KayDeeloka

My small grandmother is tall there, straight-back, white broderie anglaise shirt, pleated skirt, flat shoes, grey bun, a kind, old smile round her eyes. Her big hand holds mine, white hand in black hand. Her sharp blue eyes look her own death in the eye. It was true after all; that look. My tall grandmother became small. Her back round and hunched. Her soup forgot to boil. She went to the awful place grandmothers go. Somewhere unknown, unthinkable. But there she is still, in the photo with me at three, the crinkled smile is still living, breathing.                                                   Jackie Kay Synopsis The poem talks about the persona's photograph of her grandmother. The  persona describes the grandmother as being tall and who dressed up prim and proper.  She had a kind smile and did not fear death. As she aged, Grand...

WHAT IS A SHORT STORY?  A short story : - A short narrative work of fiction written in prose - Usually centres around one or two main characters - Like the novel, it has a plot and both main and minor characters. - It has a less complicated plot and fewer characters than a novel - Covers a limited time frame - Its length can vary from a paragraph to thirty pages or more - The author also uses literary devices to enhance its presentation ELEMENTS OF A SHORT STORY  When reading and discussing a short story, a teacher has to bring the reader’s attention to the following elements of the story : Author  Person who wrote the story. Setting The setting of a story is the time and place the story happens. The atmosphere suggested by the setting is very important. It creates the mood or reveals the values, ideas and attitudes of a character connected to a place.  Theme  A theme is the main idea of a story. It is the central focus or idea presented by ...

THE AUTHOR : M.G. VASSANJI  • Born on 30 May 1950 in Nairobi, Kenya and raised in Tanzania. • Received a Bachelor of Science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. • Moved to Canada in 1978 where he became the research associate in the University of Toronto.  • Published his first novel, the critically-acclaimed The Gunny Sack, in 1989. • Since then has written six novels, two collections of short stories, a memoir and a biography. • A member of the Order of Canada.  • Has won several writing awards. SYNOPSIS OF THE STORY  Leaving is set in Tanzania. It is a story of a woman  who raises her five children alone after the early death of her husband.After her  two elder daughters get married and the eldest son acquires a job,the mother focuses on the two younger ones, Aloo and the youngest (the narrator). Aloo is in his final year in school and the girl is in university.She pins all her hopes on them that they will have a better education.She ...