Dear Kaavya,
This is your Akka writing. The fact that you have never met me is immaterial; we are brown and we don’t live in the land our parents were born in—that alone means that you probably have relatives you’ve never met, just like I do, so Akka it easily is.
Paavum Kaavya (letÂ’s call you PK for short), there is something I want you to know, but before I disclose that, I have to admit a fault of which I am rather ashamed, a fault which I hope youÂ’ll forgive your imperfect Akka for.
I was jealous of you.
Just a bissel, but it was enough to make me loathe myself for a few minutes. Green looks fabulous on me, but envy surely does not flatter. Wait, don’t frown—I promise that once I was aware that I was being a twat, I earnestly called myself out on it and owned my jealousy. Long before I admitted that my “unlikely-fantasy-if-wishes-came-true” job was acting, I cherished what to me seemed an even more far-fetched aspiration: to write. Getting a book deal seemed like the greatest thing which could possibly happen to someone. To get paid to write? Wow. And that you did, with a stunning advance, which everyone bandies about ad nauseum, since it makes your “fall” all the more violent.
Sigh. How I wished that my parents had been savvy enough to enroll me in an Ivy-League-Prep-Camp-Thing. Where my counselor, who just happened to be a published author, would discover me as if I were some naïve starlet in a ‘40s era soda shop and then pluck me out of the sweaty, freaked-out ranks of cloned overachievers and marvel at my genuine uniqueness. My parents made me turn down Columbia for U.C. Davis. My parents are SO not your parents. Your parents gave you everything, including an inadvertent star-making opp that made me want to howl. You’re nearly half my age. It’s like watching your little sister get married before you do. It’s a little humiliating to endure, in this obsessed with chronological-milestones culture we share.
So, whenever this group blog of mine did a post about you, I’d look down and notice that my skin suddenly looked wayyy more olive than usual. Then I’d take a deep breath and tell myself that you deserved it. That you had hustled for it, working on your writing when in comparison, 17-year old me probably would’ve been brooding over which Smiths or Ultravox LP to spin next. My skin would go back to the shade my mother calls “irrantharam” and I’d exhale with relief. It felt good to be silently proud of you.
Here’s the thing my little PK: I still am. And I’m a little appalled at how many people are crowing elatedly about your alleged toppling. The first thing I thought of when I read the “Crimson” writing on the blog was that tragically accurate, snarktastic story about the pet shop with international crabs. You’re looking at me blankly. I’m sure you haven’t slept. Tut-tut. That won’t do. You know brown girls are predisposed to developing those nasty under eye circles. Take a benadryl, bachi. Your skin and, well, everything will thank you. Hell, take a nap right now. I’ll dispel your probably non-existent curiosity about crabs for you, like a wee bedtime story.
So, there was this pet store and it was renowned for carrying the most exhaustive selection of crabs aroundÂ…there were specimens from Mexico, Japan, RussiaÂ…almost everywhere, really. Each tank had a very secure looking cover to hold in the precious crab-cargo. All, but one, that is. Perplexed, a customer pointed to the open cage and asked the pet store proprietor why it didnÂ’t have a lid.
“Oh. Those are the crabs from India. A lid isn’t required, because as soon as one of them climbs up, all of the others furiously yank it back down. So they never get out.”
Look at you, almost asleep. And I haven’t even come to my main point yet! No wonder you got the book deal and I didn’t. We hadn’t met, so I have no way of knowing if we have this in common, but something tells me we just might—you see, I have a near photographic memory for all things useless. Didn’t help me with German vocab, but it does help me recall conversations I’ve had almost flawlessly, even if it’s been some time since the words were originally spoken (as you can imagine, this makes me a terrifying girlfriend, since it’s exceptionally easy to destroy my boyfriends in arguments…but we won’t go there, in case your parents are reading. Wha-? OH. Hi Viswanathan Uncle and Auntie! I promise I’m a virgin who’s never conversed with men, even ones I’m related to—I’m totally safe to keep around Kaavya!) Whew, that was close.
