Eschewed Obfuscation

The Art and Craft of Poetry
by Michael J. Bugeja
339 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Nonfiction/Writing

For me at least, this was a phenomenally useful book. I managed to write new poems from it--a half-decent villanelle and a free-verse on Newfoundland that I actually like--which is a rarity in itself. The process Bugeja teaches doesn't fit entirely with my own--for one, I have no wish to focus strongly on poetry--but for others, strictly completing the exercises will prove worthwhile. The first third of the book covers ideas, the second section covers genres, and the last details various forms. I found his explanations of form poetry especially useful, as he outlines exactly how to write a [villanelle/sestina/pantoum/etc.] instead of just giving the pattern and rules. I had some issues with the chapter on "extranatural" poetry--what speculative poems would fall under, I suppose--which focuses narrowly on Christianity, though Bugeja does include a disclaimer.

Poetry is a great side craft for prose writers to study, to strengthen their grasp of style and the sound, not just the meaning of words. And of course, style being my only personal strength, I love poetry. But regardless, recommended to aspiring poets (obviously) and writers.

Between Worlds: Women Writers of Chinese Ancestry
by Amy Ling
212 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Nonfiction

I have to return this to the library tomorrow, and unfortunately I'm only on Chapter 3 of 5. But I'll try my best to review it fairly, because it's definitely worthwhile reading for educating oneself on both racism and sexism. A Chinese woman suffered from two major oppressions: by the males of her own race, and by white people regardless of gender. The writing style is academic but accessible.

1. Writing As Rebellion, Historical and Contextual Backgrounds
An introduction of sorts, covering background information. Oriental stereotypes in the West, sexism in China, and the few Chinese-American women writers are all discussed. Very useful overview.

2. Pioneers and Paradigms: The Eaton Sisters
An entire chapter is devoted to analyzing the Eurasian sisters Edith and Winnifred Eaton, also known by the pen names Sui Sin Far and Onoto Watanna, respectively. Ling discusses at length the reasoning, implications, and consequences of the sisters' differing choices--Edith intentionally chose a Chinese-sounding name and aimed to become a martyr for the Chinese cause in America, while Winnifred chose to take on a Japanese identity and thus made a living off writing romance novels. The sisters, born of an American father and Chinese mother, also each wrote an autobiography (but again differing greatly) which sheds some light upon their choices.

In particular, the discussion of Chinese people being seen as heathens "in desperate need of Christian salvation" (48) disturbed me, not least because I don't believe that religion is necessary to be civilized and moral. And miscegnation, that term so debated in recent times, is also mentioned in telling how the interracial romances in Onoto Watanna's novels were acceptable "as long as the couple was white male/Japanese female" (51). In other words, as long as the white male was shown in a position of power and the Asian female as a stereotype.

3. Focus on China: Stances Patriotic, Critical, and Nostalgic
I am only on page 63, a little into this chapter, but it looks to be about exaclty what the title indicates. Detailed discussion of several Chinese-American writers and relevant themes in their writings.

4. Focus on America: Seeking a Self and a Place
From skimming, there is one section that I want to paraphrase. In discussing the autobiography Echo of a Cry by Mai-mai Sze, Ling quotes Sze after she purposefully sits next to a black woman in the cafeteria at college: "['Colored people'] still implies inferiority of a kind, doesn't it, as if 'colored people' were not up to others? When you think of it, we're all colored except the pure white man. And is there such a thing?" (107-8) That made me think of the widely used term POC (people of color), which suffers from the same negative connotation--but there isn't really a term to replace it yet, so we keep using it. (Although yhlee's "chromatic" shows promise.)

5. Righting Wrongs by Writing Wrongs
A difficult chapter to describe, but I will say that the conclusion on pages 177-9 speaks eloquently about the "between-world condition" of Chinese women in America.

The annotated bibliography on pages 191-9 is far too long to reproduce here, but I'll list authors cited under the cut so that the interested may seek out their work (though if you're that interested, I highly recommend reading this book first, at least the annotations).


And I'll note that my own family name appears above. But more importantly--what does it say, that all the known female Chinese-American writers can be named in a manageable list?

Hungry Planet: What the World Eats
by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio
287 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Nonfiction/Photojournalism

Not really much to review about this; it's a wonderful, insightful work of photojournalism and collaboration by a husband/wife team (I think). I liked it enough to read it during breakfast and lunch, which is usually reserved for can't-put-down novels. The Greenland and Mali portraits should be universally interesting, plus the two China and three USA portraits for me. Comments: p.12) raw ramen doesn't taste that bad, actually, and p. 77) eww, I never saw any skewered scorpions in the food stalls when I visited China. Or deep-fried starfish, for that matter.

