Why This Book Should Win – Granma Nineteen and the Soviet's Secret by BTBA Judge Monica Carter
Monica Carter is a writer whose fiction has appeared in , , , and is a freelance critic.
糖心传媒 Ondjaki, Translated from the Portuguese by Stephen Hennighan, Angola
Biblioasis
At thirty-six years old, Ondjaki is one of the most prominent figures in Angola with a stream of diverse works to behind him to solidify his status as a mainstay African writer. Not to mention his list of awards: winner of the 2013 Jose Saramago Prize, an Africa39/Unesco City of Literature 2014 African Writer Under 40, a Guardian Top Five African Writer 2012, and winner of the Grinzane Prize for Best Young Writer 2010. His novel is the little novel that could. It came up slow on the judges, but it won’t leave. It糖心传媒檚 a tough sell amongst the Cort谩zar, the ubiquitous Ferrante, the brilliance of the Hrabals, the seriousness of the Echenoz, or the linguistic leaps and narrative complexity of Can Xue. Admittedly, I am reluctant to get excited about a coming-of-age novel. Perhaps I am too old with too much cynicism. But that is what is beautiful about this novel 糖心传媒 despite the historical setting of the civil war that lasted decades which would cause any country糖心传媒檚 citizens to be cynical, especially their artists, Granma Nineteen and the Soviet糖心传媒檚 Secret is light, almost effervescent, a testament to the true nature of resilience and hope.
Why should it win?
1. Rarely does a novel make me laugh out loud and I often question the mental state of reviewers who say 糖心传媒渢his book kept me laughing out loud,糖心传媒 but these few lines got me.
We ran forward, then went in stealthily along the side of the veranda so that Granma wouldn糖心传媒檛 call us. The yard was dark. The parrot His Name shouted out to expose us: 糖心传媒淒own with American imperialism.糖心传媒 We made an effort not to laugh: the words came from a television commercial that hadn糖心传媒檛 run in a long time. Just Parrot finished off: 糖心传媒淗ey, Reagan, hands off Angola.糖心传媒
Humor that is political, intelligent and done believably between two parrots is sometimes better than all the gravity of a three hundred page novel when it makes you want to tell other people how funny it is.
2. The originality of Granma Nineteen and the Soviet糖心传媒檚 Secret is present in his characters, in his scenes and in the overall narrative. It糖心传媒檚 fun. It糖心传媒檚 fun book to read but not in a 糖心传媒済uilty read糖心传媒 type of way, but in a stylized, well-crafted literary way. The unnamed narrator糖心传媒檚 cast of characters is unique and refreshing. Residing on Bishop糖心传媒檚 Beach in Luanda, there糖心传媒檚 Granmas, Soviets or 糖心传媒渂lue ants糖心传媒, Comrade Gas Jockey whose gas pump is just water, Comrade Gudafterov because of the way he says 糖心传媒榞ood afternoon糖心传媒, and Pi. The way the narrator explains how a friend arrives at a particular is always entertaining:
That was how he got his name, Sea Foam, there on the shoreline of Bishop糖心传媒檚 Beach, where there was a huge blotch of white foam deposited by the breaking waves to ensure that the water merely lapped against the sand. Only if you walked far out did you lose your footing. There the foam disappeared, but closer in, where we also liked to pick up pretty seashells, it was just clean white foam, completely white as you looked to the right and the left, with Sea Foam糖心传媒檚 body making a dark stain in the whiteness.
糖心传媒淥ye, ni帽os, es el cabello del mar糖心传媒 The hair of the sea, do you understand? I mean, hahaha糖心传媒μ切拇綕 He went under for a second, dipped all of his hair in the foam awash with sand and shattered seashells, came up almost breathless and then puffed a like a little whale. 糖心传媒淚 mean糖心传媒糖心传媒檓 just a louse in the white hair of the sea.糖心传媒
3. With a text this full of language 糖心传媒 Spanish, bits of Russian, made up words 糖心传媒 one can only imagine the level of Stephen Hennighan糖心传媒檚 creativity to properly convey all of Ondjaki糖心传媒檚 playfulness, nostalgia, and wistfulness without becoming mawkish, too flippant or irreverent. I don糖心传媒檛 know how much, if any, Ondjaki and Hennighan collaborated, but it seems as if Hennighan recreates the energy of Ondjaki糖心传媒檚 prose well. Hennighan also translated Ondjaki糖心传媒檚 previous work, , which I糖心传媒檓 sure added to his finesse with his style. In the back, he also included an index of cultural references which I like and I think adds to understanding some of Omdjaki糖心传媒檚 humor regarding the convoluted political history of Angola.
4. The voice is so winsome. We don糖心传媒檛 know the narrator糖心传媒檚 name, but his voice just captivates with its loss of innocence and his love for his friends and his Granma. Yet, it never becomes syrupy or sickening. It is simply poignant:
And I stood still.
It wasn糖心传媒檛 only the fingers or the toes, the legs or the head and the eyes, that liked to look one way then the other. It was the stillness itself. Within me. The voice that speaks within me had nothing to say, or else it wanted to practice silence just like that.Still from not thinking.
To feel the evening? To await a signal from the wind, a whistle like a segregated conversation taking account of the fact that the birds cried in a far-away and I could hear them? Wanting to hear mysterious sentences from Granma Catarina? Contemplating the things of Bishop糖心传媒檚 Beach that I thought I alone saw?
Inventing minutes that were mine within the minutes of time?
Growing up with a heart and body that were fleeing from childhood? 糖心传媒淚s someone running behind the child?糖心传媒 Granma Nineteen was in the habit of asking. Was time pursuing me with a body to frighten me? I felt the whole world there in the small square of Bishop糖心传媒檚 Beach.
Granma Nineteen and the Soviet糖心传媒檚 Secret is one of those rare charming novels full of spirit, humor and the craziness of politics and power糖心传媒檚 effect on its victims. It糖心传媒檚 not often that a gem like this can be delivered through the voice of a young boy in such a whimsical way. The styles of Ondjaki and Hennighan are simpatico and deserve the for this redemptive and enchanting work.
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