jesus
who was that, please
a chinese woman asked
puzzled in a german lesson
some of them laughed
politely the others
loudly
all of them
baffled
about themselves.
(1992)
May Ayim (1960 - 1996)
I had May already presented on my old web-log, but since that is broken down, I wanted to have her in focus again and in particular her poem with the celebration of Christ's birth approaching.
During my time at the University of Hamburg, in the early nineties, I was introduced to the forthcoming literature by Afro-American women writers such as Zora Neale Hursten, Alice Walker and Toni Morrison. When I learned about the fact that there is one of their 'sisters' living and writing just 'around the corner' I was the more attracted and interested in her life. May Ayim, born Sylvia Brigitte Gertrude Opitz in Hamburg, Germany, was a poet, educator and activist within the Afro-German movement. Since her parents weren't married her father, a Ghanaian medical student, was denied parenthood and her German mother, unfit to raise her, placed her in an orphanage. After a brief stay, she was moved to Münster to live in foster care. Her foster parents raised her with extra parental pressure on being 'good, orderly and mannerly' since May aroused attention in the early 60's as a 'dark-skinned' child. When she fell short of their expectations their punishment was often physical. While May, a very sensitive child, yearned for love and acceptance she was hit with a wooden spoon. After graduation she went to Regensburg to study Psychology and Education and wrote her thesis on Afro-Germans. In 1986, her thesis was published in a book together with the interviews of Black German women concerning their lifes and backgrounds since a lot of Germans still thought it impossible to be both Black & German at the same time (Farbe bekennen / Showing Our Colors, 1986). Furthermore, she was co-founder of the "Initiative of Black People in Germany". When returning from a visit to her paternal family in Ghana, she moved to Berlin, adopted her father's surname Ayim as pen name and published another book with her poems (blues in schwarz weiss, 1995). She became a lecturer at the Freie Universität Berlin and worked as a speech therapist. Nevertheless, her traumatic childhood kept haunting her and in 1996, she had several severe mental and physical breakdowns. When she was additionally diagnosed of Multiple Sclerosis she felt so forlorn that she committed suicide by jumping off a high-rise.
Because I am still very much impressed by the sensitivity of her poems which are delicate observations, I add an additional poem in memory of her (in German though):
exotik
nachdem sie mich erst anschwärzten
zogen sie mich dann durch den kakao
um mir schließlich weiß machen zu wollen
es sei vollkommen unangebracht
schwarz zu sehen
(1985)
During my time at the University of Hamburg, in the early nineties, I was introduced to the forthcoming literature by Afro-American women writers such as Zora Neale Hursten, Alice Walker and Toni Morrison. When I learned about the fact that there is one of their 'sisters' living and writing just 'around the corner' I was the more attracted and interested in her life. May Ayim, born Sylvia Brigitte Gertrude Opitz in Hamburg, Germany, was a poet, educator and activist within the Afro-German movement. Since her parents weren't married her father, a Ghanaian medical student, was denied parenthood and her German mother, unfit to raise her, placed her in an orphanage. After a brief stay, she was moved to Münster to live in foster care. Her foster parents raised her with extra parental pressure on being 'good, orderly and mannerly' since May aroused attention in the early 60's as a 'dark-skinned' child. When she fell short of their expectations their punishment was often physical. While May, a very sensitive child, yearned for love and acceptance she was hit with a wooden spoon. After graduation she went to Regensburg to study Psychology and Education and wrote her thesis on Afro-Germans. In 1986, her thesis was published in a book together with the interviews of Black German women concerning their lifes and backgrounds since a lot of Germans still thought it impossible to be both Black & German at the same time (Farbe bekennen / Showing Our Colors, 1986). Furthermore, she was co-founder of the "Initiative of Black People in Germany". When returning from a visit to her paternal family in Ghana, she moved to Berlin, adopted her father's surname Ayim as pen name and published another book with her poems (blues in schwarz weiss, 1995). She became a lecturer at the Freie Universität Berlin and worked as a speech therapist. Nevertheless, her traumatic childhood kept haunting her and in 1996, she had several severe mental and physical breakdowns. When she was additionally diagnosed of Multiple Sclerosis she felt so forlorn that she committed suicide by jumping off a high-rise.
Because I am still very much impressed by the sensitivity of her poems which are delicate observations, I add an additional poem in memory of her (in German though):
exotik
nachdem sie mich erst anschwärzten
zogen sie mich dann durch den kakao
um mir schließlich weiß machen zu wollen
es sei vollkommen unangebracht
schwarz zu sehen
(1985)
Quote of the Month - November 2011
"The train journey brought back the hopeful, depressing trips to Kalina to see Narayan, and he felt melancholic; finally he'd understood what life was like, the meetings and partings it entailed. It was a thought that only made him more attached to his life and the people in it. From his window seat he looked with hungry eyes at the dirty worlds next to the tracks: the brightly painted shacks, the grubby faced children, the ugly concrete tower blocks, the smells. It was his city, his world; it might be imperfect, but it was home."
