English Lessons & Other Stories

by Shauna Singh Baldwin

Shauna Singh Baldwin’s passionate stories dramatize the lives of Indian women from 1919 to today, from India to Canada to the US. Through the eyes of these women adjusting to change, we see a world whose familiar rhythms mask dissonance and discordance. More overt is the ongoing struggle for the Sikh women in these stories to keep their identity and assert it — the massacres of Partition and 1984 are never far away. More subtle is the cost of integration into the new world, how colonialism survives in the minds of the colonized, and how these women confront the twin fear of freedom and fear of “the other.” Moving from the inner sanctums of the family to the world of the office, subway and university, Baldwin lingers sensuously on the mundane surface of her characters’ lives: the jewel-like colours of turbans in the wash water, the shimmering bowls of cashews and almonds on a table, the worn magic of an abandoned house in Shimla. Slowly, almost innocuously, Baldwin reveals the unseen country her characters inhabit, only to allow this world to withdraw and emerge once again. However modern or westernized they might be, Baldwin’s characters are always outsiders who inhabit silence and learn to use it, sometimes as a refuge, sometimes as a weapon. Some remain prisoners of silence, choking on their own knowledge. Some use silence as a weapon against their oppressors. Others harness its power to seize their freedom. In “Jassie,” an aging, dying Indian grandmother, a foreigner in her adopted country, helps another woman come to terms with death; in “A Pair of Ears,” a servant-woman wreaks revenge on an old woman’s feckless son; in “Nothing Must Spoil this Visit,” western and eastern women find unexpected candour and passion.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, India, Canada

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Shauna Singh Baldwin is a Canadian-American novelist of Indian descent. Her 2000 novel What the Body Remembers won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize (Canadian/Caribbean Region), and her 2004 novel The Tiger Claw was nominated for the Giller Prize. She currently lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Baldwin and her husband own the Safe House, an espionage themed restaurant in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Reviews

[Amar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a wonderful account of the Indian (predominatly Punjabi) immigrant experience in America and Canada. The author's lyrical prose brings the reader into each character's life on an intimate level, rather than making the reader feel like a casual observer. Although most of the short stories are told from a female's point of view, readers across the board will be drawn in by the author's in depth afinity for character evolvment.

The short story, Montreal, 1962, is the highlight of the collection, with it's tearful account of a Punjabi housewife's ability to see beyond the symbolism of her Sikh husband's turban.

[Luce Cronin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually enjoy short stories, but this collection, compiled with stories that link themes to each other and make the reader see the diverse progressions of the life of Indian women, really engaged. me. Well written stories with vivid characters that are real and alive. As the cover notes - "The women inhabit silence - by saying little, they can know everything" . In the words of the author, these women all become "adjustable" women.

[Karthik · Rating 1 out of 5]

Every now and then it's good to read a bad book to make the good ones seem more enjoyable. This book's writing is unworthy even of a personal blog, though some of the stories were endurable.

[Harman Uppal · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars — In her debut collection, Shauna Singh Baldwin effectively captures the Indo-Canadian/American experience with delightful prose and authentic cultural syntax. All the stories focus on female characters navigating language, gender and culture within Indian and Western traditions alike. The subject matter ranged a bit, though the focus was mostly on Sikhs around the world and their connections to others as well as home. As a Sikh Punjabi myself, I naturally found myself drawn to these women’s stories and voices, each one distinct in their own right. Baldwin does a great job of giving life to these characters, making them jump off the page. Though none of the male characters are as memorable, Baldwin’s attention to detail for her female protagonists is one of the best qualities of her writing.

Conversely, I found the collection front-loaded with Baldwin’s best work. The stories in the second half seemed fragmentary and sometimes rushed. The brevity of certain works is further aggravated by some of the longer stories, one of which clocked in at thirty pages (and focused a lot on its male characters) compared to the four or five pages other female (and much more interesting) characters get. Combining a few stories, linking some of the characters that appear only once, or spending a bit more time with some of the issues Baldwin occasionally skirts around (like the Air India flight 182), would have alleviated the abruptness of her shorter works and made the collection more cohesive overall. Because Baldwin’s writing is sometimes so terse, I had to re-read lines, paragraphs, or even pages to catch the quick-moving plot. While some moments felt a bit contrived (the car scene in "Devika"), others feel more natural when they are given a longer set up and more time to breathe ("Nothing Must Spoil This Visit"). For these reasons, as well as the weaker stories in the second half of the collection, I could not give this book a full 4 stars. Otherwise, I am excited to read Baldwin’s debut novel and second short story collection!

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[Pankaj · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very cliched, stereotypical account from an immigrant's perspective. A few stories dealing with partition were more lyrical in their description of a way of life long lost.

[Roberto · Rating 5 out of 5]

«There is always the revenge of the powerless».

[Mads · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had some mixed feeling with this book. A few stories are fairly okay as it moves through time from the 60-ies to more modern times with the various struggles of Indian Sikh immigrants and how cultures misread each other. Irony could have done wonders with this material, but there is a bitterness that (hopefully) was unintentional. Although Baldwin takes a first person perspective, the book takes a rather beaten path with stereotyping and one dimensional characters. A moralistic and at times condescending tone makes it great for parents to give to teenage daughters in an effort to keep them on "the right path". I take in account that for the time it was written (1996) it's already somewhat older. Lahiri did a far better job with Interpreter of Maladies and Unaccustomed earth on the same topic and giving an in depth look at the Indian culture.

[Satwinder Bains]

The first book I read of Shauna Singh Baldwin's had me thirsting for more. So many of my life's moments were captured with such beauty that it took my breath away. I loved the short stories and yearned to read more. Spellbound by the words and how they met my eyes with such kindness and caring.

[Shaheena · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good short story book with South Asian Background. I loved her other book (What the Body remembers) and this is good too in another format.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting and engaging look at cultural expectations of (mostly) Sikh women. The stories in the collection fit together well and provided a variety of perspectives.

[Jas Deol · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this!!!! i could relate to the traditional theme - and the last short story "devika" was creepy as hell! great writing!

[Misskennypenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book.

[Sameera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would say this is 3.5
The author spins out stories - earthy !

[Anna Pearce · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not usually a fan of short stories, but I really enjoyed this collection. I recommend readers not skip the discussions at the end of the book.

[Robert Vaughan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great stories that push the envelope from an immigrant's perspective. Very relatable and prosaic.

[Sanka]

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