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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 2, 1992)
Author offers insight into Pakistani religion “The Crow Eaters” Bapsi Sidhwa Milkweed Editions By Bryan Peterson Staff Reporter _ First published in 1981, Bapsi SidhwaVTheCrow Eaters” has been revived as the second book in Milk weed Editions’ “Alive Again!” se ries. Milkweed is a thriving press in Minneapolis dedicated to preserving works of literature and art that might otherwise be lost between the finan cial considerations of overly conser vative mass market publ ishers and the limited printings of small presses. Sidhwa’s heritage straddles both Pakistan and India; she now lives in the United States. Drawing on her life experiences, Sidhwa has helped pre serve the fragile Parsec community in India in this and other writings. The book’s title refers to a deroga tory term given to the Parsecs, a reli gious sect that is trying to survive in a Pakistan full of other religions and is about to have India partitioned off from it. Moving from 1901 to 1940, the book centers largely on Faredoon (Freddy) Junglcwalla in his rise from a small-time merchant to a widely respected and influential man in his community. In this loosely connected series of talcs, the reader slowly finds a re markably rich and complex individual living in a similarly rich and complex community. Part hero and part scoundrel, Freddy follows his country through the unimagined changes wrought by the 20th century. Much like the patri archal figure in “Fiddler on the Roof,” Freddy is lorn between the demands of tradition and those of change as he builds a family and a business. Readers also witness the struggles of the Parsecs, and find them to be like most religions. Like any Western sect, the Parsecs have their extremists, hypocrites, and occasionally, those with sincere devotion. And, like many individuals in the West, Freddy has his foibles. He in structs his family in morals by quot ing English adages, often misquoting them in the process. At the same time, Courtesy of RCA Records Me Phi Me’s debut album, “One,” is rap/hip-hop music with a message. Nonconformist forges acoustic frontier in rap Me Phi Me “One” BMG/RCA “Space. The final frontier. These arc the voyages of the Me Phi Me.” And so starts the debut album of Me Phi Me. Me Phi Me is breaking through in a new style that includes acoustic guitars and harmonicas shared with groups such as Arrested Development and The Disposable Heroes of Hiphopracy. “We stand forindividualily”ispart of “the Credo” of Me Phi Me. “One” isan album explaining the philosophy of this artist. Nonconformity is the main idea played out in “One”. In .. and I Believe (the Credo),” it is said, “Get together but never conform to others again/We got our own brain/So I don’t need yours/Bc cause alone I am a powerful force.” The lines arc backed by samples from Ladysmith Black Mambazo. But let’s not forget that this is a hip-hop album. Periods also show up from James Brown and Sly and the Family Stone. However, live instruments arc fa vored throughout the disc. The drums are high powered, especially on the tracks “Dream of You” and “... and I Believe (the Credo)." “Pu’ Sho Hands 2Gctha” isa party/ dance-oriented track. This style doesn’t work for Me Phi Me. He needs to stick to songs with a message. When the only things the rhymes have to speak of is the funky music, the lyrics seem incorrect. The listeners get to sec homelessness from the homeless person’s pointof view in “Black Sun shine.” This is one of the album’s best tracks with solid drums, acoustic gui tar and a voice echo — all used to create deep feelings. Another solid track is the album's firstsinglc,“SadNcwDay.”Thissong was well received on the pop and R & B charts. “It Ain’t the Way It Was” isa song about having a relationship with an older woman. Listeners arc urged to look at each individual for his or her maturity and not just age. Throughout the album, Me Phi Me breaks into “Poetic Moments” and has short verse about individuality and positive living. Me Phi Me is a man trying to break the molds of rap, and he has done a good job. His acoustics musically set him into a new category of rap, just as his lyrics set him out as an individual. — Greg Schick he regularly exerts his growing influ ence in certain manners that arc not quite exemplary. Freddy sceshimself as working for the good in his ceaseless wheeling for position, currying of favor and secur ing of interests. At one point, he collects 50,000 rupees from a fellow Parsec to pay a 10,000-rupee bribe to a police officer to release the fellow’s son on drug smuggling charges. Freddy then dis tributes the balance among Parsec charities. Freddy summarizes himself while lecturing the wayward son of a friend, “The first rule one must observe is to respect the law. You can never run from it... though you may gel around it!” Sidhwa docs not let Freddy steal the show, interesting as he is. Many of the book’s tales revolve around other members of his family, each of them strong people in themselves and in relation to Freddy. Also connecting the tales is a vi brantstrand of bawdy humor, as when the tomboy daugfttcr of an English civil servant tries to pull the loincloth off Freddy’s Hindu gardener. Such antics help enliven the Parsec culture, but they arc balanced by the griefs and sorrows experienced by I__I Courtesy of Milkweed Editions Bapsi Sidhwa, an English-language novelist from Pakistan, writes about a Parsee family from India in her book, “The Crow Eaters.” Freddy and his family at other limes. The result is a full, variegated de piction of Parsec culture and some of its more remarkable, if fictional, char acters. In reality, the Parsecs arc a threat ened culture whose numbers arc di minishing and whose traditions arc slowly being compromised. With “The Crow Eaters,” Sidhwa has done much to further her “wish to portray the robust spirit and exuber ance that have served the Parsecs so well since their migration to India as refugees 1,300 years ago.” Country western Top 10 1. “Jesus and Mama,” Confeder ate Railroad 2. “No One Else on Earth,” Wynonna Judd 3. “Cafoon the Comer,” Sawyer Brown 4. “The Greatest Man I Never Knew,” Rcba McEntire 5. “Going Out of My Mind,” McBride & The Ride 6. “Lord Have Mercy on the Working Man,” Travis Trill 7. “We Shall Be Free,” Garth Brooks 8. “Seminole Wind,” John Ander son 9. “Letting Go,” Suzy Bogguss 10. “Help, I’m White and I Can’t Get Down,”GeczinslawBrothcrs Source Cashbox magazine Were Making a Difference. 0 American Heart * J| Association Jr Chair cxprcxj) lA|S|MMttd 245 N. 13th St. • Gunny Complex 475-5550 Offers expire 11/14/92 'HAIRCUT[ Pf™ & '| I Includes Shampoo & Blowdry j 1 Y .L ; $1Q99 ; $2999 j Reg. from $14.00 | Reg. from'$40.00 Musi present coupon. I Must present coupon. 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