What we think is that you have to read these books. The end.
Poplorica is my type of book: nonfiction, advertising, modern culture, little-known facts, recent history... I had high hopes for it when I picked it up. It listed several (ten? twelve?) little-recognized innovations that have shaped our way of living today. The authors highlighted a random assortment, including: product placements in movies; nylon pantyhose; the rise of suburban lawns and lawncare; "supertanker" disposable diapers; and the slam dunk in basketball. Remarkably for me, I also liked the authors' voice and style throughout. I enjoyed this book thoroughly, so it stands to reason that everybody else will, also. Um, except that Darren didn't read it, but he did like hearing about it.
The second book is one that Darren found, read, and brought home insisting I should read. (The man's optimism is breathtaking.) I Loved a Girl is a short book, a quick read, and one that will bear up under many more readings. Set in Africa in the 1960s, it's a collection of letters between a young African man and the white missionary pastor who baptised him. Francois has been dismissed from his job at a Christian school because, as he put it, he "last month loved a girl." He had sex with her, and now is angry and doesn't understand why it cost him his job AND put him "under church discipline" for six months. As he and the pastor correspond, a more complete picture unfolds: not only the immediate circumstances, but the difficulties and cultural pressures that African young people faced at that time. The letters also explore the meaning of love and sex, placing it far above mere pleasure or proving oneself.
Things take an even more interesting turn when Francois meets Cecile and they fall in love. Whether they can have a happily-ever-after is very uncertain.
I loved this book because the letters were open and honest. Walter, the pastor, is understanding but not afraid of tough love. The book also highlights some of the culture conflicts that the white missionaries created when they moved in among the Africans. (Leah, I wondered especially if you would find it interesting, as your departure to Ghana approaches.)
All of which is the long way of saying, You should read these books. The end.
Monday, March 30, 2009
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1 comment:
Sara, you would be so intrigued by the kinds of books I'm reading to prepare for life in Africa - it's AMAZING to me to read about how different an African worldview is from a western one. Their logic is so foreign, but it is logical to them!
For example, one book I recently read explained that westerners see the world as a machine, while Africans see the world as an organism, living and interconnected. We dam or bridge rivers, drain swamps, and so on with the logic of how we can improve our lives; however, Africans are concerned about interfering with the spirits of the rivers, swamps, etc., and if drought follows the building of a bridge, then it's pretty obvious in their minds that the two were connected. Why should they change their ideas regarding cause and effect when the causes and effects have been observed by their ancestors for generations?
Anyway, I am finding so much of my research simply fascinating, and I'm sure you would too.
Have a great day. =)
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