Unaccustomed Earth

Jhumpa Lahiri writes about the people she knows best. Although all the stories deal with Bengali families, the incidents could be common to any Indian family living in the USA, and any non-resident Indian (NRI) can relate to them. She preys on the reader's emotions throughout the book, with a rather gut-wrenching finale to most of the stories.

It was definitely entertaining (I might have used "gripping" if it were a novel) enough to from cover to cover without a break. Even though it was about immigrant families from West Bengal (which I have never visited) living mostly on the East Coast of America (in cities and towns I have never heard of), she created a sense of association, call it connection, with the characters.

The little girl torn between two different cultures at home and at school, the teenager struggling in college and thereafter to prove herself, the accomplished professional resigning to an arranged marriage "to fix it", the expectant mom of a toddler, the parents wanting their kids to have the best of both worlds... they all hit home for this particular audience. Not sure if it would be the same outside the diaspora.

I LOVED this book. I especially enjoyed the Hema & Kaushik triology. Lahiri's writing just seems to flow with ease, and it's a pleasure to read. I just love the way her stories unfold very carefully. I actually liked this collection of short stories even more than Interpreter of Maladies. It's the best book I've read in years.

As we've come to expect from Jhumpa Lahiri, this collection of eight short stories examines the immigrant experience in America, including the difficulties of adjusting to a new culture and workplace and the clashes between immigrant parents and their fully American children. Lahiri's stories, however, are not limited to immigrant issues but address global issues relevant worldwide: how we need our parents, how we develop our independence, and how we give up that independence to form lasting relationships. More than anything, these stories capture the search for a comfortable identity.

Lahiri's writing is rich with detail and complexity, making these short stories seem more like novels that end too soon. Lahiri's style is powerful. There's no sentimentality here but plenty of sensitivity and feeling. Many of these stories contain a hidden element or event of such significance that, when finally revealed at the end of the story, changes everything that came before. It's the shock of these surprising occurrences that makes each story a living, changing experience. Fabulous.

I read the first story in this collection with a lump in my throat. The way Lahiri describes her characters and their stories is so simple, yet so incredibly heart wrenching that I found myself aching along with the characters. Her writing is amazingly simple, no overwrought descriptions or tediousness, but I just found myself gliding into her characters' lives and feeling all the emotions: the loss of loved ones, sadness, isolation and hope. I think her stories are so universal that everyone can find something to relate to. Read this book--you will not be disappointed. The stories and emotions will linger long after you put it down.