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Interpreter of Maladies
7/15-Southwest India, Sri Lanka
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Ruth
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rated it 5 stars
Jul 21, 2015 08:05PM
What do you think so far?
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Mine is in the mail! Amazon does allow you to preread on Kindle.
I've read the first two stories/chapters. Excellent so far.
I'm starting this one today. I'm excited about it!
It would seem that my copy was used in a literature class of some sort as there is writing in the margins and underlining. If that is the case, this should be a very good read.
Had to set this aside for a busy weekend, but should finish tomorrow. So far I'm impressed by her mastery of the short story form.
I'm almost finished with it as well. I'll finish in the next day or two. Her writing style is on point. It's very descriptive, but in a way that makes the stories come alive. My one complaint (which isn't really a complaint) is that not all of the stories take place in India. The book does provide a good insight to Indian culture, even so. It rings true with the cultural tidbits I got from The Forgotten Woman.
I'm not sure yet how I feel about the stories going back and forth between America and India. It does provide contrast/distinction between the stories and thus far each story could stand well on it's own, making it an even collection. Something that's easier said than done.As to the culture, so far for me the stories seem more about the human condition written in context of being Indian or Indian American.
I agree that the stories could stand on their own. I can see the subtle links between them, but those just enhance the reading experience. The cultural things I've noticed have been names, food, fashion, weddings (more so in The Forgotten Woman, but it is touched on here), castes, and religion.
The American and Indian cultures are blended very well in this book and there are few direct instances of differences. Characters usually point them out. Otherwise it's left to the reader to find them.
I love the writing in these stories! She really brings the characters to life so that you feel their experiences and care about what happens to them. At the moment I am wondering whether there will be any happy endings? It seems sometimes in the cultured art crowd that there is a taboo against happy endings. I agree that not every ending is happy, but surely, based upon statistics, some should be?
As far as the stories not being set in India. I had originally ruled this book out because of that fact. Another member requested it though so I put it back in the poll, and I'm glad I did since it seems to be a favorite. I am curious to hear what other members think of the culture clash/expat lit - I have thought of making Culture Clash a monthly category including a book either written by an expat living in the target region, or by someone from the target region who is an expat in another country. I do think that these kind of stories tend to illustrate cultural differences that authors writing about their own homelands would not think to mention.
I was also concerned that the book was not going to be very Indian, until I read the story about Mrs.Sen. It really goes into depth on the issues that cause Mrs. Sen discomfort when trying to adapt to living in England.
The issue of noise is an interesting one. Mrs.Sen could not sleep because it was too quiet! I think this issue plagues some parents when their children leave the nest as well. My mom for example, runs the TV all day long even when she is not watching it just to have some noise around the house.
Sure wish I was having dinner at Mrs.Sen's house!
Ruth, I like the expat/immigrant culture idea. I think it adds perspective.Though Interpreter wasn't as enmeshed in the Indian culture as many books are, the characters were still influenced in one way or other. I just think Lahiri didn't dwell on it, but rather let the reader infer the culture themselves.
Still loving this book. In every story I fall in love with at least some of the characters. The author is very good at setting the scene. She doesn't tell you about the characters, but describes their actions and in their actions you create your opinion of who they are, or perhaps relate them to someone you know who might do that.For example, "Sanjeev was organizing his engineering texts from MIT in alphabetical order on a bookshelf, though it had been several years since he had needed to consult any of them." This leads me to wonder, who does that?! Oh, yeah, that kind of person.
In encouraging this thought, the author evokes a much more heart felt response to her characters than could be gleaned by a simple description. Ah, this is a worthy art to be learned!
From the treatment of Bibi... p.169 "Autumn came, with it's promise of the October holidays, and the town grew busy shopping and planning for the season."
Which holidays?! This tickled my curiosity so I did some research. There are only 3 national holidays in India, all secular. They celebrate Ghandi's birthday, Independence Day and Republic Day. Employees can choose from a specified number of restricted holidays depending upon their religion. We should do this! I would prefer to Choose my own Adventure, rather than have my designated holidays dictated to me by the dominant religion of my country.
"We bought our children balloons and colored ribbons, purchased sweetmeats by the kilo, paid calls in taxis to relatives we had not seen throughout the year."
My guess is that the author is describing the Hindu festival Durga Puja.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durga_Puja
The festival celebrates the victory of the Goddess Durga over an evil buffalo demon and symbolizes the triumph of good over evil.
I was also struck by the kindness and involvement of the neighbors with Ms.Bibi. They try to help her, though she is not their relation. In our culture I believe she would be most likely ignored, and certainly wouldn't be tolerated living in the storage room of the apartment complex. The authorities would be called and she would be shuffled off to somewhere, anywhere, but not our building. Move along..move along...
Finished this book and I adored it!I am including Jhumpa in my writers to follow and putting her novel on my to read list. Previously I had complained about the lack of happy endings, but at the end of the compilation I feel there was a good balance of happy and sad.
The last story was so heartwarming. Although Helen alluded to the fact that many students were scared away by the elderly woman, our protaganist is kind to her and is rewarded by deepening his relationship with his wife.
It's good to be reminded how spending time with people can affect your life in ways you couldn't imagine simple by acting as an unpredictable catalyst. Unconventional people can cause unpredictable reactions and these reactions may tell us more about each other than our practiced and learned responses to the usual small talk.
Through the book the theme of married couples who do not really know each other or do not feel a connection repeats. I wonder if the subject of arranged marriage was a discussion in Jhumpa's home, as a first generation immigrant?
Oh - for any aspiring authors out there, I read an interview of Jhumpa Lahiri where she stated that her short stories were declined for publication for years!It shows that patience and dedication pays off. Also I think it must take time to learn enough about the human psyche to be able to write touching stories like these.
Oh - for any aspiring authors out there, I read an interview of Jhumpa Lahiri where she stated that her short stories were declined for publication for years!It shows that patience and dedication pays off. Also I think it must take time
