THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: “The memories of the place you were born in never leaves you. You carry the memories everywhere you go,” said author-turned journalist Binoo K John, at the launch of his debut novel ‘The Last Song of Savio de Souza’, set in the city of Thiruvananthapuram. At a reading organised in DC Books, Statue, on Saturday, the author interacted with a gathering of the reading public and took part in a brief Q&A session.
The events in ‘The Last Song’ unfold in the coastal township surrounding Vettucaud Church and crisscross the city in their course. Once you get the setting and the language right, the story is told spontaneously, said Binoo. He added that it was difficult for Indian English writers to find their audience. “In book stores, you compete with the likes of John Updike placed next to your book.
‘‘And you also vie for attention with the translations of classics. This is one of the greatest concerns of a fiction writer,” he said.
Answering a question, he said that Arundhati Roy was a major influence as the author who first brought the milieu of Kerala to international attention.
“There is also her experiment with language after which Indian English authors have stopped glossing words and usages in vernacular.
‘‘I have used a lot of Malayalam words and have left it to the readers to figure out the meaning from the context. In most cases, they can make it out without you explaining it to them.”
Binoo is the author of the best selling non-fiction ‘Entry Through Back Door Only: Hazar Fundas of Indian English’ and the travelogue ‘Under a Cloud: Life in Chirapunji, Wettest Place on Earth’.
On being asked what made him shift to the genre of literary fiction, Binoo said, “To write fiction in English, one has to have a lot of confidence. With non-fiction, I am quite at ease with myself since I have been a journalist and reported important events. But, fiction was always at the back of my mind.”
Author-publisher Madhu Nair introduced the book and blog writer Soni Somarajan engaged the author in a brief face-to-face. The book is published by Harper Collins.