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The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu
Dinaw Mengestu's 2007 debut novel, The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears gives a thoughtful yet, melancholic look at the isolated life of an Ethiopian immigrant running a fledgling neighborhood grocery in D.C.
Sepha Stephanos fled Ethiopia nearly twenty years prior to escape the Ethiopian revolution. He struggles with his ceaseless desire to return to his home country and his indifferent existence in America. His rundown store also serves as meeting place for him and two fellow African immigrants who pass the time naming coups and dictators of the various African nations. Things appear to be on an upswing as his neighborhood is in the beginnings of gentrification. The first home to be renovated, which he describes as "a beautiful, tragic wreck of a building," is purchased by Judith, a white woman who's an academic and has a biracial 11 year old daughter. Sepha and Judith engage in this awkward flirtation while he forms a bond with her daughter as they read Dostoevsky in his store. Even his budding friendship with Judith's daughter falls into a formulaic routine. Sepha's observations of the lunchtime crowd in and around his neighborhood make their daily routine appear as monotonous as his.
His fellow immigrant friends have similarly vacant existences. One is stuck waiting tables as they all once did in the same hotel all those years later and the other has "made it" as a well paid engineer but even he cannot let go of his past and works constantly to ignore his present. None of them are really present in their current lives in America. Mengestu often uses the word "beautiful" to describe things that are not necessarily so as Sepha does to appease his friend about a newly acquired used Saab which is anything but beautiful. To the friend, it was his; he earned the money to buy it and that made it beautiful. As the title suggests, which comes from a line in Dante's Inferno, Sepha will eventually emerge from his own hell and discover the beautiful things that heaven bears. While it has spots that lull, there are also spots that are moving and spots that are heartbreaking. Mengestu's novel is very quiet and subtle in its approach and I actually enjoyed that. This was a strong debut from a skillful writer. I'm sure that he's a voice for my generation.
Original review here
Shoneyin's debut novel of a modern Nigerian polygamist family is refreshing. Though some may be turned off by the idea of polygamy, it is a revelation to read of the dynamics of such a relationship. Baba Segi has four wives, Iya Segi, Iya Tope, and Iya Femi, and the newest, Bolanle. Bolanle is college educated unlike the other three wives and this brings her much jealousy and animosity. All the while the first and third wives, Iya Segi and Iya Femi, respectively, are plotting Bolanle's demise, their own secrets are about to be exposed. Things start to unravel for the first three wives when after years of trying, Bolanle does not get pregnant. Bearing offspring is a great source of pride for Baba Segi and Bolanle's supposed barrenness is hurting it.
How the story unfolds is in chapters that reveal back story on each wife before and after she married Baba Segi. Each of these women were filled with various desires like learning to read and being educated, the affections of a young man, and even wealth. The wives are the important characters here and that's fine because a tale involving polygamy does bear more implications on the status of women. It's pleasing that the female characters are fully realized and even the two most vindictive are shown to have some humanity. Baba Segi was probably the type of characterization you'd expect of a wealthy polygamist-- demanding and unattractive. Shoneyin has written this novel with great honesty and realism and it was a joy to read. The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives is a fabulous piece of literature from a fantastic writer poised to have a brilliant career.
disclosure: I received this book from the publisher.
Full name: Alaya Dawn Johnson
Birth date: March 31, 1982
Location: Washington, DC
Website/blog: www.alayadawnjohnson.com
Genre: Fantasy
Writing credits: The first two books of The Spirit Binders trilogy: Racing the Dark and The Burning City. Also, unrelated, Moonshine, the start of a historical fantasy series staring Zephyr Hollis.
How frequently do you update your site?
Infrequently. Mostly when I have big publishing news to share (book covers, pub dates, big sales, etc.)
Is your site designed for reader interaction? No.
Post of note, something in particular you want readers to check out: I wrote a guest post for The Angry Black Woman this summer about race issues on one of my favorite television shows, Supernatural: http://theangryblackwoman.com/2009/09/09/an-open-letter-to-eric-kripke/
Top 5 reads you’re looking forward to reading in 2010?
Blackout by Connie Willis
Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin
Bite Marks by Terence Taylor
White Cat by Holly Black
100 words or less how would you describe your work?
I hate repeating myself with my writing, so the next thing I'm working on is usually very different from the last. Moonshine and The Spirit Binders trilogy are about as far apart thematically as you can get while still falling under the broad category of fantasy. But my overarching themes tend to center around issues of family, female relationships, love (romantic and platonic), and broader issues of coming of age and identity.
100 words on less please share your thoughts on one of the following topics:
Writing life
It's a cliche, but writing is one of the hardest things you can do, and one of the most rewarding. When it's going well, I'm immersed in my stories, my characters and my worlds and I can barely spare the time to eat before I have to get back to them. Unfortunately, it doesn't always go well--many days I stare at my computer screen and wonder why I ever thought I was capable of putting a sentence together. But no matter how difficult it gets, there's never been anything else I've wanted to do. Frustration comes with the territory, but I never forget how lucky I am.
