In the afternoon, while I'm on the porch, the rains begin. This first rain is only a sprinkle and the ground quickly drinks it up. My children, who are playing in the yard, look to the sky, wanting more. Their hair glistens . . . A breeze, cooled by the rain, passes across the house. I hold my hands to my face and smell on them the mango flowers I sliced. I must have a little sweetness in my life, I think, not damp hands and indifferent kisses.
From the acclaimed author of A Breath of Fresh Air, this beautiful novel takes us to modern India during the height of the summer’s mango season. Heat, passion, and controversy explode as a woman is forced to decide between romance and tradition. Every young Indian leaving the homeland for the United States is given the following orders by their parents: Don’t eat any cow (It’s still sacred!), don’t go out too much, save (and save, and save) your money, and most important, do not marry a foreigner. Priya Rao left India when she was twenty to study in the U.S., and she’s never been back. Now, seven years later, she’s out of excuses. She has to return and give her family the news: She’s engaged to Nick Collins, a kind, loving American man. It’s going to break their hearts. Returning to India is an overwhelming experience for Priya. When she was growing up, summer was all about mangoes—ripe, sweet mangoes, bursting with juices that dripped down your chin, hands, and neck. But after years away, she sweats as if she’s never been through an Indian summer before. Everything looks dirtier than she remembered. And things that used to seem natural (a buffalo strolling down a newly laid asphalt road, for example) now feel totally chaotic. But Priya’s relatives remain the same. Her mother and father insist that it’s time they arranged her marriage to a “nice Indian boy.” Her extended family talks of nothing but marriage—particularly the marriage of her uncle Anand, which still has them reeling. Not only did Anand marry a woman from another Indian state, but he also married for love. Happiness and love are not the point of her grandparents’ or her parents’ union. In her family’s rule book, duty is at the top of the list. Just as Priya begins to feel she can’t possibly tell her family that she’s engaged to an American, a secret is revealed that leaves her stunned and off-balance. Now she is forced to choose between the love of her family and Nick, the love of her life. As sharp and intoxicating as sugarcane juice bought fresh from a market cart, The Mango Season is a delightful trip into the heart and soul of both contemporary India and a woman on the edge of a profound life change. From the Hardcover edition.
Sareen is attending her first sit-up, a Jamaican tradition that celebrates the life of a loved one who has died. The whole village has come to share memories of Sareen’s Nana. Sareen wants to tell her stories of Nana’s last mango season and their search for the perfect mango, but she’s afraid the words won’t come or that she’ll begin to cry. It’s only when Sareen faces her fear that she realizes it’s not the sadness of Nana’s death that she’ll remember best but the joy of Nana’s life. Set amid the rich culture and lush scenery of Jamaica, this moving book offers the hope of rediscovering joy after a loss and pays tribute to the remarkable power of story: to touch, to connect, and to heal.
Papers presented at the 11th International Conference on Sustainable Water Resources Management are included in this volume. These research works highlight recent technological and scientific developments associated with the management of surface and sub-surface water resources and as well as river basin management methodologies. Water is essential for sustaining life on our planet and its uneven distribution is a source of permanent conflict. The growth of the human population combined with the irregularity in precipitation and water availability may restrict even further the access to water in certain regions of the world. This problem is made more severe by anthropogenic activities that affect its quality. River Basin Management includes all aspects of Hydrology, Ecology, Environmental Management, Flood Plains and Wetlands. Riverine systems are coming under increasing pressure due to anthropological and natural causes. Prominent amongst the problems affecting them is water scarcity and quality, which requires the development of improved methods for better river management. This volume features research from professionals involved in sustainable water resources management and provides an insight into the state of the art in the current technology, techniques and solutions in that field as they have been developed and applied in different countries.
Clyde E. Keeler spent five summers studying the Cuna Indians on the San Blas islands off the coast of Panama as part of his genetics research—specifically research into certain genetic traits of albino populations. Published in 1956, this book is Keeler's account of his personal experiences with the Cuna people. Keeler describes a people who still adhered to many of their traditional tribal customs while also embracing modern ways of life. He witnessed ceremonial chants, procedures for harnessing evil spirits, and elaborate celebrations of puberty and fertility. Keeler examines the history of Caribe-Cuna ranging from details about their religious beliefs and customs, firsthand accounts of Cuna stories and chants, and developments caused by Christian missions and modern education.
