I was happily reading along and then…hey! That’s me! My comment! Thanks for bringing me to the party. And, upon further reflection, the thing that got to me was that, when the narrator had a child, she withdrew into her own selfish world. Sought pleasure rather than accepting responsibility for a life she had created. That kind of decision has ramifications today and in the future. Is it fair for women to face the child-rearing alone? No. Is it fair that women are judged in ways men aren’t? No. Do women have every right to seek and enjoy sensual pleasure, just as men do? Yes. But when a child enters the picture, priorities change fundamentally, and they should. I just wanted to dive into the novel and take Lenu’s whiny child out for a day’s adventure in the park, have a few laughs, discover some things, and let him (or was it a her?) know he/she was loved. Being a parent is a different kind of joy, but it can be a joy nonetheless.
Oh Kalpana! This was just brilliant Everything you have written is precisely why I have been holding off on reading these books. It's almost like I'm terrified about what I'll discover about myself and my friends and friendship because from everything I've heard and read, these books will force you to confront uncomfortable facts. But I should not, and cannot, avoid them for much longer.
I was happily reading along and then…hey! That’s me! My comment! Thanks for bringing me to the party. And, upon further reflection, the thing that got to me was that, when the narrator had a child, she withdrew into her own selfish world. Sought pleasure rather than accepting responsibility for a life she had created. That kind of decision has ramifications today and in the future. Is it fair for women to face the child-rearing alone? No. Is it fair that women are judged in ways men aren’t? No. Do women have every right to seek and enjoy sensual pleasure, just as men do? Yes. But when a child enters the picture, priorities change fundamentally, and they should. I just wanted to dive into the novel and take Lenu’s whiny child out for a day’s adventure in the park, have a few laughs, discover some things, and let him (or was it a her?) know he/she was loved. Being a parent is a different kind of joy, but it can be a joy nonetheless.
Oh Kalpana! This was just brilliant Everything you have written is precisely why I have been holding off on reading these books. It's almost like I'm terrified about what I'll discover about myself and my friends and friendship because from everything I've heard and read, these books will force you to confront uncomfortable facts. But I should not, and cannot, avoid them for much longer.
And here is what I read in the New York Times recently! https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/29/opinion/translator-credit-cover.html?unlocked_article_code=AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACEIPuomT1JKd6J17Vw1cRCfTTMQmqxCdw_PIxftm3iWka3DIDmwTiOMNAo6B_EGKebBqYcA31iicXppKKrIjReA3xehBMlYrSxWtptHMvqU5FBgPiND5WHIqjdWKVKok8DTuYy7odrYnyLHn71fZbDHgRKDdg3w-LVkyp49gdQmoinwNz_jOFOdly5Ipi6dac5NxQTgAZyOJrqOoX004YIPaG0mavgomWOhZWiXRmsqe798AcQZQDlHFShBv8Dp2qYMcaJ5MYvGJf1N3c9H-gL4RFmVtMI6uYpYzTIHQnL1v2qXftYcY6pyCCV--CKcV67QJQA&smid=url-share