Moonshine
Alaya Johnson
St. Martin's Press
2010
paranormal historical fiction
Imagine it's New York City in the roaring twenties and you teach English in a night school for immigrants. Sounds pretty normal, but add in the fact that vampires and all sorts of "Others" are integrated into society alongside humans. Not sounding so typical anymore, unless you're Zephyr Hollis. Zephyr, reformed "Defender", is a "blessed" blade wielding, social activist extraordinaire, feminist, and closet Jazz singer.
The vampire suffragette, as she's affectionately and mockingly known, is sent into a tail spin when a series of events beginning with a half dead little boy she finds in an alley on her way to teach one evening. Zephyr's comings and goings include a charming cast of characters including her hypocritically prudish landlady Mrs. Brodsky, roommate with a sixth sense Aileen, socialite and journalist Lily, and the ever mysterious Amir. Amir is not only an "Other" unlike any Zephyr's ever encountered, but also he's flirtatious, sarcastic, and dangerous- a winning combination for an intense budding romance.
Alaya Johnson has written a fast-paced, engaging novel. Her no nonsense, sharp tongued characterizations of Zephyr and Amir make this an enchanting read. The notion of Moonshine being merely another vampire or paranormal fiction novel is taking it a bit too lightly. Though a quirky and supernatural tale, it's also a guise for a more grounded critique on race. Zephyr struggles daily to get humans to see that the "Others", who openly live, work, and play in mainstream society, are still deserving of humanity even if not human.
Disclosure: This book was provided by the publisher.
Page From a Tennessee Journal is the first novel from former Pediatric Occupational Therapist, Francine Thomas Howard. This is one of the first of previously self-published books being relaunched by the AmazonEncore program. I think it's a very fitting choice. Howard brings us into the lives of the white farm owning couple of Alexander and Eula McNaughton and the Black sharecropping family of John and Annalaura Welles. Set in rural east Tennessee in 1913, the story of these four people as individuals and as couples unfolds.
Alexander and John are both in love with the same woman yet neither knows how to appropriately show their affection without leaving her hurt emotionally and physically. And for one the love is forbidden which is the major source of conflict in this novel. The author's depiction of the lives of sharecroppers would make a good argument of why this practice was as detrimental to Blacks as, if not actually worse than, slavery. The squalid living conditions and unfair arrangements for payments and advances against labor were deplorable. Another social issue tackled is the marginalization of women. The status of the rural Southern woman was very bleak for both Blacks and whites. They both dealt with philandering husbands which was acceptable amongst their social class and being silenced. This was not news to me however, Howard's portrayal was like re-opening a wound and I was angered so much when this matter was brought up. John Welles angered me most with his self-righteous attitude even after he left his wife and children with nothing to seek his fortune. These women had to endure everything thrown at them while keeping up the dutiful, loyal wife routine without so much as an eye roll. Eula does get her opportunity to use her voice in her journal even if it is only for herself. Annalaura even gets a bit of poetic justice in the end when she gets to make a life changing decision on her terms.
Reading this in two sittings, Howard's writing was well paced and never really hit any lulls. She has written great nuanced characters and the story felt like she was comfortable in the narrative as it's not forced. And I always applaud those who bravely take on whorehouses and Southern dialect without it all coming off as trite. Though it's hard for me to digest tales involving the disparaging treatment of women, it was worth it and deserves every accolade it has coming. Yes, I'm being prophetic. I do hope to see this also become part of the scholarly canon of fiction on women's studies. I highly recommend this entertaining and poignant debut novel.
The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu
This is a book that will be going on my wish list for sure. It sounds like a great read. I love that you say the characters are all fully realized and it sounds like it doesn't fall back on stereotypes.
I would love to read this one. Polygamy is one or was one way of life in Africa. I don't like to pick over which parts of life to read about in Africa. I just like learning more about Africa especially in fiction.
I have a Josephine Baker Festival going on for Paris in July on my blog. Please stop by and spread the word. http://readwithtea.blogspot.com
不能記住往事的，人注定要重蹈覆轍。.......................................................
I loved this book! I'm so interested in reading books about contemporary Africa and this one was a fun read!
I saw the cover of this book and wanted to pick it up. I'm going to have check it out.
I'm definitely going to add this one to my TBR. I recently read another book on polygamy, and I'm pretty fascinated and disgusted by it. I wonder what makes people do it.
Sounds intriguing. I'm always interested in different cultures. Looks like you are quite prolific, Titilola.
Lynn
www.writeradvice.com
Author of You Want Me to Do WHAT? Journaling for Caregivers