The enigma of arrival: was a novelist born at the coffeehouse? - By N.L. Belardes
It’s been a long time since I thought of the V.S. Naipaul novel, The Enigma of Arrival (1988). V.S. Naipaul—ethnic Indian born in Trinidad. As a boy, an avid young swimmer, agile, island-smart, colonized into a world of island poverty. He becomes a writer, born into a post-colonial British life to inevitably create a discourse of suppressed, and mostly autobiographical histories in novels and short stories of his era; oh yes, British educated, and later traveled the world to trek among the very suppression he would unwind into a most perfect prose—and feeling dislocated from his Indian past, and never quite comfortable with his British planting—even within a stone’s throw it seems, of Stonehenge.
In The Enigma of Arrival his main character is loosely disguised as himself. He is always arriving at philosophic crossroads, familiar, yet untrodden, and his reflections are a disquieted path, puzzling, worn and yet not, with feet almost seeming to move like an old wind slowly poured downhill along a rocky path—in a gradual decline.
Yet, I never read The Enigma of Arrival for the story. I read it for the sentences. Ah, Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul is a Nobel prize winner in 2001 “for having united perceptive narrative and incorruptible scrutiny in works that compel us to see the presence of suppressed histories." I have been reading his works since the late 1990s; once again, mostly for the sentences (another of his works: A Way in the World).
What do I mean?
If you’re a writer and you discover a specific author’s sentences as natural and soothing as a breath of ocean salt air, then you have found something special. You have found reference works for a lifetime, obstacles to achieve and overcome—if perfection in your craft is what you seek. And so I pick up The Enigma of Arrival now and then and read passages so as to fill my lungs with someone else’s breath. After all, he was breathing when he created such words of breaths and exhales, pauses and commas and periods, verbs and phrases.
Prior to The Enigma of Arrival I read what I think is one of the most important works any writer could ever read: Sir Vidia’s Shadow (1998) by Paul Theroux. It is a book of such emotional charge for a writer that it can only propel a propensity for understanding the written word—for writing, I believe is not just about the craft—it’s about the relationships with those who mentor the craft. I continue to firmly believe that writing is sometimes having the ability to learn the nuances within the personalities of those who teach, live, and breath writing. It’s not just about sentence structure, though at times it is—a certain enigma.
Now, if you’re at all interesting in the craft of writing, you’re wondering…
Wondering is good!
Sir Vidia’s Shadow details the relationship behind a writer and mentor. Paul Theroux is a writer of immense volumes of fiction and travel narratives. Reading any of his works are journeys into culture and geographical zones that you or I may never visit. And Sir Vidia’s Shadow is no different, except that it describes a 30-year mentor-student relationship and falling out between V.S. Naipaul and Paul Theroux. Paul Theroux, the young Peace Corp teacher/writer in Africa, and stumbling into the path of V.S. Naipaul, who on his own path befriends a young Theroux. And the relationship goes from there.
The novel is exquisite. You learn from such a work. You grow—if you’re a writer. And why do I write about all of this talk? Must have been the enigma of the moment at a local coffeehouse yesterday. I met Ann Beman, local kayaker/writer from Kernville who wasn’t sure if she was a novelist, although she knew she was a writer.
Puzzled?
She’s writing a story for Bakersfield Magazine—a piece about Mexican art in dance, poetry, theatre… I mistook her for wanting to learn about fine art as well, for Mexican-American art affects all of these areas within Bakersfield: dance, theatre, music, film, poetry, literature, and media (MAS magazine has a very artistic slant in my opinion and much growth potential).
An interview at a local coffeehouse.
Believe it or not, she is interviewing me.
I brought A.S Ashley with me and he went ahead and spoke about specific local Latinos in fine arts. You see, we seem to speak more in generalities in Bakersfield. We’re Latino, or Hispanic (Unless you talk to Chencho—he will give you an earful about specific Latino cultures within Bakersfield Latino culture and a possible media slant towards Mexican-American culture in Bakersfield). At the Immigration marches, though there were displays of many flags, one couldn’t just simply discern an Ecuadorian, Puerto Rican or El Salvadorian apart from a Mexican-American while in the long march tail chanting "Sí Se Puede!"
