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Books: Queen of the hills
Kohima-born and Norway-based award-winning author Easterine Kire, 63, has taken Naga literature to a global readership
Novelist and poet Easterine Kire is trying to balance book events and time with family these days, following the release of her latest work, Spirit Nights.
“It was at least four-and-a-half years ago that I heard the story of Chang Naga village falling under a curse of darkness for a period of time. It fascinated me and I began my book from there, using that story as seed,” says the Norway-based author, who hails from Kohima, Nagaland.
“I have been living in Norway for more than 15 years and my stay began with a residency as guest writer of the Municipality and the University of Tromsø and Norwegian PEN,” she shares.
Prize of a lifetime
In 2003, Easterine wrote the first Naga novel in English, titled A Naga Village Remembered. In 2015, she was awarded the Hindu Prize for Best Fiction for When the River Sleeps. She has written immensely popular and award-winning children’s literature, too, and her book Son of the Thundercloud was awarded the Tata Book of the Year Award (2017) and the Bal Sahitya Puraskar (2018).
“The story [Son of the Thundercloud] imagines Christ as a Naga boy growing up in a Naga setting. It was inspired both by Christology and my culture. It is actually designed as a book for all ages,” she smiles.
The author sees the significance of awards as mostly for her readers to learn that what they are reading has value, and most of all, that their cultures have value. “This is because we have experienced devaluing and erasure,” she explains.
Spirit of the Nagas
Easterine, 63, obtained her doctorate in English literature from the University of Poona, and writes books with different themes.
“When I write historical fiction, it is about documenting the oral and unwritten history of my people. When I write a book like Spirit Nights, it explores the reality of the spirit world that my culture embraces,” says the author.
Regarding the choice of subject for her latest book, Easterine says: “Many Naga tribes have an account of periods of sudden inexplicable darkness descending on the earth and lasting for days. The book examines one such story, using it as seed. The Reverend Chingmak Chang gave the sage comment that it is also about all of us going through our own darkness. I think that describes the book very well. There are many spiritual lessons to be learnt out of the dark time.”
Spirit Nights is unique in many ways, including the “setting of the world in which the story takes place and the spiritual wisdom it uses to combat the darkness”. And possibly the fact that the main protagonist is a 93-year-old woman seer.
Easterine didn’t take very long to finish this book as she writes incessantly until the story comes out in its full form!
The write choice
“However, I let it lie for many months before returning to it. Then, of course, the editing and revising and cross checking of cultural practices, names, etc. took some more months to complete,” she says.
Speaking about her writing process, Easterine says: “When I start a new book, I write for days together. I focus on a single book until the story is resolved. After that, I usually move on to other books and return to the new book with new eyes to revise or edit. I have learnt to give spaces for the story to breathe and take on its own personality before I go back to it.”
Amongst regional writers, she likes Janice Pariat, Robin Ngangom and Dhruba Hazarika along with a whole crop of brilliant younger writers.
“I want to read them all, as they will all become favourites,” she says.
As of now, Easterine is working on a few projects, none of which she chooses to name!
Mid-year surprise!
A surprise goodie box is making its way to the most dedicated participants of the #BrunchBookChallenge this year
Dear Readers,
We are truly thrilled to see so many of you participate in this year’s #BrunchBookChallenge! To appreciate this dedication, we have put together a goodie box for all those who have already completed 20 books (and above) by mid-year this year.
Until we declare the winners in February 2023, please remember to Tweet the title of every book you finish, tag @HTBrunch and use the hashtag #BrunchBookChallenge. For more information, go to https://www.read.ht/L9RM
—Lubna Salim, Director, Brunch Book Challenge
Here’s the list of winners!
1@aamiyagarg
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4@SidReviews
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49@ PavitraPai
50@Mimeticsian
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55@AdvikRajaani
Gifts from Bloomsbury, HarperCollins, Rupa Publications and Aleph Book Company, Simon & Schuster and Octavius tea. Please DM us your full name, address and contact number so we can dispatch your goodie box.
From HT Brunch, August 13, 2022
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