Review by Juliesaraporter217 -- Mock My Words
-
Juliesaraporter217
- Posts: 21
- Joined: 07 Mar 2019, 00:13
- Currently Reading:
- Bookshelf Size: 14
- Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-juliesaraporter217.html
- Latest Review: House of Eire by June Gillam
Review by Juliesaraporter217 -- Mock My Words
[Following is a volunteer review of "Mock My Words" by Chandra Shekhar.]
Mock My Words: A Tale of Digital, Marital, and Grammatical Conflict by Chandra Shekhar is a humorous and heartfelt novel about miscommunication in work and relationships.
The plot focuses on David Tan, a Chinese immigrant teaching Classic English Literature in the fictional Steinbeck University. He came highly recommended based on the success of his literary masterpieces, such as On An English Screen, but he is having trouble teaching his students. The students mock his broken English and his selections of dated materials to study. He also is socially awkward around his colleagues and has trouble talking to them during breaks. If that wasn't bad enough, David and his wife, Laura are having marital difficulties.
Meanwhile, Laura and one of David's students, Melissa, are also having problems of their own. Laura works as PR consultant for a digital cloud enterprise that has recently suffered a security breach. Laura has to create an official release that accepts blame and reassures customers while keeping them. She also has to troubleshoot the source of the breach.
Melissa is working on a presentation to promote a device which helps seniors and special needs adults move freely about. She needs to receive tutoring on how to improve her presentation and speech, so she gets help from David with whom she develops a crush.
Mock My Words is a clever novel that explores the many ways people have trouble communicating with each other. The characters are brilliant people who have trouble expressing themselves. It is entertaining to read as they fall into various verbal traps in work, life, and love.
One chapter explains this concept clearly. David uses a sample from the Washington Irving's short story, "Rip Van Winkle" to give his students a lesson in characterization. Instead, the students take apart the passage by calling it "dated," and "badly written." When his colleagues suggest that he use current works of literature in his classroom, he has to point out that he teaches Classic Literature and that he doesn't like many current authors. David and his students are unable to share what they consider good writing because of their lack of understanding of the materials and are unable to fill each other's expectations.
Other chapters brilliantly explore how miscommunication affects those on a corporate business level. When Melissa presents her device for funding, people ask various questions about its usage and the regulations that would have to be enforced. The questions become more ludicrous, but they allow Melissa to rethink her project and its focus.
Above all, the book is concerned with miscommunication on an emotional level and this is best expressed in the chapters focusing on David and Laura's troubled marriage. The two constantly argue or say and assume the wrong things. No matter how many times they make up, another argument threatens to emerge. They have lost the ability to understand each other, but are unable to accept the potential end of their marriage.
Mock My Words has four out of four stars. It is a humorous and moving seriocomic novel that shows what happens when our words fail us.
******
Mock My Words
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Mock My Words: A Tale of Digital, Marital, and Grammatical Conflict by Chandra Shekhar is a humorous and heartfelt novel about miscommunication in work and relationships.
The plot focuses on David Tan, a Chinese immigrant teaching Classic English Literature in the fictional Steinbeck University. He came highly recommended based on the success of his literary masterpieces, such as On An English Screen, but he is having trouble teaching his students. The students mock his broken English and his selections of dated materials to study. He also is socially awkward around his colleagues and has trouble talking to them during breaks. If that wasn't bad enough, David and his wife, Laura are having marital difficulties.
Meanwhile, Laura and one of David's students, Melissa, are also having problems of their own. Laura works as PR consultant for a digital cloud enterprise that has recently suffered a security breach. Laura has to create an official release that accepts blame and reassures customers while keeping them. She also has to troubleshoot the source of the breach.
Melissa is working on a presentation to promote a device which helps seniors and special needs adults move freely about. She needs to receive tutoring on how to improve her presentation and speech, so she gets help from David with whom she develops a crush.
Mock My Words is a clever novel that explores the many ways people have trouble communicating with each other. The characters are brilliant people who have trouble expressing themselves. It is entertaining to read as they fall into various verbal traps in work, life, and love.
One chapter explains this concept clearly. David uses a sample from the Washington Irving's short story, "Rip Van Winkle" to give his students a lesson in characterization. Instead, the students take apart the passage by calling it "dated," and "badly written." When his colleagues suggest that he use current works of literature in his classroom, he has to point out that he teaches Classic Literature and that he doesn't like many current authors. David and his students are unable to share what they consider good writing because of their lack of understanding of the materials and are unable to fill each other's expectations.
Other chapters brilliantly explore how miscommunication affects those on a corporate business level. When Melissa presents her device for funding, people ask various questions about its usage and the regulations that would have to be enforced. The questions become more ludicrous, but they allow Melissa to rethink her project and its focus.
Above all, the book is concerned with miscommunication on an emotional level and this is best expressed in the chapters focusing on David and Laura's troubled marriage. The two constantly argue or say and assume the wrong things. No matter how many times they make up, another argument threatens to emerge. They have lost the ability to understand each other, but are unable to accept the potential end of their marriage.
Mock My Words has four out of four stars. It is a humorous and moving seriocomic novel that shows what happens when our words fail us.
******
Mock My Words
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: House of Eire by June Gillam
