Megaliths, Mounds, and Peace

So I've been completely absorbed lately in the research for my paranormal novel. Part of what I'm checking out are ancient civilizations. Like, ancient. The kind that built megaliths and have sometimes been termed "moundbuilder civilizations" by archeologists.

It's amazing to me that ancient peoples all over the planet built and created structures that were identical and, quite feasibly, for similar purposes. Societies in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, South, Central, and North America all created -- often by hauling massive stones or earth for many, many miles -- giant megaliths, or something like megaliths. And many built what scientists presume to be ancient observatories for monitoring the movements of the stars and planets. Did you know that a thousand years before Stonehenge, there were Stonehenge-like observatories in parts of Africa and South America? And that there are pyramids in Central and South American, and China? I did not. Yet another reason I LOVE what I do.

Were these one people who roamed from place to place on the planet over thousands of years, setting up identical mounds, pyramids, and behemoth boulder-structures? Or did all the peoples of the world, at some point in time, revere the same things, follow similar rituals and rites, and look to the stars for answers?

If you want to check out some of the sites, here is a list of the world's archaeoastronomical sites from Wikipedia.

And here is one of my absolutely favourite bits -- there is a neolithic structure in Germany called the Goseck Circle. Here's what Wiki says about it:

The Goseck circle is a Neolithic structure in Goseck in the Burgenlandkreis district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It consists of a set of concentric ditches 75 meters (246 feet) across and two palisade rings containing gates in defined places. It is considered the earliest sun observatory currently known in the world. Interpretations of the ring suggest that European Neolithic and Bronze Age people measured the heavens far earlier and more accurately than historians have thought. The site was made public in August 2003.

Here's an aerial view:

Site of the Goseck circle. The yellow lines represent the direction the Sun rises and sets at the winter solstice, while the vertical line shows the astronomical meridian

I'm sorry, but that is an ancient peace symbol if I ever saw one . . .

I don't know about you, but stuff like this gives me the chills. In a good way.

Peace, y'all!

Lyn Miller-Lachman's GRINGOLANDIA

GRINGOLANDIA is about Daniel Aguilar who, as a young boy, witnesses his father's capture by the forces of the Pinochet dictatorship in Chile in 1980. The story begins with a tense, gripping scene where young Daniel has to bear silent witness to a nightmare and, as all children do when faced with traumatic situations where they are completely powerless, Daniel blames himself for his father's capture -- believing it was his inability to stay silent that finally gave away his father's whereabouts.

The novel portrays, with brutal honesty, how torture affects not just the person forced to endure it, but the entire family system, with a resounding impact. When Daniel's father, Marcelo, returns home five-and-a-half years later, after his release from prison, the whole family begins a journey of healing, discovery, forgiveness, and conscious awareness. Daniel is now a teenager with a very American life--not at all the little boy his father last saw. And Marcelo is not at all the father Daniel remembers.

The relationships in this book were deftly handled, and Miller-Lachman seamlessly threaded the connections between the personal and political. Political trauma always leaves personal wounds and the victims most affected are often those with the least power. I love that the author didn't shy away from the tough scenes, and I also love that Daniel was a regular guy trying to live a regular, teen life. He had a band, a girlfriend (a fierce, activist girlfriend, no less), and his desires and angst were just so believably teen.

Marcelo, as a character, was richly drawn, with depth and resonance--I've never known survivors of torture, but I saw my own father in Marcelo many times. I saw my uncles and so many of the men I've known throughout my life who have made similar, hobbling journeys back to their children. I saw the cultural rift between generations that hits so close to home for me as an immigrant whose first language is not English. And the doubts, insecurities, and anguish that come with being children of broken fathers were skillfully woven into the characters' interactions and throughout the dialogue.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning about a chapter of Chilean history we don't hear much about, to anyone who is interested in the bonds and fissures of familial relationships, and anyone who wants to read an engaging, absorbing book with strong, believable characters. GRINGOLANDIA is a novel about roots and wings, belonging and family, home and love, and, ultimately, hope.

I would also highly recommend the Teacher's Guide to Gringolandia that Lyn has on her site. I learned more from reading that guide than I've ever known about Chilean history and the U.S.-backed coup to topple the Allende regime. Fascinating stuff.

