My wife is currently reading The Ten-Year Nap by Meg Wolitzer. (And this post contains spoilers.) In the book, a girl adopted from a foreign country sings a lovely little song to herself: “Rise, sorrow, ‘neath the saffron sister tree.” So taken are various characters with the beauty of this bit of poetry, they make it a chant in their yoga class.
But it turns out the girl is singing a well-known song, and has simply misunderstood the words. Can you figure out what the actual song lyric is?
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Well, yes, I do know, because I wrote it… And am delighted you noticed it. I like the idea of wordplay in novels, and I used to create cryptic puzzles each week for 7 Days Magazine in New York. Here’s a little word puzzle: Take a singer (first and last name) and change one letter in the last name so that you now have the name of a grain.–
Meg
I know too, because I left my heart there. I have had this book on reserve at the local library since I heard Meg Wolitzer on NPR (great interview), and am looking forward to reading it. Even more so, now that I know she’s a fellow puzzler. Meg — if you are still reading — do you have some links to your 7 Days puzzles?
I keep wanting the answer to Meg’s puzzle to be Buckwheat Zydeco, even though that makes no sense whatsoever.
Whereas I’m stuck trying to parse Rice Casek — Rice Case K, maybe?
Voks,
Unfortunately, my 7 Days puzzles are not online. But they were collected in a book called Nutcrackers, which is long out of print, but available on Amazon, I see… I created them along with theater writer Jesse Green. I am impessed htat you got the solution to my little wordplay in The Ten-Year Nap.
Oh! I knew I knew that name! I came across Nutcrackers in a used bookstore, mercifully unwritten-in. I quite enjoyed the puzzles in it. (Remind me, Eric, and I can bring it to Denver.)
Meanwhile, going in the other direction, I’m trying to think if there’s a singer named Brown Rick. Or, less likely, Long-Grain Rick.
All right, Meg, I think we need some enumeration on that singer’s name.
Er, sorry, I mean “voks”; I forgot who’d asked to see them. Research on grains is getting me nowhere, other than Dennis Farina and John “Triti” Cale.
I believe the enumeration is 5,6 and the singer is a woman.
Oh, you youngsters
This is a base that’s been kicking around the NPL for years, getting periodically rediscovered. I dunno if I would’ve come up with it just based on Meg’s description, but I sure did recognize it.
Enumeration is 5,6 for both singer and grain (i.e., no respacing needed).
Oh, yes, of course. And I just ate donna sumier for dinner last night! No, no, I did get it, finally.
All right, I found it. Never would have gotten it without research. And the answer is: PEARL BA[I/R]LEY.
Hey, Eric, would you mind posting some tidbits about other authors so they start commenting too? Updike might be fun…
Yes, pearl barley/Pearl Bailey it is. I had no idea anyone else had ever used this… Well, there you have it!
Wow, Meg Wolitzer herself commented. I’m reading “The Position” and will mention it on my blog when I’m done. I LOVED 7 Days (even got home delivery) and hated to see it go.
I was about to say I still don’t have the song lyric, but took one last shot and AHA.
Okay, I finally got the song lyric. Was not familiar with “pearl barley”.
And Eric, if having other authors post to your blog wasn’t enough, I have more news of your fame: as of today, you are officially blocked at my workplace! (The program is called WebSense.)
Yaaaay! I mean, uh, not yay. Not yay at all.
Must be all the porn.
Thank, Ellen. 7 Days was terrific; I agree!
Meg