Reading assignment

Your assignment while I am away is to get your hands on a copy of Salman Rushdie's The Jaguar Smile and read it. You won't have any new RBlog updates to read, so use one of the best writers on the face of the planet to fill the void.

You should do this for a couple of reasons. Mainly, it's embarrassing how few of you can pick out Nicaragua on a map -- and you are a very well educated bunch. It also bothers me that so many people I've talked to seem to have a negative reaction to the concept of visiting Nicaragua. The country is associated with danger and calamity, but only because it was on the news a lot in the eighties. No one knows much in terms of specifics -- just that it was on TV for some bad reason and is therefore a dangerous place. This is that whole ugly American phenomenon we hear so much about in action. If we're going to assume that something is scary, shouldn't we at least know why?

If that reason doesn't motivate you, you should read The Jaguar Smile because Rushdie is a phenomenal writer. He blows my mind every time I pick up one of his books. This one is no exception. The Sandinistas invited Rushdie to visit Nicaragua in 1986. The Jaguar Smile is comprised of essays focusing on that experience, portraits of the Sandinista leaders, as well as Rushdie's reflections on the land and people of Nicaragua.

I'll bring back a bottle of Flor de Caña for the first one to finish the book (for real) and post some reasonably intelligent comments about it on RBlog.