movie in 2006, directed by Mira Nair and starring Kal Penn (born Kalpen Suresh Modi), who also starred as "Kumar" in the "Harold and Kumar" movies and as "Dr. Lawrence Kutner," for two seasons of the television series "House."

 

Other Books about the Immigrant Experience

In the United States, one of the recurrent themes of popular literature is that of the struggles of immigrants and their children. The two I remember best were recommended to me by my mother.

• Anything Can Happen by George and Helen Papashvili: The very funny semi-autobiographical account of the adventures of a young Georgian immigrant who arrives in the US following his service in the Tsar's army during World War I.
• Mama's Bank Account by Kathryn Forbes: This account of growing up within the Norwegian community of San Francisco formed the basis for the movie "I Remember Mama."

I vaguely remember a book I read as a teenager about a family of three sisters from one of the Baltic states who find themselves in the US as "displaced persons" following World War II, but I don't remember the title, and Google isn't helping me.

You probably have your own favorites, and your recommendations will be welcome in the comments.

Of All Authors, Why Nikolai Gogol and "The Overcoat"?

Last week, Sherryl and I listened to a recording of "The Overcoat," the short story by Nikolai Gogol that Ashoke Ganguli was reading at the time of his train accident. You can find the recording on YouTube in two parts, Part 1 and Part 2. It is also available in a PDF version from Project Gutenberg. We were struck by the part beginning in the third paragraph when Gogol explains how his ill-fated protagonist received his bizarre name.

His family name was Bashmatchkin. This name is evidently derived from “bashmak” (shoe); but when, at what time, and in what manner, is not known. His father and grandfather, and all the Bashmatchkins, always wore boots, which only had new heels two or three times a year. His name was Akakiy Akakievitch. It may strike the reader as rather singular and far-fetched, but he may rest assured that it was by no means far-fetched, and that the circumstances were such that it would have been impossible to give him any other.

This is how it came about.

Akakiy Akakievitch was born, if my memory fails me not, in the evening of the 23rd of March. His mother, the wife of a Government official and a very fine woman, made all due arrangements for having the child baptised. She was lying on the bed opposite the door; on her right stood the godfather, Ivan Ivanovitch Eroshkin, a most estimable man, who served as presiding officer of the senate, while the godmother, Anna Semenovna Byelobrushkova, the wife of an officer of the quarter, and a woman of rare virtues. They offered the mother her choice of three names, Mokiya, Sossiya, or that the child should be called after the martyr Khozdazat. “No,” said the good woman, “all those names are poor.” In order to please her, they opened the calendar to another place; three more names appeared, Triphiliy, Dula, and Varakhasiy. “This is a judgment,” said the old woman. “What names! I truly never heard the like. Varada or Varukh might have been borne, but not Triphiliy and Varakhasiy!” They turned to another page and found Pavsikakhiy and Vakhtisiy. “Now I see,” said the old woman, “that it is plainly fate. And since such is the case, it will be better to name him after his father. His father’s name was Akakiy, so let his son’s be Akakiy too.” In this manner he became Akakiy Akakievitch. They christened the child, whereat he wept and made a grimace, as though he foresaw that he was to be a titular councillor.

"The Overcoat," Russian commemorative stamp.