Skip to main content

October 2025 Reads—Toni Morrison, Arundhati Roy, Dervla Murphy, and More

Image
By on
October, the month of Diwali and Ningol Chakouba. Not particularly enjoyable for me this year. The night of Diwali, I found myself curled up in bed, hands clutching my head as if that would stop the terrible headache I was having. All the noise, not to mention the obvious pollution, made me mad. Abemma, one of our dogs, had a terrible, terrible time.

And why do Manipuris celebrate Diwali? Because the king of Manipur was influenced by a Hindu preacher, converting Meities to Hindus. Well, I reject that.

The same week was Ningol Chakouba, initially cancelled (for reasons I won't get into here), but later we celebrated anyway.

All that and other things happened, and I also read some good books in October. Here they are:

1. The Source of Self-Regard by Toni Morrison
2. Mother Mary Comes To Me by Arundhati Roy
3. Enduring Loss—Stories from the Kuki-Naga Conflict in Manipur
4. The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy
5. A Life of One's Own by Joanna Biggs
6. Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum
7. Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle by Dervla Murphy

The Source of Self-Regard, Toni Morrison, is a collection of Morrison’s essays, speeches, and meditations on art, race, and humanity. Much to learn from her, but I'll pick one, two lines here. This one says: "We can begin by asking ourselves what is right rather than what is expedient. Know the difference between fever and the disease. Between racism and greed. We can be clear and we can be careful. Careful to avoid the imprisonment of the mind, the spirit, and the will of ourselves and those among whom we live. We can be careful of tolerating second-rate goals and second hand ideas."  

Another one: "The price of wealth, historically, has been blood, annihilation, death and despair." Think about that a little. Still happening as I write.

Mother Mary Comes To Me, Arundhati Roy's first work of memoir. An intimate account of how she became the writer she is and her relationship with her mother. I don't usually buy books (I mostly borrow), but I like to support authors I like once in a while. Went to the bookstore and bought this, even though I could have got it for less online. But you know the right thing to do is support your local bookstore and not shop from a giant e-commerce company that invests billions in an oppressor state.

While buying Mother Mary Comes To Me, I also picked up a tiny book called Enduring Loss, thinking it's about the Meitei-Kuki conflict. After reaching home, I read it carefully; it's "Stories from the Kuki-Naga Conflict in Manipur", based on personal interviews with the survivors. But doesn't matter whether it's Kuki, Naga or Meiteis—the stories are similar anyway, all about pain, loss and struggle for all parties. Why do we do this to one another?

The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, Arundhati Roy, is a fragmented tale of love and resistance set amid India’s social and political unrest. This may not be as popular as her Booker winner, but still worth reading. Not an easy read, though. I think I understand her choice of the characters and the events happening in the book. I could even relate one of the characters to her (quite evident after reading her memoir).

A Life of One's Own, Joanna Biggs is a blend of memoir and literary criticism exploring women writers’ quests for independence and meaning. Two of these women writers are Virginia Woolf and Toni Morrison whom I like, so I didn't mind reading. After finishing, I admire most of them. 

Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop, Hwang Bo-reum is a quiet, heartwarming story about finding solace, purpose, and connection in a small Seoul bookshop. This felt like a gentle and warm hug. I needed that after reading The Ministry of Utmost Happiness ( Did I mention it was not an easy read?).

Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle, Dervla Murphy is a thrilling travel memoir of Murphy’s solo 1963 journey across continents, full of grit, humor, and adventures or rather misadventures. I am in awe. I am so happy she lived to tell the tale. Let me go and print a photo of her with her bicycle and stick on my wall. She's an inspiration. 🤍

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Upstream: Selected Essays by Mary Oliver

By on
It was a joy reading Upstream by Mary Oliver. H ere are a few quotes and phrases from the book that I want to keep remembering. "you must not, ever, give anyone else the responsibility for your life" "I quickly found for myself two such blessings- the natural world, and the world of writing: literature. These were the gates through which I vanished from a difficult place." "Reading, then writing, then desiring to write well, shaped in me that most joyful of circumstances- a passion for work." "..having chosen to claim my life, I have made for myself, out of work and love, a handsome life" "And that I did not give to anyone the responsibility for my life. It is mine. I made it. And can do what I want to with it. Live it. Give it back, someday, without bitterness, to the wild and weedy dunes." "Creative work needs solitude. It needs concentration, without interruptions. It needs the whole sky to fly in, and no eye watching until it c...
Post a Comment
Read more

November 2025 Reads—Elena Ferrante and Vandana Shiva

By on
End of the month today, here are the books I read. 1. My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante 2. The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante 3. Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante 4. The Story of the Lost Child by Elena Ferrante 5. Oneness vs. the 1% by Vandana Shiva, Kartikey Shiva Yes, I read the Neapolitan novels, all four books by Elena Ferrante. Lina and Elena gave me company, the whole month, my head was full of what Lina did, what Elena said, etc, etc.  1. My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante "I feel no nostalgia for our childhood: it was full of violence." The first novel follows the intense, complicated friendship between Elena Greco and Lila Cerullo as they grow up in a poor neighbourhood in postwar Naples. Amid violence, poverty, and rigid social expectations, the girls push each other intellectually and emotionally, shaping one another’s ambitions even as their paths begin to diverge. The novel explores how identity is formed through rivalry, admirat...
Post a Comment
Read more

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

By on
So I recently watched the 2017 Russian adaptation of Anna Karenina , an eight-part series by Mosfilm (one of the largest and oldest film studios in the Russian Federation and in Europe, according to Wikipedia). This one takes a unique narrative approach, presenting the story from Vronsky’s perspective.  Let me tell you—I was absolutely enthralled. From the acting to the costumes, the sets to the overall production quality, I liked almost everything about this adaptation, except for a few scenes and bits here and there. The performances felt authentic and moving, capturing the essence of the novel’s characters with remarkable fidelity. So satisfying was this adaptation that I’m not eager to seek out others. Somehow, I feel that no other version could match the artistry of this one. I’d like to explore more films and series by this studio, and I most certainly will. And I don't know why it's got such low ratings: 6.3/10 on IMDb and 17% on Rotten Tomatoes. It DESERVES much higher!...
Post a Comment
Read more