The late Fifties to Sixties in the Caribbean was an era of mass migration by young people between the ages of twenty to forty years old they travelled alone to developed countries in pursuit of a better life. This mass exodus divided families it was a huge sacrifice for many parents with children. They were left with grandparents or extended family members to take care of them. Annice was raised by grandparents after her parents immigrated to the England. This book is about an intrepid childhood journey, which takes you back to the Sixties lifestyle. Annice highlights the stark contrast between the culture of the Caribbean and that of the UK. She recalls how families coped without electricity and running water in homes. As well as containing wise words to inspire all ages, this book offers an adventurous collection of childhood mischief, fun, and laughter. At the very least, its a trip down memory lane, a reminiscence of bygone days, and for young readers, its a journey to an imagined past. Annice Brownes career spans over thirty years as a Personal Assistant during which she gained professional qualifications in Secretarial work, Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) in computer studies. The idea to write her childhood memoirs came about after reading books by the novelist Catherine Cookson, and many autobiographies of famous people (Maya Angelou and Nelson Mandela to name a few). Annice is inspired by the author Iyanla Vanzant, and her unique style of writing. Annices daily motto is: We should live our lives with good intentions.
Eight-year-old Nika candidly tells the story of her life growing up in a Caribbean ghetto in the eighties. Nika is unintentionally funny, unbelievably clever, and kicks butt when she needs to. Nika's dilemma is simple. She wants to exist without torture but life in the ghetto makes this an unrealistic desire. Being the twelfth child of fifteen, Nika finds a way to get the attention she needs. Her cute, little black face sheds light on the woes of a Caribbean ghetto. Despite abject poverty, violence, and physical abuse, Nika maintains a hopeful demeanor that is far too mature for her age. She stands up to bullies, outsmarts sexual predators, and puts an end to her desire to cheat and steal. After her most horrific experience, Nika finds a diary of a visitor to her Caribbean island that tells the story of Meredith. Meredith is a successful criminal defense lawyer with many burdens, struggles, and secrets. Will Meredith's heart-rending story help Nika uncover the "happily-ever-after" in the ghetto? Or will the ghetto destroy Nika's resilient spirit?
On the night of December 3, 1984, Anjali waits for her army officer husband to pick her up at the train station in Bhopal, India. In an instant, her world changes forever. Her anger at his being late turns to horror when a catastrophic gas leak poisons the city air. Anjali miraculously survives. Her marriage does not. A smart, successful schoolteacher, Anjali is now remarried to Sandeep, a loving and stable professor. Their lives would be nearly perfect, if not for their young son’s declining health. But when Anjali’s first husband suddenly reappears in her life, she is thrown back to the troubling days of their marriage with a force that impacts everyone around her. Her first husband’s return brings back all the uncertainty Anjali thought time and conviction had healed–about her decision to divorce, and about her place in a society that views her as scandalous for having walked away from her arranged marriage. As events unfold, feelings she had guarded like gold begin to leak away from her, spreading out into the world and challenging her once firm beliefs. Rich in insight into Indian culture and psychology, A Breath of Fresh Air resonates with meaning and the abiding power of love. In a landscape as intriguing as it is unfamiliar, Anjali’s struggles to reconcile the roles of wife and ex-wife, working woman and mother, illuminate both the fascinating duality of the modern Indian woman and the difficult choices all women must make. From the Hardcover edition.
The most comprehensive collection of papers in the field to date, this volume presents state-of-the-art research and commentary from more than fifty of the world's leading ethnobiologists. Covering a wide range of ecosystems and world regions, the papers center on global change and the relationships among traditional knowledge, biological diversity, and cultural diversity. Specific themes include the acquisition, persistence, and loss of traditional ecological knowledge; intellectual property rights and benefits sharing; ethnobiological classification; medical ethnobotany; ethnoentomology; ethnobiology and natural resource management; homegardens; and agriculture and traditional knowledge. The volume will be of interest to scholars in anthropology, ecology, and related fields and also to professionals in conservation and indigenous rights organizations.
