Well Read A good book opens up a whole new world. In keeping with this issue’s global theme, Willamette faculty and staff recommend some works that will transport you to other places, times and ideas.
The Heart of Redness By Zakes Mda
The House on the Lagoon By Rosario Ferre
Daughters of the Samurai By Janice P. Nimura
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy By Douglas Adams
During the 19th century wars between British colonists and the Xhosa people of South Africa, a Xhosa chief’s daughter had a vision. Victory could be achieved, she said, with the sacrifice of the Xhosa cattle. But the infamous Cattle Killing led to starvation and death — and a permanent schism between the prophecy’s Believers and Unbelievers. South African novelist, poet and playwright Zakes Mda uses this historical event as the basis for a meditation on people caught between the past and the future. In a novel that has drawn comparisons to the work of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, he depicts a modern clash of beliefs in which the Xhosa struggle with how to honor and preserve their traditional culture while also adopting Western innovations.
History and fiction merge in this work centered on a multigenerational Puerto Rican family full of secrets and struggles. A novel within a novel, “The House on the Lagoon” presents a husband and wife’s often-conflicting versions of the story of their marriage and families. This finalist for the 1995 National Book Award questions how history is made and addresses timeless issues of class, race, gender and nationality. Rosario Ferre originally drafted part of the book in Spanish (her native language) before switching to English. As a Los Angeles Times reviewer noted, “‘The House on the Lagoon’ manages to incorporate qualities of both languages and cultures — a rarity, and a joy.”
In 1871, three Japanese girls aged 6, 10 and 11 traveled to the United States, weighed down by the expectations of their nation. The girls’ mission was to learn all about America, in order to bring back the knowledge Japan needed to modernize. But when they returned home, 10 years later, these Westernized daughters of samurai discovered they were strangers in a familiar land — forever changed by their experiences abroad. Explaining her fascination with the real people and events depicted in her bestselling work of historical nonfiction, Janice P. Nimura says, “A hundred years before ‘globalization’ and ‘multiculturalism’ became the goals of every corporation and curriculum, three Japanese girls spanned the globe and became fluent in two worlds at once — ‘other’ to everyone except each other.”
Seeking the answer to life, the universe and everything? Look no further than this cult sci-fi spoof. (Spoiler alert: the answer’s 42.) Mixing deep philosophical musings with off-the-wall British humor, the book follows the adventures of Englishman Arthur Dent, who escapes Earth just before aliens destroy it to make way for a galactic freeway. As Kris Lou, Willamette director of International Education, notes, “The book’s basic traveling dictum — ‘Don’t Panic!’ — goes to the heart of our profession. Also, as you begin reading, you quickly realize you need to let go of expectations and ‘go along for the ride,’ which is good practice for anyone about to study abroad. It helps you realize that many things you thought were important, or fundamental to who you are, actually are not.”
Recommended by Barby Dressler, director of international relations and special programs at TIUA.
Recommended by Kris Lou, director of International Education.
Recommended by Andries Fourie, associate professor of art.
Recommended by Patricia Varas, professor of Spanish.
Illustration by Jane Mount 38
FALL 2015