The Pickup by Nadine Gordimer

The Pickup by Nadine Gordimer is one of the books I read for my Read the nobels challenge. I finished it a few days ago, but didn't start writing my review because I was afraid I wouldn't do the book justice.

The story is set in modern-day South Africa. The main character is Julie Summers, a white young woman, daughter of a prominent citizen, who lives in the Johannesburg suburb. When her car breaks down, she meets a black man who calls himself Abdu, a Muslim immigrant who is in the country illegally, seeking refuge from his unnamed Arab homeland.

Julie and Abdu soon become lovers, and she tries to bring him into her own inner circle--introducing him to her friends and her father. But when the authorities discover Abdu, he is forced to go back to his country. Julie decides to follow him: the two marry and head off to the small African country where Abdu came from. There, Julie learns Abdu's real name, Ibrahim, for the first time.

Now Julie is the outsiders, and must struggle to be accepted by Ibrahim's family. But while Ibrahim tries to escape again, applying for a visa to every Western country he knows, Julie likes contemplating the desert and teaching English to the villagers.

Ultimately, Julie and Ibrahim love each other, but are unable to understand each other's background and motives. Nadine Gordimer portarys here a relationship between two people of different culture, who have a strong physical attraction, but cannot understand each other completely.

This is a very interesting novel, one I'd recommend to people interested in cross-cultural relationships.

Cross-posted at Out of the Blue

La Bufera e Altro (The Storm and Other Things) by Eugenio Montale

La Bufera e Altro ("The Storm and Other Things") is a collection of poems published by Eugenio Montale in 1956. Montale, one of the most famous Italian poets of the 20th century, is one of my favourite poets of all times.

His poetry has often been described as pessimistic and hermetic. While this is true, one needs to consider the historical background which accounts for its main features. When Montale started publishing his works, Mussolini was already in power. Montale always refused to join the fascist party, and as a result was denied employment and the possibility to gain from his work. His isolation was, therefore, a way to express his respect for the values of human dignity and his faith in mankind.

Montale's poetry can be sometimes difficult to understand, due to its being "hermetic" and introspective. But his poems are always beautiful to read alound, and have a strong imagery which catches the reader's attention.

For example:Felicità raggiunta, si cammina per te
su fil di lama.
Agli occhi, sei barlume che vacilla,
al piede, teso ghiaccio che s'incrina;
e dunque non ti tocchi chi più t'ama.(From "Felicità raggiunta")

Happiness, for you we walkon a knife edge.To the eyes you are a flickering light,to the feet, thin ice that cracks;and so may no one touch you who loves you.
Another of my favourite passages (my translation for this one):
L'attesa è lunga,
il mio sogno di te non è finito.(From "Il sogno del prigioniero")
The wait is long,
my dream of you has not finished.

(Cross-posted from my blog, Out of the Blue)

The Good Terrorist by Doris Lessing

(Cross-posted from my blog, Out of the Blue)

My next book for this challenge is The Good Terrorist by Doris Lessing. The book was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1985.

The Good Terrorist follows Alice Mellings, a woman who transforms an abandoned home into headquarters for a group of radicals who plan to join the IRA. As Alice struggles to keep the group together, her companions find unexpected difficulties in their quest to bring forth social change against complacency and capitalism.

This book was a very interesting read, an insight into the life of politically involved squatters in 1980s London. The main character, Alice, is a woman in her mid thirties who does everything she can to create a home out of an abandoned house. Her efforts go largely unappreciated by her companions, who are more interested in connecting with more important subversive groups, such as IRA. Thus Alice, the "good" terrorist of the title, finds herself cooperating in realterrorist activities.

In her book, Doris Lessing portrays a woman with strenght and determination, but without something to really fill her life. She likes to take care, take charge, be practical; she's always there, always reliable, running the house while the others are busy picketing the streets. Around her, the author depicts a full set of personalities and what makes them drawn to terrorism.

A very interesting, vivid book; one I'd recommend to anyone interested in this topic.

Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee

(Cross-posted from my blog, Out of the Blue)

Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee won the Boooker Prize in 1999. And I can very well see why. Although I could read it only in the Italian translation by Gaspare Bona, I found it exceptionally well-written, with a concise, brief style that suits the book perfectly. But I also found it very unpleasant to read.

The book tells the story of David Lurie, a 52-year old twice-divorced professor who teaches Communication at a technical university in Cape Town, South Africa. He is dissatisfied with his job, but goes on nonetheless. His "disgrace" begins when he has an affair with one of his students. When the affair is found out, he does nothing to protect himself from the consequences and is forced to resign.

After that, he seeks refuge in his daughter Lucy's farm in the Eastern Cape. Things go well for a while, but then he and his daughter are brutally attacked and the consequences are hard to deal with, both for David and for Lucy.

This book depicts the tensions between different generations, sexes, and races in post-apartheid South Africa. As such, it is a very interesting read. But also, as I already mentioned, quite unpleasant. I don't know if I liked it or not. But I'd recommend it anyway.