When one is passionate about something then nothing can stop one from indulging in the passion. Nothing can deter them, not sun, not rain or illness. Even if it is hot enough outside to melt tar I do not like to miss an opportunity to seek what I am most passionate about- books. Last Sunday it was hot as hell when I reached Abids at eleven. Even a cap couldn’t keep out the heat but I browsed for over two hours and in the end it was worth the trip for I returned with a book, even if it was just one book that I found.
John O’ Hara’s a familiar name for me though I haven’t read any book by him. I might have read a couple of short stories that he has written but not a full length book. He seems to have written quite a number of books that have sold well. I found a book of his columns last Sunday at Abids. The book is titled ‘My Turn’ published in the late sixties, around the time I was born.
John O' Hara was a veteran journalist and hence many of the articles in the book deal with politics and administration. The articles are some of the best ones that have been published during, I guess, 1965. Some of them are delightful personal essays on topics as diverse as why he will continue to smoke no matter what to the pervasiveness of TV, Thornton Wilder and Gore Vidal but most of them are on politics and the goings on in Hollywood and the television industry. The articles are full of biting wit and most of them are quite enjoyable.
John O' Hara, with over forty years of journalistic experience has a keen, observant mind, and quite a turn of phrase. Some of the arresting lines I could find while flipping through the book are:
‘One explanation for the fact that a husband and wife who have been married a long time begin to look alike is that they eat the same food.’
‘Accidental tactlessness is one of the marks of the amateur.’
‘My Turn’ is a slim book with not more than thirty pieces in it. I got the book for only ten rupees. I plan to dip into it now and then between reading other stuff.
Next Post on MONDAY: Trip No. 10
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