Fiction Writer's Workshop
by Josip Novakovich
250 pages (trade paperback)
Genre: Nonfiction/Writing

This book actually took me a long while to get through, considering its length. The chapters and exercises are best for the writer of mainstream fiction, but neither does Novakovich disparage genre. I took notes on much of the advice and prompts. Even the clearly experimental exercises--like writing the voice on an uneducated person with mispellings, dropped periods, misplaced commas, and repetition--would be useful for any writer, though not directly applicable to speculative fiction. The only quibble I had was that it assumes every writer can and should write with outline. Not necessarily true!

Overall, highly recommended for mainstream writers, and perhaps a less glowing rec for those involved in speculative fiction (the book does give some good advice on mysteries).

Readings on the Sonnets (William Shakespeare)
by The Greenhaven Press Literary Companion to British Literature
170 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Nonfiction/Poetry/Literary (Critical)

Not much to say about this, since I rushed through everything in order to finish it by the 25th, when it was due for the year at the school library. I've never intensively read Shakespeare's sonnets, so even the analyses of the most popular were new to me and very informative. The biography is rather dry, though. Out of all the essays, I think Katharine M. Wilson's "Shakespeare's Sonnets Imitate and Satirize Earlier Sonnets" was the worst. It had a terribly pretentious and arrogant tone, so even though I might have agreed with Wilson at some points, I was too busy screaming at her. Otherwise, decent read.

Genre: Nonfiction/Writing
87 pages excluding appendix, 159 pages including appendix (trade paperback)

I picked this book up at the school library while searching for the MLA citation handbook--it looked interesting and helpful. Sadly, I really only got two worthwhile exercises out of the entire thing, and I had to deal with Allen's pretentious prejudice against genre writers the whole time. Just a few aggravating quotes: "This book needs customers to buy it, and the publisher and author are just as willing to accept money from deadwood, nonreading writers as we are from writers with some potential." [6] For love of the God that I don't believe in, if you dislike reading, why are you even talking a writing class or reading a how-to book on writing? (That quote was NOT sarcasm in context, by the way.)

Also: "Real writers buy books." [11] So "real writers" can't be poor and choosy about what they spend their hard-earned money on? Allen insinuates that people who make good use of the library are destroying the publishing industry and, of course, can't ever be real writers. Then he implies that "pop fiction" (genre) authors aren't "serious writers" [73] and don't write anything "that makes the world a more interesting place and makes people think something they haven't thought before." [74] Apparently Allen is under the impression that all genre fiction follows generic formulas. Perhaps if he ever bothered reading some decent fantasy or sci-fi, he'd actually know what he was talking oh-so authoritatively about.

And I didn't even write up all my notes, since some of them (like being annoyed at the appendix) are just personal quirks.

Rachel Manija Brown being, rachelmanija.
339 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Nonfiction/Memoir

Since I read Rachel Manija Brown on LJ, I felt kind of guilty about not having read her book. I don't often read (or enjoy) memoir, but this and Infidel both came highly recommended, and I haven't regretted either. I admire Rachel for her ability to infuse humor in such a tragic story, even as she writes about dark moments like contemplating suicide. I can sympathize with her life, too; even as I think fondly on my childhood in Newfoundland, I remember the teasing too, and the alienation of bookish intelligence at an early age.

In literary terms, Rachel's storytelling is superb. With so many bizarre and crazy characters, it can be hard to differentiate them for the casual reader. Prose is deeply descriptive but never multicolored--take this quote, from a page opened at random. "Our new suite had a picture window overlooking a waterfall tumbling into an elfin glen." [139] The image painted in the reader's head is sublime and original, but the line also conveys Rachel-the-protagonist's character. Not many children would plausibly describe a hotel view thus; for a girl who read about Helen Keller in kindergarten, the characterization is perfect.

On top of all that, the cover is gorgeous--a stark, empty bird's nest symbolizes Rachel's childhood and alludes to the title, a backdrop reminiscent of a sunset, a gold border sandwhiched between orange cover and moss green spine making me think inexplicably of India. My only complaint is that the jacket copy hints to a hilarious story and downplays the deep, heartbreaking poignancy of "an American mistfit in India." The rest of us may not have had such weird life experiences, but we can all understand the longing to belong.