Hola folks. Welcome back to another edition of #BookBytes. The lockdown derailed me for a while but I’m back now and I just finished reading The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes. I picked it up with some amount of trepidation but I’m glad I did. I won’t go into what the book is about. You’ll have to wait for my review coming right up this Friday. Do drop by.
Meanwhile here’s a quote that struck me with how apt it was.
“You know the worst thing about a man hitting you?” Margery said finally. “Ain’t the hurt. It’s that in that instant you realize the truth of what it is to be a woman. That it doesn’t matter how smart you are, how much better at arguing, how much better than them period. It’s when you realize they can always shut you up with a fist. Just like that.” She mulled over it for a moment, then straightened up, and flashed Alice a tight smile. “Course, you know that only happens till you learn to hit back harder”
– The Giver of Stars, Jojo Moyes.
I find it hard to handle violence in books as well as films which is why I shy away from them, specially the ones that depict graphic violence against women.
Have you read one that left a lasting impression on you? Would you recommend it?
I happened to watch the Hindi film ‘Thappad’ recently and that brought this quote even more sharply into focus. Hitting a woman is the cruelest, stupidest, most barbaric way of shutting her up.
Perhaps hitting back harder is the only way. What do you think?
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Violence always affects me – whether in books or movies or real life.
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Yup, I get that.
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Maybe in some cases hitting back harder is the right thing to do. While in some other situations, it’s best to walk away. I recently saw Thappad too, and I really admired the calm determined strength displayed by Taapsee’s character.
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Yup I agree. I’d have said walking away was the better option but sometimes, as in the book, it just wasn’t an option. Then you have to learn to hit back.
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I can’t deal with violence too. The subtle violence in Purple Hibiscus was enough to haunt me. Loved the quote and the way it ended.
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Oh I remember that one. I was much younger when I read it and it haunted me too for a long time.
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Wow! The first thing that popped up in my mind when reading the quote was that scene in the movie ‘Thappad’. It made me think about the best response ..boils down to individual’s situation really. That said, it also requires the strength of character to do the right thing and live with it.
“I find it hard to handle violence in books as well as films which is why I shy away from them” – I’m the same too!
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Right. It’s our individual situation and also some bit of our own personality that will guide our response.
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Oh, and love that you BookBytes is back OM. Will try joining in for the next one.
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I’m looking forward to it Priya. This fortnight’s edition is live now.
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