In the long line of terrible books I read during the summer there was one saving grace: Interpreter of Maladies. In this collection of short stories Jhumpa Lahiri created numerous scenes and characters that have stuck with me since. Normally I don't like short stories, I need more than twenty pages to become attached to what I am reading, but that was not the case with Interpreter of Maladies. Each night I read a new story and was taken on a brief, but memorable journey.When I saw that her new novel, The Namesake, had won The Pulitzer Prize, I did not need any more encouragement to add it to my book list. Somehow, I am deeply disappointed by it. Even though she had an extra 250 pages to create her characters, I found them less real than those she put to life on twenty pages. Maybe my expectations were too high. Maybe if I were to reread Interpreter of Maladies I would realize I had built it up in my head. I keep going over the book, trying to find something about it I find special, but everything that her themes have been praised for, "the immigrant experience, the clash of cultures, the conflicts of assimilation" I found lacking in The Namesake. All the themes were present, but they seemed trite and unfinished.
I am not claiming it was a bad book, or that I wouldn't recommend it to friends and family. Unfortunately, for me, it fell below my expectations from an author I probably expected too much from.
6 comments:
Ooh, way harsh. I had this book on my shelf, but now I'm thinking of burning it
I was wondering where our most loyal reader had disappeared to. I can't believe you didn't comment on my "Jane Austen" read.
I was going to, and I was relieved to hear you didn't much like it - that's what I assumed and why I'd never deigned to slum with this "Another Lady." But then I also noticed that you'd never responded to anyone's response. Not much of a dialogue, eh, just listening to your (precious few) faithful readers and letting them chat all by their lonesome into the online void?
So let me tell how excited - nay, moved - I was to see you'd posted a comment yourself. I even felt a slight earthquake in my soul (mind you, I've had a stomach flu all week, so you can't take full credit for the rumbling). In any event, glad to know that you, too, are paying some attention to US.
See? This is just what I'm talking about. Grrrr... you won't play along.
I don't have time to play along with your silly games. I have 45 more books to read. How many books will you be reading this year?
Eight
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