Ann Beman's notebook...
It’s difficult explaining cultural manifestations of art in Bakersfield. Yes, there is a Bakersfield Renaissance in art that fuses artistic mediums with media. No, I couldn’t possible begin to understand all of Latino art in Bakersfield. For instance, who are all the Latino poets? I couldn’t tell you. I can make some guesses as to some of them. But most lurk in the shadows, are tucked away into their homes, in social groups I have no contact with; in college circles, in pairs here, or half a dozen there. I may never have an answer. Ann Beman may never have an answer. I did talk about my politicized poem “Immigration Interrogation” that I wrote for the May 1, 2006 Day of Action...
And we talked about what may happen for this year’s Day of the Dead in Bakersfield as well. We want to fuse culture and art—we want celebration and remembrance on an entirely new cultural level. Can that happen? You never know when N.L., A.S. Ashley and Matt Munoz smash their brains together…
Art curator A.S. Ashley talks Assemblage Show
Ashley wanted to talk about artists and the new downtown venue about to open, Capistrano where his big B.A.R. (Bakersfield Art Rave) “Downtown Sculpture and Assemblage Show” on August 19th and 26th offers to be one of the largest art shows ever in Bakersfield. Yes, it’s that big with an upstairs and downstairs… oh yes… Noveltown is going to help promote the show and also have an entry that projects videos on a wall.
Ann listens to Ashley's latest art rave rant...
I wondered if talking about the assemblage show fell outside of the current focus of Ann Beman’s article. Didn’t matter. It was all educational. And she’s from Kernville. Must be difficult to write an article about art scene culture in Bakersfield when you’re not even a city boy like us…
We moved on to talk about the creative writing, and about social networks. And while we conversed there was the the enigma of the coffeehouse moment coming from a possible epiphany from Ann Beman herself. Is she just a writer? Or is she also a novelist.
Perhaps the enigma of her arrival on Paperback Writer will eventually answer that…
In The Enigma of Arrival his main character is loosely disguised as himself. He is always arriving at philosophic crossroads, familiar, yet untrodden, and his reflections are a disquieted path, puzzling, worn and yet not, with feet almost seeming to move like an old wind slowly poured downhill along a rocky path—in a gradual decline.
Yet, I never read The Enigma of Arrival for the story. I read it for the sentences. Ah, Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul is a Nobel prize winner in 2001 “for having united perceptive narrative and incorruptible scrutiny in works that compel us to see the presence of suppressed histories." I have been reading his works since the late 1990s; once again, mostly for the sentences (another of his works: A Way in the World).
What do I mean?
If you’re a writer and you discover a specific author’s sentences as natural and soothing as a breath of ocean salt air, then you have found something special. You have found reference works for a lifetime, obstacles to achieve and overcome—if perfection in your craft is what you seek. And so I pick up The Enigma of Arrival now and then and read passages so as to fill my lungs with someone else’s breath. After all, he was breathing when he created such words of breaths and exhales, pauses and commas and periods, verbs and phrases.
Prior to The Enigma of Arrival I read what I think is one of the most important works any writer could ever read: Sir Vidia’s Shadow (1998) by Paul Theroux. It is a book of such emotional charge for a writer that it can only propel a propensity for understanding the written word—for writing, I believe is not just about the craft—it’s about the relationships with those who mentor the craft. I continue to firmly believe that writing is sometimes having the ability to learn the nuances within the personalities of those who teach, live, and breath writing. It’s not just about sentence structure, though at times it is—a certain enigma.
Now, if you’re at all interesting in the craft of writing, you’re wondering…
Wondering is good!
