Posted by Sari
Category 6, An SF book written by a non-anglo, non-nordic author: Ngugi wa Thiong'o: Variksen velho (Wizard of the Crow)
This could also habe been slotted in Tähtifantasia-winner and magical realism categories. It is a magical realist satire about an imaginary African nation lead by a corrupt leader, his coterie and the revolutionaries who want to over throw him. And it is a fun, well written and heart-felt novel. One of those situations where you rather laugh at the absurdities because crying would be too devastating.
It is also very universal. The other novels it reminds me are those of Asturias and Fuentes and Bulgagov's Master and Margarita, even the film Death of Stalin. The corruption of power and the disintegration of society and its morals under dictatorship are same everywhere.
Category 30, Magical realist book: Dino Buzzati: Restless Nights
I could have swapped categories with these. Dino Buzzati was a journalist for Corriere della Sera and a magical realist writer, most famous for his novel the Tartar Steppe, which is one of Jukka's favourite novels. So I thought I should try some his work also.
Restless Nights is a collection of Buzzatis short stories translated in English. They are very short, pithy, sometimes without a solid ending. Sometimes they are surreal, sometimes they are extended jokes, sometimes they are more conventionally magical realist. And pretty fantastic. My favourite is propably "The Saucer Has Landed", where a Catholic priest takes a shotgun to aliens because they are God's children without original sin. Because of course God must love humanity more than a people who followed his commandments. I loved how they were short enough to read just one in few minutes and take a break. I would love to be able to read them in the original italian.
Numi organic Moroccan mint
In addition to seeing haggling as performance art, one of my favourite memories of my trip to Luxor years ago was the mint tea all the traders offered to customers. it was deliciously minty and somehow very refreshing though it was often served hot in brutally hot climate. Numi's organic mint tea has lovely minty flavour, and though it is not as strong or sweet as original Mahgreb tea which has quite a lot of sugar in it,and it is a bagged tea, I find it a nice and refreshing drink. It is also an excellent base for iced tea in the summer.
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