Old stories, new twists

There are only so many plot twists, character types, settings and scenarios in the world. Inevitably, the same stories are going to be told over and over, but with a variation. Maybe Cinderella's evil stepsister wants to clear her name, or Ophelia would like to be known as more than the girl who drowns herself over Hamlet. Perhaps Romeo and Juliet are needed outside of Vienna to be reincarnated as an interfaith or interracial couple to show the bias of our times. Catherine Ryan Hyde, the author of Pay it Forward, tells another incredible story, or rather retells one, in Chasing Windmills. Hyde retells "West Side Story" with Maria, a single mother of two with an abusive boyfriend, and Sebastian, a teenager whose father gives him absolutely no freedom. To escape, they both ride the subway all night long anxiously. When they meet life seems brighter and full of possibilities, like running away to be near the windmills Sebastian remembers in the Mojave Desert. Ah, but Hyde would not be a great storyteller if she simply retold an old story with new faces. What appears to the reader as a simple love story hits on bigger idealistic issues of unselfish love and breaking free from the cycles we are born into. It is beautifully done right to its conclusion. Hyde makes this classic story transcend time and speak to another generation in way that may be more memorable than the original.

Like the great story lines, immigrant stories are ones we tell over and over. Tales of families learning to live and love in America while balancing the opportunity versus the deep longing for family left behind. The movie version of The Namesake by Pulitzer Prize winner Jhumpa Lahiri is a beautiful new addition to the library's collection. When Ashima and Ashoke move to America, they leave their stories and traditions behind, such as when Ashima gives birth to a son and the hospital won't let him leave without a name. It is common practice in India for a child to go by a pet name until he is registered for school and given a "good name." Completely unprepared to give their son his good name on the spot, they name him Gogol, after Russian writer Nicolai Gogol who influenced Ashoke's decision to leave India. Protagonist Gogol is American, the stories and traditions of his family seem so far removed from him and further still from his younger sister Sonia. He struggles to find an important balance between assimilation and keeping sacred the history and culture of his Bengali parents. This movie paints a portrait of a family torn between old and new. Hal Penn portrays Gogol, and it's a breath of fresh air to see him in a serious role.

We retell stories so often they become familiar as an old sweater, worn and comforting. The plotlines become so familiar we could almost recite them before we begin them. This is also true of teen books, with a set of resonating classics. Ellen Wittlinger's Printz Honor Book Hard Love is a classic story about a boy who falls for a beautiful, talented girl - the girl he knows quite well is a lesbian. Wittlinger continues the adventures of her well-loved characters in Love and Lies, a story about the girl, Marisol, deferring college to write her novel and fall in love. For the many fans of "Hard Love" it is a much appreciated continuation to see a much-loved character from the first book return older, wiser, but still vulnerable. It is not to be missed if, like me, you have read and re-read "Hard Love."

- Maria Catherino

Circulation Department