Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, November 19, 1995 TAG: 9511170124
SECTION: BOOK PAGE: F-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
By Gina V. Kaiper. Days and Years Press. $11.95 (trade paper).
As her husband lies dying, Dorcas Howell sits in the attic sorting through memories of her life so far, the first 60 years of the 19th century. While friends and relatives discuss the election of Abraham Lincoln and the possibility of secession, Dorcas ponders a woman's lot and slavery in North Carolina.
Gina V. Kaiper's "I Shall Never Speak" spends many pages describing life in a small community and then in the small city of Fayetteville in the early 1800s. We see society's expectations of women, as well as women's ways to assert themselves and create; in this case, through needlework, painting and even teaching. The feminist theme is reinforced by Dorcas' sitting in the attic, a common metaphor in women's literature.
The final third of the novel gets to plot and the second theme - the effect of slavery on slaves and, more strongly, on their owners. Dorcas makes a decision that echoes Huck Finn's willingness to go to hell rather than return Jim to slavery. Her decision also re-emphasizes the ways a woman finds power in a man's society.
Readers interested in the real antebellum South - not Tara - and who are willing to wait a while for plot will enjoy "I Shall Never Speak." But it's not for the John Grisham crowd.
- M. KATHERINE GRIMES
Grains, Rice and Beans.
By Kevin Graham. Artisan. $30.
Gorgeous color photography by Ellen Silverman further enhances Kevin Graham's already terrific new cookbook. Noting the universal appeal of these foods around the world, Graham includes his favorite recipes as well as those most popular at his restaurant, Graham's, near the French Quarter in New Orleans.
Such familiar ingredients as pinto beans appear in pinto beans with parsley, garlic and anchovy dressing, while less well-known such as quinoa show up in grilled chicken with quinoa and sauteed fennel. Just a sampling of the wealth of recipes also includes brown rice with peaches, crab and scallion couscous cakes with cucumber vinagrette, hummus with roasted garlic and warm herb crepes, and peanut soup.
In addition to these clearly detailed recipes, Graham also includes information on each type of bean, grain, rice and nut featured in the book with historical details. In that area, Graham writes that aramanth, once a key ingredient of Aztec cuisine, was systemically wiped out by the conquering Cortez, helping lead to the destruction of the Aztec culture.
This useful and beautiful book comes highly recommended.
- HARRIET LITTLE
Jubilee Time: Celebrating Women, Spirit and the Advent of Age.
By Maria Harris. Bantam. $22.95.
"Old girl," "oldster," "golden girl' - you will not find those names in Maria Harris' "Jubilee Time." Harris - an author, lecturer and educator - has coined "Jubilarian," a word derived from the biblical Jubilee.
Jubilee was ordained to be a hallowed 50th year when land would lie fallow, debts forgiven, property returned to original owners and slaves freed. It was a time for celebration and reflection, as well as the embarkation point for a new journey. Harris deftly weaves themes from that ancient tradition into a modern celebration of life at 50 and beyond. Her aim is "to help women enter the second half of life with a refreshed spirituality, an increased freedom, and a richer sense of themselves." Biblical Jubilee is just as appropriate for men as for women, she says, "but I have found that a variety of social, spiritual, historical, and biological factors mark the years after 50 as an especially fruitful time in the lives of women."
Harris offers rituals, guided meditations and provocative exercises designed to increase self-awareness and deepen spirituality. The author draws on her own experience as a Jubilarian; on the writings of such women as May Sarton, Elizabeth Janeway, Doris Grumbach and Florida Scott-Maxwell; and on the responses of more than 140 women to her questionnaire on growing older.
"Jubilee Time" is a book to be savored in solitude or shared in community with like-minded women. There is wisdom here, challenge, and "holy work" for women of any age.
- MARIE S. BEAN
M. Katherine Grimes teaches English at Ferrum College.
Harriet Little teaches at James River high school
Marie S. Bean is a retired college chaplain.
by CNB