New This Week
November 22, 2010
Column: At the Library
From: Cranbrook Public Library
By Mike Selby
While readers my age (ahem) and older know her from Candid Camera and The Match Game, Fannie Flagg is also a prolific writer, having written a number of award winning novels, screenplays and cookbooks. Her latest work is I STILL DREAM ABOUT YOU; a humorous and heartbreaking look at failing to age gracefully. When a Southern beauty queen finds her looks fading as she turns 60, she can think of no other remedy but to jump in a river. Yet her attempts at suicide at constantly interrupted by friends and neighbours, and even by a new romance. Can she find beauty outside of her appearance?
Younger readers should enjoy Christy Jordan-Fenton’s FATTY LEGGS; a fully illustrated look at one girl’s experience at a residential school, and her determination to rise above a series of bullies.
Preschool Story Time this Wednesday at 11:00 am, 1:15 pm, & 6:30 pm, and Toddler Story this Friday at 10:30 am will be all about Pirates!
The Friends of the Library are presenting their November travelogue on November 29th at 7pm at the College of the Rockies. \'\'EL CAMINO de SANTIAGO - THE WAY of ST JAMES\"
Lorna Locke and Suzanne McAllister invite you to a slide presentation of their 800 km pilgrimage from St Jean Pied-De-Port in France to Santiago, Spain.
The I LIKED THE BOOK BETTER series continues this Saturday, November 27th, at 1:30 pm. Charles Dickens’ A CHRISTMAS CAROL will be shown, followed by a discussion comparing the two versions. Popcorn and juice will be available by donation. Please contact Mike at the Library for more information.
Don’t forget to check out our display of beautiful wood and electric fired pottery by Susanne Ashmore. If you have any art, crafts, collections or something interesting you would like to display, please contact Margaret at 426-4063.
ADULT NEWLY AQUIRED SHELF:
Marry Him: The Case for Settling for Mr. Good Enough " Lori Gottlieb (646.77)
Aftershock: Protect Yourself and Profit in the Next Global Financial Meltdown (332.024)
The Definitive Personal Assistant & Secretarial Handbook " Sue France (651)
Pensionize Your Nest Egg " Moshe A. Milevsky (332.024014)
The Secret Language of Your Body " Inna Segal (616.89)
Overcoming Anger in Your Relationship " W. Robert Nay (152.47)
Coping with Shyness and Social Phobia " W. Ray Crozier (616.8522)
The Clothesline Diet " Karen Gatt (613.25)
Balloonology " Jeremy Telford (745.594)
Starting A Successful Business in Canada Kit " Jack D. James (658.110971)
Capacity to Marry and the Estate Plan " Kimberly Whaley (346.7101)
Spiritual Teachings of the Avatar " Jeffrey Armstrong (294.544)
The Legacy " David Suzuki (304.2)
Knitting It Old School " Stitchy McYarnpants (746.4320432)
God’s Guest List " Debbie Macomber (248.4)
Decision Points " George W. Bush (bio)
Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor " Lisa Kleypas (fic)
Minding Frankie " Maeve Binchy (fic)
The Distant Hours " Kate Morton (fic)
Empire of Silver " Conn Iggulden (fic)
I Still Dream About You " Fannie Flagg (fic)
Her Daughter’s Dream " Francine Rivers (fic)
The Little Stranger " Sarah Waters (fic)
The Quest for the Holy Veil " Kimberly Llewellyn (fic)
A Question of Guilt " Julianne Lee (fic)
Reading By Lightning " Joan Thomas (fic)
Map of the Invisible World " Tash Aw (fic)
Edge " Jeffery Deaver (mys)
Hell’s Corner " David Baldacci (mys)
Moonlight Mile " Dennis Lehane (mys)
Copper Mine " Keith Ross Leckie (mys)
Night Embrace " Sherrilyn Kenyon (sci fic)
Towers of Midnight " Robert Jordan (sci fic)
Terribly Happy (DVD)
The Legacy (DVD)
Sherlock Holmes (2009 version) (DVD)
The Four Minute Mile (DVD)
Guys and Dolls (DVD)
YOUNG ADULT & CHILDREN’S NEWLY ACQUIRED ITEMS:
The Boy Who Dared " Susan Campbell Bartoletti (ya fic)
Tears of a Tiger " Sharon M. Draper (ya fic)
Cry of the Giraffe " Judie Oron (ya fic)
Melting Stones " Tamora Pierce (ya fic)
Need " Carrie Jones (ya fic)
Hunger Journeys " Maggie De Vries (ya fic)
What Floats, What Sinks: A Look at Density " Jennifer Boothroyd (j 532.25)
Strykers "Carlos Alvarez (j 623.7475)