Sir Vidia’s Shadow details the relationship behind a writer and mentor. Paul Theroux is a writer of immense volumes of fiction and travel narratives. Reading any of his works are journeys into culture and geographical zones that you or I may never visit. And Sir Vidia’s Shadow is no different, except that it describes a 30-year mentor-student relationship and falling out between V.S. Naipaul and Paul Theroux. Paul Theroux, the young Peace Corp teacher/writer in Africa, and stumbling into the path of V.S. Naipaul, who on his own path befriends a young Theroux. And the relationship goes from there.
The novel is exquisite. You learn from such a work. You grow—if you’re a writer. And why do I write about all of this talk? Must have been the enigma of the moment at a local coffeehouse yesterday. I met Ann Beman, local kayaker/writer from Kernville who wasn’t sure if she was a novelist, although she knew she was a writer.
Puzzled?
She’s writing a story for Bakersfield Magazine—a piece about Mexican art in dance, poetry, theatre… I mistook her for wanting to learn about fine art as well, for Mexican-American art affects all of these areas within Bakersfield: dance, theatre, music, film, poetry, literature, and media (MAS magazine has a very artistic slant in my opinion and much growth potential).
An interview at a local coffeehouse.
Believe it or not, she is interviewing me.
I brought A.S Ashley with me and he went ahead and spoke about specific local Latinos in fine arts. You see, we seem to speak more in generalities in Bakersfield. We’re Latino, or Hispanic (Unless you talk to Chencho—he will give you an earful about specific Latino cultures within Bakersfield Latino culture and a possible media slant towards Mexican-American culture in Bakersfield). At the Immigration marches, though there were displays of many flags, one couldn’t just simply discern an Ecuadorian, Puerto Rican or El Salvadorian apart from a Mexican-American while in the long march tail chanting "Sí Se Puede!"
Ann Beman's notebook...
It’s difficult explaining cultural manifestations of art in Bakersfield. Yes, there is a Bakersfield Renaissance in art that fuses artistic mediums with media. No, I couldn’t possible begin to understand all of Latino art in Bakersfield. For instance, who are all the Latino poets? I couldn’t tell you. I can make some guesses as to some of them. But most lurk in the shadows, are tucked away into their homes, in social groups I have no contact with; in college circles, in pairs here, or half a dozen there. I may never have an answer. Ann Beman may never have an answer. I did talk about my politicized poem “Immigration Interrogation” that I wrote for the May 1, 2006 Day of Action...
And we talked about what may happen for this year’s Day of the Dead in Bakersfield as well. We want to fuse culture and art—we want celebration and remembrance on an entirely new cultural level. Can that happen? You never know when N.L., A.S. Ashley and Matt Munoz smash their brains together…
Art curator A.S. Ashley talks Assemblage Show
Ashley wanted to talk about artists and the new downtown venue about to open, Capistrano where his big B.A.R. (Bakersfield Art Rave) “Downtown Sculpture and Assemblage Show” on August 19th and 26th offers to be one of the largest art shows ever in Bakersfield. Yes, it’s that big with an upstairs and downstairs… oh yes… Noveltown is going to help promote the show and also have an entry that projects videos on a wall.
Ann listens to Ashley's latest art rave rant...
I wondered if talking about the assemblage show fell outside of the current focus of Ann Beman’s article. Didn’t matter. It was all educational. And she’s from Kernville. Must be difficult to write an article about art scene culture in Bakersfield when you’re not even a city boy like us…
We moved on to talk about the creative writing, and about social networks. And while we conversed there was the the enigma of the coffeehouse moment coming from a possible epiphany from Ann Beman herself. Is she just a writer? Or is she also a novelist.
Perhaps the enigma of her arrival on Paperback Writer will eventually answer that…
This entry was posted by N.L. Belardes, on
Saturday, August 05, 2006.
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......I always think best when I choking on my tongue! :p
great piece here! and that pic of the hand on the notebook is awesome! Day of the Dead coming? too cool!
Wow, I really have droopy eyes. I was way more into what Ashley was saying than I look.
Wow, my mama was a debutante and my daddy was Droopy the dawwg! I was way more interested in what Ashley was saying than that.
Nah--your head was angled down and you had to strain to see Ashley through the coffeehouse mist...
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