From Saraswati Park by Anjali Joseph
From Saraswati Park by Anjali Joseph
Anjali Joseph (*1978)
From the well-established Poet Laureate let's turn to a first-time novelist: Anjali Joseph, born in Bombay/Mumbai. At the age of seven, her family moved to England on behalf of her father's work as a research scientist. She went to Trinity School in Leamington Spa and read at Trinity College in Cambridge. Whereas her family returned to India, she stayed in England and moved on to Paris to teach English at the Sorbonne. "Living in France unexpectedly gave me new affection for England; I felt more English", she explains in an interview with The Indepedent (24/10/2011). Nevertheless, while between jobs, she moves back to India and gets a job at The Times of India in Bombay and later becomes Commissioning Editor for ELLE (India). Four years later, she returns to England to do her Master's degree in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, graduating with distinction in 2008. Her first novel Saraswati Park was published in 2010 and already has won her various prizes: the Desmond Elliot Prize for New Fiction and the Betty Trask Prize for first novel written by authors under the age of 35. She was additionally nominated for the Newton First Book Award, reading at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, where I met her. Her novel is about young Ashish, repeating his final year at college, his life with his uncle and aunt around the fictional place 'Saraswati Park' in Bombay and his sexual awakening. It is a quiet book, with seemingly quiet lives in a quiet part of Bombay. As she mentioned herself, the book had been dismissed mainly by many of the Indian critiques because of it's "everyday crab". But don't be mistaken - the inner lives are roaring, often struggling invisibly with their dreams, hopes and losses. When being interviewed by Namita Gokhale, director of the Jaipur Literature Festival, at the Edbookfest she mentioned Samuel Beckett as a major influence on her writing as well as Indian authors like Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyaya and the grand dame of Urdu fiction, Ismat Chughtai. And still, she finds it strange to 'represent' a national literature, in her case, Indian, while she lives and writes in England. Her second novel, at which she is currently working, will focus precisely on the subject of the 'definition of self' when having lived in various places. Her protagonist will follow a similar route as she had, living in London, Paris and Bombay. It will be interesting how she will handle this issue and I hope that I will be able to mention her in my blog some more times.
Poem of the Month - October 2011
Mrs Darwin
Went to the Zoo.
I said to Him –
Something about that Chimpanzee over there reminds me
of you.
of you.
From The World’s Wife by Carol Ann Duffy (pub. 1999)
Carol Ann Duffy (*1955)
Carol Ann Duffy, poet and writer of plays and children’s books, was born in Glasgow , Scotland UK Stafford , England Liverpool Scene’, writing poetry which characterized the popular culture. To be close to him, Carol applied to the University of Liverpool Liverpool , she also wrote plays which were performed at the Liverpool Playhouse. After graduation, she wrote widely: poetry, television shows, plays. She worked as critic for The Guardian, was editor of the poetry magazine, Ambit, editor to anthologies, children’s books, and plays. In 1996, Carol became lecturer in poetry at Manchester Metropolitan University Writing School
Peggy Hughes from the Scottish Poetry Library had advised me on seeing Carol Ann Duffy at the Edbookfest. When I purchased the ticket to one of her readings, all I knew was that she is the current Poet Laureate. When I finally saw her on stage, presenting her poetry I understood why she holds this official position since 2009. The wittiness, this seemingly playful use of concepts and words and her cunning style are worth savouring. Check on her book of poems The World's Wife and your point of view on 'historical events' will turn...
"Poem" of the Month - September 2011
You reached out to me
touched a string
and made me hum ~ ~ ~
At EdBookFest 2011
Edinburgh International Book Festival
Isn't it lovely to start my new blog with the impressions of my stay at the Edinburgh International Book Festival!
For the records: I left Amsterdam Schiphol with a suitcase of 18 kg - two weeks later I returned with 24 kg and a backpack full of books. All in all I brought back 26 books: 17 signed, 14 books by women, eight books of poems with one copy by Carol Ann Duffy (Poet Laureate) exclusively sold at the festival due to be published in October. Ten books are by authors not living in their country of origin, one in German, one book for young adults, one anthology, four books of short stories, one book about life in modern India. And I am proudest of those books that were given to me as token of friendship - my humble thanks for those! Yet, much more important than statistics: I returned with lots of wonderful impressions of people who love stories - those who tell them, those who write them down and those enjoying reading them; I enjoyed the atmosphere of the word being spread, to meet the authors, to hear them read their stories with their own words, in their own rhythm, their very own voice. I listened to Adam Zagajewski, Hanan Al-Shaykh, Tahmima Anam, Jenny Erpenbeck, Michel Faber, Kamila Shamsie, Manon Uphoff, Kevin Barry, Lucian Teodorovici, Tahar Ben Jelloun, Angela Saini, The Man Asian Literary Prize winner Bei Feiyu, Manu Joseph, Tabish Khair and the Newton First Book Award Nominees Rahul Bhattacharya, Anjali Joseph, Neel Mukherjee, Sanjeev Sahota, Naomi Wood and many more.
I got introduced to young adult stories by Gillian Philips, discussed Canadian poetry with Jim Nason, Ruth Pierson and their fellow poets, laughed along with Don Paterson on Shakespeare's Sonnets, and was taken away at Carol Ann Duffy's presentation. You'll get an impression yourself reading this blog regularly as all female authors will be presented during the next months on my blog - reason to check it every month! At last a word to those who reached out: many thanks to Peggy and Lilias from the Scottish Poetry Library and the work they do, warm thanks to Ruth and Jim and their poet friends, Ian from London who introduced me to Gillian Philips, Jane from Spain, and John Molleson and his family. And last but not least special thanks to Namita Gokhale, director of the Jaipur Literature Festival in India, chairing some of the events at the EdBookFest, giving me deeper insight on Modern Indian Literature. Now, it's time to read!
Edinburgh International Book Festival
Scottish Poetry Library
Jaipur Literature Festival
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