Apr 30, 2005 04:29 PM
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(Updated Apr 30, 2005 04:29 PM)
- Roots by Alex Haley.
This is the story of a Black American who traces his ancestry almost twelve generations back when his ancestor came from the Gold Coast of Africa. The book has been televised in the States and has had a great following. Though some controversy exists whether Alex Haley wrote fiction or whether it is true, the fact remains nevertheles that the book is highly absorbing. One can imagine Kunta Kinte being born and brought up in a typical Afeican village, captured at fourteen and taken to the United States where he is sold as a slave. He marries another black and they have a daughter Kissy who is sold because she forges a pass for her boyfriend.She is raped by her white boss and produces George who produces some seven children, his son has seven more and so on till Alex Haley is born. Alex traces his roots through some words that came down to him from his family and goes to the Afeican village where griots tell the story of famly ancestors of hundreds of generations. He pieces the story and'Roots' is born. An excellent book which touched me a lot and made me aware of the African way of life, the slave trade, the Revoution and so on.
2, Shogun by James Clavel.
The British Pilot is thrown up on Japanese lands when his ship capsies. He and his men live here and learn of the japaese way of life, their thinking, thier beliefs, their cleanliness, their obsession with death and the committing of suicide(harakiri). This book is also a highly readable one which gets under one's skin and one cannot foget Blackthorne, the English Pilot .
3.The Good earth by Pearl S Buck
In this book the chinese way of life is described.Pearl Buck won awards for this book and when one reads it one just cannot forget it. Her other book'Letter from Peking' is also an excellent one.
4.The namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri.
Jhumpa lahiri has created a vivid description of a Bengali family who settles in the United States and whose children born there have a double life-that of their origin and that of their surroundings. This book honestly shows the predictions of thousands of Asian immigrants settled in the US.A must read for all people
6.Spouses by Shbha De
Shobha De's versatile pen has once more created magic. Her previous book was in the form of letters to her children and this one is all about marriages. She has given first hand accounts and first hand stories of different marriages and has sensibly created waves in the minds of readers.
