Beccy Palmer

Blind to Unfamiliar Forms of Light Beccy Palmer

This story is told through the eyes of 'Booba (Grandma)'. It follows the life of a young female dancer back in the 1930's- 40's in Eastern Europe. It explores relationships, bravery and unity in the face of hatred for others then and now simply because of their religion, colour, race, sexuality or gender. Booba has done lots of research, reading and hearing about personal accounts during the Holocaust but there are no names in this book, either of people or places, because she wants you to imagine it's your city, town, village. To imagine yourself and those you know as the people in the story. This recollection is a well told story and still not confirmed as fact or fiction but believable, nonetheless. However, the whole piece is part of Booba' s heritage, which she will never tire of retelling.

The book is about the choices we are sometimes presented with, however limited they make us who we are. In their own way they determine and provoke reactions that could, might, with every hope in Booba' s heart, change the course of events and maybe even history and herstory too. The title of the book she got from a science programme where they described very early forms of life that were simply blind to unfamiliar forms of light so either adapted to survive or didn't. It reminded Booba of how we are taught, conditioned and sometimes forced into believing that there is only one way to live or die by. That there is a status quo that dictates how we are with each other. Our opinions and judgements are all restricted to a history and way of things that is natural to us, inherent? Booba refuses to believe this. There is or must be a better way.

Human beings are so resourceful, intelligent and, as she has seen so many many times, caring and supporting of each other. Booba wants to plead with others in such a desperate way, feeling like we all don't have much time left to reveal our true selves and all the beauty we are capable of as human beings.
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