‘The Story Hour’ tells tale
of patient, therapist bonding
In The Story Hour, the sixth novel by former Beacon Journal reporter Thrity Umrigar, a woman born in India bonds with her therapist, who listens to her stories and secrets.
The fictional Northeast Ohio town of Cedarville, where therapist Maggie Bose lives, is a setting from one of Umrigar’s previous novels, and with its counterpart Chesterfield represents an economic and class divide. Maggie is assigned to treat Lakshmi, a woman in her early thirties, who has tried to commit suicide. Maggie’s husband, Sudhir, is Indian, and it isn’t the first time that Maggie has been expected to offer special insight into the culture of Indian clients.
Lakshmi works in the restaurant and grocery owned by her husband, Adit, who calls her “Stupid” as though it were her name. She has developed an innocent crush on a friendly customer, and when he tells her he’s moving away, she is as devastated as if she has lost a family member. Certainly, he treated her with more consideration than her husband ever has.
Adit complains of the cost of Lakshmi’s hospitalization, and Maggie offers to treat Lakshmi in her home office at no charge. This gives Lakshmi her first glimpse of a life free from Adit’s oppression, and she grasps at Maggie’s offer, using the time to chat about cooking and Hindi films. (Maggie wonders “What did Lakshmi think this was? Happy hour?”) But soon Maggie’s professional resolve goes out the window, and she becomes Lakshmi’s life coach, helping her start a business and learn to drive.
Lakshmi tells many stories of her life in India — about her beloved mother and sister, and the town landholder who paid for her education, but when she finally comes out with her deepest secret, Maggie is shocked and backs away. But Maggie, too, has a secret, one that will do far more damage than she anticipates.
While Maggie’s story is told in the third person, Lakshmi speaks for herself, in gradually improving English to show her increasing confidence.
The Story Hour (336 pages, hardcover) costs $25.99 from Harper Collins. Thrity Umrigar is a professor of English at Case Western Reserve University.
Biblical animals
There are a lot of animals in the Bible. Sheep, of course, and fish, and donkeys and doves. Animals are in so many stories that West Salem children’s author Dandi Daley Mackall has used some of the best known in My Bible Animals Storybook, in which each chapter includes a retelling of a popular story, a page of “amazing facts” about the animal involved, a “what it means to me” interpretation of the relevance of the story, another corresponding verse, and a very short prayer for the reader.
Mackall chooses Daniel, Chapter 6, to demonstrate the value of talking to God: Daniel’s jealous rivals pressure King Darius into enacting a law making prayer a capital offense; Daniel prays as usual, and a reluctant Darius has Daniel put in the lions’ den overnight. In the morning, Daniel is unharmed, because an angel protected him. Mackall reminds young readers that God is waiting for their prayers, adds a line from Philippians 4:6 (“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything”); and suggests a prayer (“God, thanks for wanting to talk with me. Help me to do that more”). The bright illustrations are by British artist Heather Heyworth.
My Bible Animals Storybook (122 pages, hardcover), recommended for ages 4-7, costs $14.99 from Tyndale House. Mackall’s book My Boyfriends’ Dogs has been adapted into a movie starring Erika Christensen (NBC’s Parenthood), scheduled to air Sept. 6 on the Hallmark Channel.
Plan ahead
• Tickets are on sale for Akron native and former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove’s Oct. 16 appearance at the Akron Civic Theatre, 182 S. Main St., a fundraiser for Project Learn of Summit County. Dove will read from her work, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Thomas and Beulah, a collection based on the poet’s grandparents, and talk about the importance of education and literacy. Tickets cost $20-$75. Go to www.akroncivic.com.
• The Cuyahoga County Public Library has announced a series of fiction writing workshops led by writers including Sarah Willis and Deanna Adams, beginning in September and continuing through February. In addition to introductory, intermediate and advanced level writing classes, a “Do You Need an Agent?” session will be held Sept. 16 and “Spotlight on Independent Publishing” on Oct. 26. The free classes will be held at the North Olmsted, South-Euclid-Lyndhurst, Brooklyn and Southeast branches. See the schedule and register (required) at http://cuyahogalibrary.org.
Events
Loganberry Books (13015 Larchmere Blvd., Shaker Heights) — Former Shaker Heights resident Jean Ann Hudson signs her book Sparrow in the Keep, first in an announced trilogy about a girl raised in the forest, 3 to 4 p.m. Monday.
Cuyahoga County Public Library (Middleburg Heights branch, 15600 East Bagley Road) — Bryan Fritz and Ken Krsolovic discuss League Park: Historic Home of Cleveland Baseball, 1891-1946, 7 to 8:30 p.m. Monday.
Akron-Summit County Public Library (Tallmadge branch, 90 Community Drive) — Barb Baltrinic talks about her ancestor and signs her book A Founder for All: Abraham Clark, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, 6:30 p.m. Monday.
Barnes & Noble (28801 Chagrin Blvd., Woodmere) — Former Tulane University President Scott Cowen discusses and signs The Inevitable City: The Resurgence of New Orleans and the Future of Urban America, 7 p.m. Wednesday; Mark Nickerson reads from his essay collection Singapore Slingshot: Adventures of an American Expat in Asia, 1 p.m. Saturday.
Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library (3512 Darrow Road, Stow) — Akron native Adam Helbling talks about his life before and after an accident that left him with paraplegia, and his uplifting book Well … I Guess I’m Not Jesus, 7 p.m. Thursday.
Cuyahoga County Public Library (North Royalton branch, 14600 State Road) — Cuyahoga County Archivist Judith Cetina talks about the county’s bicentennial and her book Cuyahoga County: The First 200 Years, 7 to 8 p.m. Thursday. Registration required; call 440-237-3800.
— Barbara McIntyre
Special to the Beacon Journal
Send information about books of local interest to Lynne Sherwin, Features Department, Akron Beacon Journal, P.O. Box 640, Akron, OH 44309 or lsherwin@thebeaconjournal.com. Event notices should be sent at least two weeks in advance.