AC-130H/U " Carlos Alvarez (j 623.746)
Tropical Rainforests " Seymour Simon (j 578.734)
Mummies " Christopher Sloan (393.3)
Science Fair Winners: Experiments to Do On Your Family (j 507.8)
Forces of Nature " Chana Stiefel (j 551.6)
Camels " Lyn A. Sirota (j 599.6362)
Fatty Legs " Christy Jordan-Fenton (j bio)
Kubla Khan: The Emperor of Everything " Kathleen Krull (j bio)
Blood and Iron " Paul Yee (j fic)
Prisoner of Dieppe " Hugh Brewster (j fic)
Words That Start With B " Vikki Vansickle (j fic)
Race for Akator " Benjamin Harper (j easy)
Amazing Powers " Catherine Saunders (j easy)
Guinness Top 10 Awesome Ocean Records (j easy)
The Good Garden " Katie Smith Milway (j pic)
The First Mosquito " Caroll Simpson (j pic)
Fairy Tale: A True Story (j DVD)
MIKE\'S BOOKNOTES:
The book was “a wondrous accomplishment”; its author a “major discovery in literature”; her use of language “penetrating and beautiful.” This acclaim and others like it was heaped on DAUGHTERS OF THE HOUSE, the first novel of Indrani Aikath-Gyaltsen, published in 1991. Her follow up novel was CRANE’S MORNING, another stunning hit out of the park. While the Indian press thought CRANE’S MORNING to be “delicately nuanced…brilliantly observed…a literary gem,” the Washington Post found it “exquisite…it is at once achingly familiar and breathtakingly new.” Seeing that Aikath-Gyalsten"an Indian housewife-turned-writer"offered so much international promise, Penguin Books India offered her a massive 10-book deal; an unheard of contract in a country known for previously undervaluing if not ignoring its women writers. Aikath-Gyalsten graciously accepted the deal, making big news in the international book scene.
Two months later, Aikath-Gyalsten found her ’15 minutes of fame’ being extended, when Penguin Books received a disturbing letter from Kathy Frasier, a New Hampshire Librarian. Frasier explained she thought Aikath-Gyalsten had plagiarised parts of CRANE’S MORNING, as the plot was eerily similar to THE ROSEMARY TREE, a novel by Elizabeth Gougde, written in 1956. However, when she compared the two books she was shocked, as Aikath-Gyalsten had plagiarised it word for word. An investigation into the matter confirmed this, causing Penguin to cease publication, accept all returned books, and offer apologies. They also wanted to speak with Aikath-Gylasten.
Yet she gave no comment to her publishers that day. Or any other day. She was found dead at home, having swallowed a combination of industrial cleaner and rat poison. She was 41.
Born into privilege in Bihar, India, Aikath-Gyalsten was educated at Columbia University. Although she had many suitors, she had only married twice, the last one to a tea plantation owner in the north of India. Finding herself frequently alone and bored, she took an interest in writing, and began corresponding with Khushwant Singh, one of India’s most famous authors. He encouraged her to keep writing, and eventually championed her first novel, helping her to get it published.
Yet Singh found her slightly off, and incredibly insecure. She repeatedly asked him if he found her beautiful (\"She wasn\'t,\" said Singh, \"but how do you answer a question like that?\"), and why nobody ever asked her for an autograph. She also begged Singh to get her a job as a newspaper columnist. He finally did, but she immediately lost it after not putting any type of effort into her work. She was furious when Singh didn’t use his influence to get her rehired.
A week after her death, Singh received a letter from her in the mail: “\"I am still in a very bad frame of mind, afraid to live, afraid to die. But you are right. Only I can help myself.\" Nothing about the letter made sense to Singh, and he was only left to grieve for someone he once saw promise in; someone he repeatedly tried to help. And he has no idea why Aikath-Gyalsten plagiarised her second book; or what she was trying to accomplish.
One fascinating detail in this scandal was the odd fact that critics in 1956 couldn’t stand Elizabeth Gougde’s books, and were particularly harsh about THE ROSEMARY TREE, hoping it would soon be forgotten.
