English Lessons and Other Stories [Paperback]

Shauna Singh Baldwin (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0864922736 | ISBN-13: 978-0864922731 | Publication Date: September 1, 1999 | Edition: 2

Shauna Singh Baldwin’s passionate stories dramatize the lives of Indian women from 1919 to today, from India to Canada to the US. Through the eyes of these women adjusting to change, we see a world whose familiar rhythms mask dissonance and discordance. More overt is the ongoing struggle for the Sikh women in these stories to keep their identity and assert it — the massacres of Partition and 1984 are never far away. More subtle is the cost of integration into the new world, how colonialism survives in the minds of the colonized, and how these women confront the twin fear of freedom and fear of “the other.” Moving from the inner sanctums of the family to the world of the office, subway and university, Baldwin lingers sensuously on the mundane surface of her characters’ lives: the jewel-like colours of turbans in the wash water, the shimmering bowls of cashews and almonds on a table, the worn magic of an abandoned house in Shimla. Slowly, almost innocuously, Baldwin reveals the unseen country her characters inhabit, only to allow this world to withdraw and emerge once again. However modern or westernized they might be, Baldwin’s characters are always outsiders who inhabit silence and learn to use it, sometimes as a refuge, sometimes as a weapon. Some remain prisoners of silence, choking on their own knowledge. Some use silence as a weapon against their oppressors. Others harness its power to seize their freedom. In “Jassie,” an aging, dying Indian grandmother, a foreigner in her adopted country, helps another woman come to terms with death; in “A Pair of Ears,” a servant-woman wreaks revenge on an old woman’s feckless son; in “Nothing Must Spoil this Visit,” western and eastern women find unexpected candour and passion.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Fifteen passionate stories dramatize the lives of Indian women from 1919 to today, from India to North America, and from the closed circle of the family to the wilderness of office and university. These women inhabit silence — by saying little, they can know everything. Some, imprisoned by silence, choke on their knowledge. Some use knowledge with bloody force against their oppressors. And some harness its power to seize their freedom.

About the Author

Shauna Singh Baldwin is the author of four books of fiction. English Lessons and Other Stories won the Friends of American Writers Award. What the Body Remembers won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best Book (Canada and Caribbean). The Tiger Claw was a finalist for the Giller Prize. We Are Not in Pakistan, published in 2007, transforms the way we see our globalized world.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: GLE Library; 2 edition (September 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0864922736
• ISBN-13: 978-0864922731
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,921,203 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent short stories about Sikh women in transition, September 27, 1999

By 

Alan Scheer - See all my reviews

This review is from: English Lessons & Other Storie (Paperback)

Fantastic collection of short stories about Sikh women throughout the century and living around the world. Some of the best stories I've read about women and their need to follow honour,but also the anger and confusion this causes in a rapidly changing world. Very moving fiction. All the stories are told with excellent subtlety. A very strong recommendation for a relatively new writer of short fiction.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb, lyrical account of the Punjabi immigrant experience, December 23, 1997

By 

[e-mail] (Union City, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: English Lessons & Other Storie (Paperback)

This book is a wonderful account of the Indian (predominatly Punjabi) immigrant experience in America and Canada. The author's lyrical prose brings the reader into each character's life on an intimate level, rather than making the reader feel like a casual observer. Although most of the short stories are told from a female's point of view, readers across the board will be drawn in by the author's in depth afinity for character evolvment. The short story, Montreal, 1962, is the highlight of the collection, with it's tearful account of a Punjabi housewife's ability to see beyond the symbolism of her Sikh husband's turban.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT, July 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: English Lessons & Other Storie (Paperback)

Probably one of the best pieces of fiction I have ever read. In fact, I asked my friends not to give me another book until it matched Singh Baldwin's quality.

The narrative and characters remain with me two years later. What more can a reader ask for?