Anyway, I remember lots of other things as well. I can remember what my very best friend Eileen Perfume was wearing the day Los Angeles exploded in to riots over the Rodney King verdict. (Maroon boucle turtleneck sweater, black crinkle skirt with blood red roses here and there and black knee-high boots, which she had folded down slightly. She had her hair half-up and half-down, eyeliner on the lower lids, ruby lips and no other makeup.) Like you probably are, I’m a devoted bibliophile who can’t bear to be without something to read at all times. My memory kicks in here, too, since as edifying as Gita Mehta or Vikram Seth might be, knowing what either of them wrote at some point ain’t gonna get me an “A” on anything.
So this memory of mine, which I suspect you got too—sometimes, it is almost dangerous, yes? I can remember being in graduate school (has it already been five years since I graduated? Mein Gott.) and being so exhausted, because I worked full-time (as required by my program) AND took all my classes from 7-10 pm each night. I’d read books and articles throughout the entire day and then sit at my computer around 1 am, after the dinner dishes had been washed and my then-boyfriend had been tended to like some entitled Maharajah who keeps asking for “pani!” when he’s supposed to be asleep. Then, exhausted to the point of sleeping mid-keystroke, I would type. And sometimes, I’d go back and see a sentence and think, “weird”.
I’d feel that odd tingle that unmoored recognition evokes. And then slightly horrified and suddenly awake, I’d realize that I had typed, almost verbatim, something I had read earlier in the day. Sometimes, what I had borrowed wasn’t even brilliant. I’d shake my head then. I was terrified of getting caught, since I was certain that one day I’d turn in a paper that contained a sentence that I hadn’t “re-recognized” in time. “Dear Lord, please don’t let it be something craptacular…if I get in trouble, at least let me parrot something genius.” But that’s not how my little universe works, PK. When I was in third grade, my dramatic ascent up the Spelling Bee ladder was destroyed when I misspelled a word so simple, I’m too ashamed to even type it. It’s always the little things that I trip over, in the end.
I donÂ’t believe that you are the torment-deserving fraud that many of my fellow pajamahadeen think you are. I donÂ’t think you copied those words, that youÂ’re a plagiarist. I think that either one of two things occurred, neither of which is really your fault:
1) You pulled an “Akka” and regurgitated something that was playing on your mind. Like the number “170”. Even if this is true, I blame your handlers for not vetting a manuscript that had received sooo much attention, in this post-Frey era. Perhaps I am mistaken, but aren’t they supposed to read, re-read and triple read what they’re hawking? I can’t help but believe that this is quite common in terms of the writing process, this borrowing a phrase or voice. If this public flogging hasn’t happened often to other writers, then I feel like some critical step was missed in this entire process. Even if I’m wrong, and the process allows that manuscripts DON’T get vetted as carefully as a cabinet-level appointment (WTF?) I think you didn’t intend to lift such craptacular writing. If you were pushed over the ethical edge by exhaustion, pressure and your Ivied obligations, I think you would’ve chosen someone better to borrow from.
2) And this one is the more sinister, more galling and I think, most possible. I keep reading that your book was initially quite different. Darker. Truer. Kaavya-er. I heard that THAT manuscript wasn’t “marketable”, not with a pinkish cover and some strappy stilettos. I heard that lots of Kaavya disappeared and in its place, fluff was stuffed in to Opal Mehta. I don’t know if you’re being set up (that would be even MORE sinister! Perish the thought!) but I do think that someone else did that heavy lifting, dear girl. And I think you’re the one who’s getting marched up to Golgotha for it.
Speaking of Golgotha, perhaps the reason I have so much faith in you is because I suddenly have a lot in me, quite literally. I spent enough time in church last week to qualify being religious as a part-time job, potentially with bennies, if itÂ’s like Starbucks. I emerged from my week of holiness, calmer, stronger, fortified with light. Buoyed by hope and a renewed determination to see good everywhere, in everyone, in all things. If I can have faith that bread and wine when consecrated by a priest, become the body and blood of my savior, I can give my PK the benefit of my doubt. Let people trash and thrash you, Kaavya. Blogging has thoroughly taught me that the bile which they spew (my sinful self included, natch) indicates more about them then you, anyway. You deserve to be innocent until proven otherwise. And I believe that you might just be exonerated of these heavy, back-breaking charges which lay now on your similarly irrantharam shoulders. And if you should fall, while on your way, no matter what causes you to stumble, you will have my prayers and support. We are all human, pots and kettles the lot of us and we all deserve a little bit of compassion.
Sincerely,
Anna-akka
I’m pathetic. I’m on a four hour layover and told myself I wouldn’t log on but alas I’ve always been a weak man.
I just wanted to point out that this post cannot be counted as in the running for most comments ever. The subject matter and several of the key plot points in THIS post mimic MY post earlier in the same day. It is almost as if Anna read THAT post several times and then “internalized” some of it before sitting down to write this one. I think it is only fair that I receive a “prologue,” if you will, when Anna updates this post in the next version. Most importantly I think Katie Couric should interview Anna about my allegations so that she may set the record straight. 🙂
The book.
Has been.
Withdrawn.
The book.Has been.Withdrawn.
interesting. maybe we can quit flogging a dead horse now. or maybe we can start discussing what this really means.
Not so fast there, Abhi!
You may claim
youthtiredness, but even your post ignored the fact that my life is a central plot point here!Once I consult my friend Jeremiah (he, like, works for this company? And they, like, tell me what my next moves in life should be. It just, like, makes everything easier, you know?)I will get back to you on whether I’ll be pressing charges.
Suck it!
All copies of Opal Mehta are being withdrawn from book stores.
You’re not worth responding to anymore. Make some sense in your posts, and then maybe you’ll be taken seriously.
I said that people are angry that she is being arrogant about this entire affair. I don’t recall calling her names, belittling her, or addressing topics that have nothing to do with the SUBSTANTIVE elements of this debate. The pedestal is an important (if not essential) part of this entire debacle.
Oh, and when my typos become relevant to this discussion, I will applaud you on sticking to the important issues. Until then, all you’re doing is avoiding each and every point I’ve made. I’d love to see you respond to them–why do you keep raising comparatively (perhaps absolutely) trivial things instead of meeting the fundamental issues head on? Best of luck in future arguments–you’re going to need it.
too bad her “photographic memory” didn’t help her remember where she actually read those words before. how dumb does she think people are to accept this horsesh*t excuse??
See if they’d done this on Monday (and had she, ahem, offered the advance back), this would have all blown over by Tuesday and everyone would have forgotten about it.
I’m already bored now.
From the judge’s ruling on the Dan Brown issue:
This is the british court so not precedent or anything… but… hey, its more fun than finals =) Full Judgement
Folks, seems you are too stuck with the colour brown… For all I know, creativity seems to be in its coffin with these book packagers… She seems to have made a choice by going for a formula book, which has gone sour… Just another ‘I made a doody’ (http://www.sepiamutiny.com/sepia/archives/001272.html).
So be it, lets get over it…
We need a Sikh-related thread SOON so I can point you all to an AMAZING online film about Nihang Singhs, and two little kids being raised as Nihangs. A beautiful film.
Slate.com has an article on Kaavya’s claim of a “photographic memory.”
of course, this story wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the fact that it’s written by that Princeton Prodigy’s younger brother.
Mr. Foer is full of crap.Eidetic or photographic memory is common enough among desis to have entered DesiSpeak. Pick any proud Indian mom and ask her what kind of memory her son or daughter exhibits.
“McCafferty, in a statement released by Crown, said she was “not seeking restitution in any form” and hoped to put the affair behind her.”
My guess is that the attorneys worked out a deal to not sue if the book is pulled.
Who needs restitution? She should send Kaavya a thank you note for all the priceless publicity.
Sorry, my bad. Anything that’s $10k or less is merely “getting an edge” on the competition, I guess.
Then you’ve obviously stumbled across one of the more principled ones. I used to prepare admissions packets for students. This was years ago, before everyone had computers and Laserjet printers. When I insisted that they actually bring a draft of their personal statements and answers to their essay questions, the vast majority of them were highly pissed puppies. “But that’s what I’m paying YOU for!” Um, no… I’m sure in the end they found someone who did their writing for them. Often the worst offenders are faculty who are friends or relatives of the parents of these spoiled children.
I must be a fun one for these young’uns to attempt to shock. Students have told me in detail how the faked disabilities in order to get accomodations for SATs. One kid got two of his friends – whose dads were all doctors – to prevail upon another specialist to certify the lot of them as ADHD. All three got into UC-Berkeley with their crap SAT scores and C averages in local community colleges. Then there are the ones who brag about their creative cheating schemes. Harmless, I guess… that is, until you find yourself “Terry-searched” by the State Bar for wearing mourning rags tied to your wrist after a family member dies.
That’s very admirable. So, let’s review what we DO know. Both the McCafferty books and the Opal book are premised on a a theme that has been warmed over in serials for at least a century. There’s not much difference between these books and, say, Donald Henderson Clarke’s “Impatient Virgin” (Philadelphia, Triangle Books 1931) aside from the fact that the more modern counterparts were written to appeal to persons with more limited vocabularies. Any infringement is probably legally defensible. This does not mean that it’s right, though.
Fortunately, Massachusetts has a long history of separate chancery or equity courts. When no adequate remedy exists under the law, equity courts provide justice according to principles of fairness. All OJ ever wanted in life was to be an honorary white guy, to live in Brentwood, and to play golf at the most exclusive country clubs. While no order never came down from the bench to this effect, he’ll never do any of those things again. Ms. V.’s big dream was apparently to get into Harvard by being your average, ordinary Indian-American prodigy. No doubt, the book deal was a selling point to that end with the admissions committee. It would be nice if Harvard would save the taxpayers’ money by living up to their reputation for academic excellence.
three things to write down:
1) more than the alleged plagiarism by KV, i am astonished by the comments and anti-Indian/anti-South Asian comments left on other blogs/websites. it’s really offensive and hurtful. really hurtful.
2) having a vivid and active memory is a beautiful thing. sometimes, being the eldest child (or only child? or youngest child?) having an active, made-up world is the only thing that makes you real or connected to this world. if she belonged in books and read constantly, i can totally UNDERSTAND where she remembered plots of other stories and added that into her book. plus, I may be going out on a limb here, but teenage angst books are all the same. Mean girls, popular crowds, boys you never get, some boys you do get. i dunno.
i’m not excusing her lack of understanding between right and wrong, but perhaps she didn’t know. it’s just so weird to see so many people come down hard on her without knowing anything about this situation, beyond what we hear/read in the media. and we all know the media always tells the truth, right? and plagiarizing can mean so many different things. like time writer stated on npr’s “all things considered,” where do we draw the line on what is plagiarized and what isn’t?
3) reading through all these comments (sorry Abhi, didn’t read your post comments), i kept thinking that in a few years, if she chooses (and is heterosexual), she can legally change her last name through the vehicle of le marriage. and then boom, no one will remember!
kept thinking that in a few years, if she chooses (and is heterosexual), she can legally change her last name through the vehicle of le marriage. and then boom, no one will remember!
That won’t be necessary. She’ll do fine. Just stay put for 2-3 years. Suffer a little, she must to be a Jedi.
Why people bothered? Half a million dollar advance. That is why From NYT:
Hit 755 and I’ll be impressed…
“Kaavya’s misbehavior has a negative effect on how people view [Indians] [Harvard] [Privileged kids from wealthy suburbs].”
Hahaha. It depends if “people” in are [xenophobes] [Yalies] [cicatrix]”
For your next challenge, find the determinant of:
[Macbeth, Scotland PA, Maqbool, Every teen novel ever written, Megan McCafferty, Kaavya Viswanathan The Simpsons, Plagiarismo, Plagiarismo di Plagiarismo]
Anna(402#)
You are imputing personal motives, when there were none!
That’s what I said in comment 386#
I am still puzzled what is so nasty about empathizers ! (Even lame is not very bad I would think)
Regards
Communis Rixatrix [#400] :
perhaps you haven’t read enough, if you are asking the questions you did about the author of this post and the right to self-expression.
Depends on what you mean by ‘enough’ – I read the entire post and some of the comments. I found that enough. And since a word search of the page reveals that the explanation about Indian crabs was not mentioned in any of the comments, I can’t see why reading all the comments would have helped.
Incidentally, I have not asked a single question about the author of this post, I have asked questions of her. The difference is significant.
i don’t think there was any ambiguousness to her stance or reaction gaurav’s provoaction.
Maybe there wasn’t any ambiguity for you. I am relatively new here, and needed clarification about the posting rules as at least two people had asked one commentor to find a post which was more in line with his thoughts. Which is why I asked the question I did, but then you already know that as I have already said that.
asking for civility isn’t the same as excusing the guilty.
Jeez, I’d never have figured that out all on my own! Sarcasm aside, I don’t recall saying or implying any such thing.
Was there any point to your response, btw? You certainly didn’t answer any of the questions I asked.
Don’t worry, I think writers of Indian origin are currently in vogue. If your work is good, you’ll find a way to get published.
I totally agree with MJ #43. I also blogged about Kaavya and was excited to read her book when I first heard about it. But I think accepting that kind of money, knowing that she didn’t really write those words, whether it was she who did the paraphrasing, or her packaging company, or whoever, shows lack of character, plain and simple. Sure, we all did foolish things as teenagers. We’ve all made mistakes. But we’ve all had to deal with the consequences of our mistakes. PK is not immune to the laws of karma. Anna, I do think it’s very kind of you to want to protect her. Even I felt very sad and worried for her when I heard about the plagiarism accusations. I thought of the Indian writer Indrani Aikath-Gyaltsen who committed suicide after it was discovered that she plagiarized an old British novel, and I prayed that PK would be strong enough to bear the infamy that she has earned. But in the end, I do believe that she has earned her infamy. No matter what the “truth” turns out to be, she’ll come out smelling more like an Indian railway station than a rose. And yes, she is young, but aren’t you being a coddling, over-protective, smother-loving akka by saying that she doesn’t have to face the music? “Never mind, ma…bad publishing company! Bad, bad people who are saying mean things about you. Adi kodukkulama? Ice cream venduma?” Even small children have to own up to their mistakes and learn from them. And I do hope that PK will be able to do that too. Hopefully she will grow from this whole thing.
blowing on the flickering embers of this fire
More from Galleycat:
Either she’s the least culturally aware South Asian ever, or maybe she didn’t write this thing after all…
Amitabh,
Post it as an item on the “News” tab, bro.
my haiku for a friday:
kaavya oh kaavya writing opal is the fall in your life right now
however times change life lessons are learned in time and this too shall pass
another person will be in the public eye for their wrong doings
as of this moment i am officially sick of reading about you
time to move onto other topics in the world that are going on now
Jai:
Done.
My Grandma used to say “cheaty cheaty always shows” I really never knew what she was talking about and thought it was just a silly thing she liked to say but it fits. If you cheat and in this case call it steal/copy/use something someone else had first it usually comes out and then…you have to live with the consequences.
If this person was pressured all her growing up to achieve she could have made different decisions. I am glad she didn’t kill herself over it or other destructive self inflicted nasties but she did taint her rep. and that is lifetime stuff…then again, if she is as smart as all that she will challenge herself to get past this like a lot of folks do…Vanessa Williams is a great example…MISS AMERICA…photo scandal uncovered…life in the crapper and then all these years later who remembers anything but what a lovely entertainer she is. I do because I grew up in Syracuse and it was a big deal there back then since she went to SU…BUT the story or point here is that people DO overcome the poor choices they make and go on to do GREAT things. I hope this person we are pondering does just that.
(with tears welling in my eyes…)
you embarrass me. you embarrass yourself.
(BWUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!)
Amitabh
Don’t want to take this off topic but that documentary is beautiful – I am watching it now and very moved and for some reason emotional watching this film.
I vote for “least culturally aware,” Cica. She’s saying she’s never heard of “Born Confused,” let alone earlier ones?
(BTW, anyone looking for good Indian teen/chick lit read “The Roller Birds of Rampur” by Indi Rana http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0449704343/sr=8-1/qid=1146240284/ref=sr_1_1/002-7520621-4940064?%5Fencoding=UTF8)
Ah yeeeah. 484 comments. I’m so PROPHETIC. Good going people, I feel almost wholly responsible for this thread’s success. Pay no attention to Abhi claiming this doesn’t count as most ever, he’s jealous, meant to be on leave and has internalization issues. Let’s hit 500!
Ya’ll must’ve heard by now, but Dreamworks has pulled the plug on the film version of Opal.
And when did I say that? All I asked for, for the 57th time, is that we not rush to judge or enjoy the process of doing so. I never condoned cheating. I never said that I’d protect her from consequences.
I have enough words in my mouth, but thank you for offering me more.
Anna, you’re my favourite Mutineer who’s called Anna. So I say this out of compassion – if they haven’t got where you stand on this whole debacle by now – they probably never will.
It looks like Harverd won’t take action against her.
Well poor desi genius at Harvard. Quite frankly I do not sympathize with her at all. Everything just fell into place for her – with Harvard and her parents just happen to be filthy rich doctors and a ridiculous amount of money for a seemingly simple and ditsy book, and she is getting all this public attention, who knows by how things have just been falling into place for her, Dreamworks will make a movie out of the controversy and she will get picked to star in it and win an oscar for it..
Crab-by much?
Ok, sorry, Anna. Didn’t mean to put words in your mouth. I do appreciate your intention…that it’s not right to enjoy tearing someone down. Right on! But, as far as judgment…I think it’s right to try to get all the facts, but there actually is quite a bit of information out there. And it’s natural for people to draw some conclusions from it. For me, just reading all those passages side by side….my gut feeling (and that’s all it is) is that it’s just a little too much to be accidental. Another thing that doesn’t sit right with me is that if she had read McCafferty’s books 3 or 4 times, then I think she would know them pretty well. A little bit of unconscious borrowing is believable. But I just think she would have had to recognize a lot of those patterns and words as being from books that she claims resonated with her more than anything else she’s read. I can believe that she was stressed out, couldn’t handle all that she had on her plate, and made some poor choices. But I don’t think I can buy that she was totally unconscious of it. It just sounded to me like you were making excuses for her by saying that she’s a baby’ed Indian teenager. As a parent of a toddler—and too often a smothering, babying, desi one at that (believe me, we’re programmed to be that way and it comes out despite our best efforts to intellectually override :))– I feel for her; she has to be feeling like crap about the whole thing right now, but I also know that sometimes natural consequences are the best teacher. We don’t do our kids any service by trying to shield them from that. We can only love them through it. And in this case facing the judgment of the public and feeling like crap for a while are just natural consequences of this situation that she is just going to have to deal with. But like I said, I hope she has enough love and support to get through it. And I appreciate that you are just trying to give her some of that.
Mo-oses!
I had crab cakes for lunch today, does that mean i am eating my own kind?
Lest this comment thread somehow not make it to 500…
378 – I think Anna is referring to the Mallu usage ‘iru neram’, literally translating to, ‘two colors’. It actually means ‘medium complexion’ (ref:shaadi.com). So why ‘two colors’? Maybe because a ‘medium complexion’ is neither ‘dark’ nor ‘fair’?
One thing that folks seem to be forgetting is that this is the nature of the “Celebrity” beast. Last week, everyone was cooing over her as a “wunderkind” and a literary genius. Today, she is a plagiarizing hack.
The truth is, she is neither.
Her book, contains copied (not verbatim, but damned close) passages from another persons work. Comparisions to Shakespeare or mention of “internalizing” are ridiculous. On the other hand, she probably didn’t actually do the actual copying. What she is in fact guilty of is probably taking credit for a work that isn’t entirely hers.
Does she deserve crucifiction? No! Did she deserve a 500K contract as an unknown writer. No!
In 6 months, the fuss will be over and she can continue on in her second career. I wish her luck, and I hope that one turns out better than the first.
496
Did anyone notice that the Colbert Report did a segment on Kaavya last night poking fun at the situation? Don’t get me wrong… it was funny, but I am starting to feel sorry for the girl.
now here is a reason an SM thread shouldnt ever get 500 posts- worms like vijay and zub get to make an appearance.
have a heart you asymptote zombies as you sit there before your screens, smugly dipping your schadenfreude stuffed golgappas in kavya’s (and her parents) tears, i hope the next time you get pulled over and thrown into a pound me in the ass prison, bubba is having a really bad day.
ROFLMAO… very brave of you chakding!!
500! Sorry, I’ve never been the 500th poster on a thread.
Kaavya has helped make popular two words in the English language: “Internalize” and “Schadenfreude” among other already popular ones like “thief”, “cheat”, “plagiarize”, etc. I don’t think she’s the innocent, non-disingenous lamb she’s made out to be. Kids can be as cunning, manipulative and conniving as adults. There is no way she just traipsed and romped through a sunny meadow unaware and unmindful of the dark and diabolical “Alloy Inc. Secret Plan” to launch “Opal” as their weapon of intellectual dominance. She knew what she was doing. She made matters worse with Katie Couric – lying blatantly on TV! Oh well… personally I have a rule when it comes to reading books: Wait a few of years and let the hype subside before reading one of them contemporary ‘bestsellers‘. That way you don’t end up whining when some nonsense like this happens.