Hey, Joan Baez, thanks for Thrity Umrigar!

BY TOM JACKSON, SANDUSKY REGISTER

If you pay any attention to American literature and the local book scene, you probably know that Cleveland is home to an acclaimed novelist named Thrity Umrigar. Her new novel, The Story Hour, is receiving the rave reviews that Umrigar likely has come to expect. "This satisfying, psychologically complex story will appeal to a wide range of readers" —  Library Journal. "An impressive writer, Umrigar delivers another smart, compulsively readable work" — Kirkus Reviews. 

I was curious how she wound up in northern Ohio, so I looked at the interviews on Umrigar's official site. It turns out she wound up in Ohio because she likes to listen to Joan Baez.

No, really. Here's a bit of one of her interviews:

So you came to Ohio State? Why Ohio State?

Well, that's a funny story. It's indicative of how so many major decisions in my life have been made. I was sitting in my living room in Bombay, checking off a list of American universities that offered a M.A. in journalism, when my eyes fell on "Ohio State University." There was a Joan Baez record playing on the turntable and right then, her song, Banks of the Ohio, came on. I looked up and thought, "It's a sign", and decided to apply there.

Sandusky Register reporter Tom Jackson reviews and recommends local and national reading opportunities. You can read the other blog posts and follow this blog on Twitter.

Email him at tomjackson@sanduskyregister.com

Posted Thrity, the former BJ reporter who became one of India’s most famous novelists:

“Hands-down the strangest headline I have ever received.”

To paraphrase Joan Baez’ “No Man Is An Island”:

When I help my sister
Then I know that I
Plant the seed of adventure
That will never die

But perhaps it was this refrain from Joan that caused Thrity’s trail to wind up in Ohio:

Down beside where the waters flow
Down by the banks of the old Ohio

Regardless, as the Sandusky Register headline blared:

Hey, Joan Baez, thanks for Thrity Umrigar!