There are regularly-updated reviews of new and classic books by the world's foremost authors as well as critical essays on literary themes and trends. Recently, while translating documents for a company, I became aware of the unspeakable cruelty that animals have to suffer while being slaughtered so that people can enjoy their hamburgers and donor kebabs. Innocent animals are made to tremble with fear during the slaughter process and I abhor the pain the animals suffer. Please visit this 's recommended website to find out more: Meat.org.
This season's selected writer is the darling of the British literary scene, Hanif Kureishi. One of the world's foremost post-colonial authors, Kureishi, 'the naughty boy at large', focusses on the trials and tribulations of Asians growing up in multi-cultural Britain. Having specialised in Kureishi for her MA thesis, Ola lists her five recommended books by the author in order of preference: The Buddha of Suburbia, The Black Album, My Beautiful Laundrette, The Body and Dreaming and Scheming. Book-of-the-month: Set in south London in the late 1970s, at the time when the Labour Government was just about to make way for a decade of Thatcherism, The Buddha of Suburbia is essentially a novel about teenager's incredulous drift through a world struggling to make sense of itself in an era of multiple discontents. It is probably one of Hanif Kureishi's most biting books, a real page turner featuring moments of razor sharp wit and empathetic metaphors. It is also an excellent insight into the variegated experience of Indians living within English society. Sparkling with sex and an adventerous spirit, Buddha is rightly regarded as a modern classic. Buy it in the UK, USA, Germany, France or Canada. My recommended European classic for is Jerzy Kosinski's 'Pinball'. It is a rock'n'roll mystery centred on a superstar who, despite his success, manages to hold on to his identity and a dark secret. A beautiful and sensual woman obsessed with finding the star, stalks him, driven by a goal that she believe justifies all means... For reviews and further details about this mesmerizing masterpiece which sizzles with erotic tension visit the relevant Amazon in your country: UK, Germany, France and the US. 's selection of Ola pictures: click on any image to see larger version.
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