GRINGOLANDIA is available for purchase here, and you can find more information about Lyn and her work on her website.

Cybils Discussion

There's an interesting discussion going on at Black-eyed Susan's blog about the Cybils and, yet again, the dearth of a variety of stories by and about PoC (in particular, African-American stories that go beyond the usual historical narratives of slavery and victimization). Here is a part of one of my comments in the thread -- it is in response to another commenter noting how publishers seem to go for what kids *want* and not what might be valuable for them to read/see:

"Focusing on what kids *want* is about profit. For instance, my 8-yr-old wants chocolate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But I, as her parent, am not going to give her chocolate three times a day because I want to feed her something nutritious, I want her brain to develop, and I want her to progress throughout her day with energy and vibrant health. The same is true for media images. Both my kids want whatever they see advertised on TV. They want to watch every popular film that comes out. I make the decision as to what they will get and watch based on what I think will, again, provide the ultimate nourishment for their minds, bodies, and souls.

Likewise, culture and media shape our children's perspectives. The images (or lack of) they see around themselves that reflect the world back to them inform their views of who they are and who they can be. If there are no images of young children of colour, that tells them they are invisible. If all they see are stereotypical images or images of victims, that is how they perceive themselves. Keep in mind that this is while white children get to see themselves reflected in the wide variety of roles available to them: in comedy, in drama, in fantasy, in history, as villains, as heroes, in joy AND in pain.

And, honestly, bloggers do play a significant role here. Bloggers have, however unwittingly, become creators of "internet culture" and images. Teens read blogs. My 8-yr-old goes online to do research for her projects. If all the books being reviewed are books written by white authors about the white experience (or by white authors ABOUT people of colour), then, once again, the world has become a place where people of colour don't exist, or exist marginally, stereotypically, or as historical victims.

I did a post about this some time back -- the fact that my 3rd grader believed Native Americans were extinct because all the books she read at school were about Indians that lived "long ago in tepees and wore feather headdresses." I couldn't convince her that Native Americans are alive and well and living among us today. She has never seen such depictions and so her world is shaped in such a way as to erase Native Americans completely from it. I have since done the research and found books that show Native American children in contemporary settings, but that is research *I* took on.

There is a place for historical fiction--personally, I love it--but there is such a need for more stories.

Bloggers don't create the problem, but bloggers can be an arm of publicity and marketing for a publisher and, as such, they can certainly be a huge part of the solution."

The rest of the comments are worth reading, too, if you have the time; and certainly weigh in on the discussion, if you have something to say!

Also, there is a great list of diverse children's and teen books of 2009 on Bildungsroman's blog. I loved the categories she came up with and all the different titles and voices represented.

Inspiration

This is one of my all-time favourite quotes, EVER:

"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening, that is translated through you into action and because there is only one of you in all of time this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium, and it will be lost. It is not your business to determine how good it is, nor how valuable, nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours, clearly and directly, to keep the channel open." --Martha Graham

I can't think of a more inspiring way to start out this year.

Frigid Climes

I am not looking forward to the frigid, blustery cold of Toronto, but I am looking forward to the warmth of family and old, dear friends when I go up this week for two booksignings. I remember shopping in Yorkdale Mall and blowing my paycheck on boots and then, a few years later, working retail at the Eaton Centre, still blowing my paychecks.

It feels a bit full circle going up to those malls, in particular, to sign copies of my first published novel. I hope to see some old friends I haven't seen in many years, and I hope to eat lots of butter tarts while I'm at it. If you're in Toronto, please stop by and join me in a butter tart, or several!

You can also check out a radio interview with me on Toronto's only South Asian channel, CINA Radio 1650am, tomorrow (Saturday) from 10-11am. If you're not in Toronto, you can still catch it online at CINAradio.com tomorrow during the same time.

In other news, for those of you who aren't familiar with the Debs, where have you been all year? JK. The fearless leader of the Debs, Jackson Pearce, did a very cool video where she dispenses invaluable writing advice. Many Debs are in the video (including yours truly), as are other talented authors and a cutie toward the end whom I have never met and do not know. Check it out: