A Complicated Kindness

There is no need to introduce Miriam Toews but if you don’t know her, please see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miriam_Toews).

I read her book ‘A complicated kindness’ twice – you may take it as sign that I very much liked her narrative of how she and her family managed (or not) living in a small Mennonite ‘old-fashioned’ village. In a very funny (although cynical) way, the main narrator Nomi describes everyday life of her family (father Ray, mother Trudie and sister Tash) and the omnipresent demands and disapprovals by the church leaders of this community – especially by her uncle (also called The Mouth).

Often times, the narrator indulges heavily in sarcasm as things (their life and future) are not exactly what she had them wanted to be. Finally, after a long struggle, her mother and sister independently left the village and she and her father decided to stay there and live out a life of complicated kindness … until one day Nomi first gets reprimanded by The Mouth … and then excommunicated. Now, her father has to decide what to do ….

Toews’ writing style is very witty and most entertaining – though the matter she is dealing with is quite serious (if not to say unsettling) i.e., how to deal (and survive) a religiously very conservative community with high demands on obedience and faithfulness.

Book is highly recommended




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Circumcision: Literature and References

Image
Note : Some referenced books, articles and illustrations are very explicit. Viewer discretion strongly advised. Remark : this selection of literature may be biased and does certainly only scratch the surface of available publications (both Pro and Con). Picture: Lascaux Caves (France) - Prehistoric Paintings. A man with a bird head and a bison. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license / Author: Peter80   History ·        Male Genital Representation in Paleolithic Art: Erection and Circumcision Before History. Conclusions of the authors: The erection in Paleolithic art is explicitly represented in almost all the figures defined as unequivocally male that have survived to the present and in many objects of portable art. Circumcision and/or foreskin retraction of the penis are present in most of the works. Link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0090429509000831 ·        History of Circumcision from the dawn
Read more

Ciphered Bodies - Disciplined Bodies

Image
As an addendum to what I have written before, I would like to write down some of the aspects Annette Peller pointed out in her book ‘ Chriffierte Körper – Disziplinierte Körper. Female Genital Cutting. Rituelle Verwundung als Statussymbol’.   To my knowledge, there is no English translation of the book. The title would probably read as follows: Ciphered Bodies - Disciplined Bodies. Female genital cutting. Ritual wounding as a status symbol ' . The book represents her PhD thesis and was written in 2000. First, Annette Peller prefers to use the word ‘ Excision ’ instead of cutting or mutilation, since it is somewhat more neutral and the term is better able to handle certain aspect of ritual wounding. Annette Peller did much of her research while living with the Arbore and other ethnic groups in Southern Ethiopia. A girl or woman who wants to undergo such body modifications (or ritual punishments, like flogging) must be willing and able to endure strong pain and to accept
Read more

Poem: MESSENGERS

Image
 MESSENGERS               Angels use them, demons too They lift you up, and they subdue They steer and rule your inner mind They make you see and make you blind  Messengers, oh messengers – why are you so sincere You act as if the way you speak has never been unclear                                                  DOWN     You rush in like a mighty storm You like to twist and to transform You sweep the branches of my brain And make my will and thoughts insane   Messengers, oh messengers – why are you so severe You act as if I would enjoy your gifts of pain and fear   You swoop down like a bird of prey You grab my soul in its dismay You feast upon its grainy mesh As if it was some juicy flesh  Messengers, oh messengers – you occupy my land And claim your stake yet do not name your Master of Command   And then you force me into a scheme                          That’s wilder as my wildest dream And make me play a freakish role That does not f
Read more