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Have you ever wondered what people are going on about when they say their excuse is ‘bona fide’, describe your girlfriend as rather ‘gauche’, or tell you to quit ‘kowtowing’ to everyone?

A new book in the library can shed light on these and other words and phrases from other languages. The explanations are clear, giving the often fascinating origins of the words and examples of their current use.

 KOWTOW : Derived from words meaning ‘knock’ and ‘head’, kowtow relates to the one-time practice in China of touching the head to the floor as a mark of extreme respect in the presence of a superior; hence it means to ’show sycophancy’, to ‘grovel’:

eg. French critics have accused their own government of simply kowtowing to Beijing.

Each word or phrase is also given a ‘Pretensiousness Index’, so you can decide whether you really wish to include it in your vocabulary! 

Anyone interested in language will enjoy dipping into Faux Pas when they have a few moments to spare. 

Mrs Sweeney

The sequel to Diego Run is out! Actually, I didn’t find it as exciting as Diego Run, but if you read the former you’ll probably still be keen to find out what happens to Diego. He becomes involved in a blockade by Coca farmers, attempting to dissuade the Bolivian government from confiscating the farmers’ Coca harvests. Hit by rubber bullets and tear gas Diego once again proves himself tenacious and brave. Does he make it back to his parents? Read it to find out.

Mrs Sweeney

Emil and Karl is a story about the holocaust suitable for readers in their early teens. I class it amongst other great books in this genre, such as I Am David, The Boy in Striped Pyjamas and the Diary of Ann Frank. One fascinating difference however, is that it was published in 1940. The author, whilst aware of the anti-semitic atmosphere in Europe and the distressing treatment of Jews already taking place, could not have predicted the mind-numbing scale of the extermination that was to come.

This is a tale of a much more personal nature – the story of two small boys who find themselves without parents in the troubled city of Vienna in 1938. Emil’s parents have been taken away because they are socialists. Karl is a Jew, and his mother succumbs to insanity when her husband is arrested. The boys must fend for themselves, aided by two resistance fighters - Hans, who masquerades as a simpleton in order to escape the suspicion of the nazis, and his kind, pragmatic wife, Matilda.

Emil and Karl’s story is one of loving humanity, friendship and loss. It was beautifully written in Yiddish by the Polish Glatshteyn, who aimed to inform young American Jews of the events unfolding in Europe. Published for the first time in English in 2006, its power is undiminished 66 years after it was written.

Mrs Sweeney

The story runs from 1933 in a Bulgarian village along the Danube to Moscow to Spain to Paris to the Alsace and back down the Danube to the Black Sea. A young Bulgarian observes the rise of fascism, is recruited to the NKVD, trains a s a spy, is assigned to the communist ‘volunteers’ in the Spanish Civil War, is betrayed and escapes to Paris, is betrayed and imprisoned, is released and escapes to the Vosges becomes a partisan and is betrayed again, escapes and journeys down the Danube to try to save and old friend deep in Soviet controlled Eastern Europe … is saved by an old friend. The nobility of the human spirit ascends above a less than ideal world. Noir, Noir, Noir!

Mr Wheat

This is a self contained novel that chronicles the life of Huckleberry Finn’s father. It is a fine example of American Literature with simple, clear yet evocative prose that matches the novel’s setting on the Mississippi River. The central character, Finn is simple and quite base. Finn, as a consequence of his lack of thought and compassion, acts out a number of dark deeds. The novel chronicles these without moralizing. Highly Recommended Reading!

Dr Coulson

It’s incredible what lengths some dedicated and passionate teachers will go to just to get people reading! A primary teacher in Colombia enlists the help of his two donkeys every weekend. Intrigued? Read this inspiring article.

There’s a charming slideshow too.

Image: New York Times 23/10/08  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/20/world/americas/20burro.html?_r=3&ei==5070&emc=eta1&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin 

Mrs Sweeney

This was a timely read for this Philip Pullman fan, with the Sally Lockhart series on the ABC and renewed interest in His Dark Materials with the release of “The Golden Compass’ last year. Nicholas Tucker guides the reader through the major influences in Pullman’s life and writings and introduces us to the recurring themes of science and religion in his books. An insightful and immensely enjoyable celebration of the world of Phillip Pullman.

In apparently one of the first novels to deal with the 9/11 tragedy, Jonathan Safran Foer writes with a post-modern flair using multiple narrators, scrap-book photographs, coloured highlights, a variety of fonts and layout, and even blank pages to give his book a stimulating visual dimension. Oskar is a nine-year-old amateur inventor, jewellery designer, astrophysicist, tambourine player and pacifist whose father died in the World Trade Centre collapse. Oskar embarks on a quest for answers about what exactly happened to his father and why; a haunting, humorous and emotional story.

Ms Crynes

Mister Pip is set in a small village on an unnamed tropical island which closely resembles 1990s Bouganville during its struggle for autonomy. As the Papua New Guinean embargo and fighting close in, all the whites leave the island, leaving Matilda and her friends without a school teacher. Mr Watts, a strange, tragi-comic figure who is married to a black woman, takes over the role. His only resource is a copy of Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations, which he reads to the students in segments. The story follows the relationships which build between the students and Mr Watts, the coming of rebels, Matilda’s relationship with her mother and Matilda’s later life. The novel explores the impact which fictional texts, and particularly their characters, can have on readers as a relationship between the two develops. The book is ambiguous in its message: while on one hand the students are enriched by the work of a canonical Western author, it is Great Expectations which leads to major violence in the village. And while the reader expects Mr Watts to become a stereotypically inspiring teacher, he ends up being honestly portrayed as lacking power, knowledge and certainty. This book is easy to read yet at the same time thought-provoking.

Ms MacFie

Aravind Adiga has won the 2008 Man Booker Prize for his first novel, The White Tiger.

The novel is about the struggles of a rickshaw puller in New Delhi, and is described by the judges as a book that “shocked and entertained in equal measure”.

Aravind spent some of his teenage years in Sydney, and claims this influenced his writing about the class systems in India. Read this interesting interview with the 33 year old author.

Mrs Sweeney