The Namesake: A Novel
by Jhumpa Lahiri
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Book Reviews of The Namesake: A Novel
Book Review: Very good first novel
Summary: 4 Stars
I have just finished "The Namesake" so all my impressions are fresh. As many other readers, I bought this book because I was impressed by Lahiri's short stories. This one, although obviously the author should try to do better with the novel form in future, is remarkable too. The story of Indian immigrant family, typical for second half of the 20th century and, in many ways, matching my own, which just started (scholars moving to the States thanks to their academic achievements and lured by career prospects, sinking into this "melting pot" and becoming a part of it) is emotionally charged so much that sometimes I had tears in my eyes. The parents, Ashima and Ashoke Ganguli, deal with detachment from their families and their world in India by incorporating parts of their old life and tradition into the American everyday reality, surrounding themselves with Bengali friends in the same situation, but their children, born in America, have a much greater problem with their identity. This is common to most of the immigrant children and more or less a generally known truth, but Lahiri describes the feelings of the main protagonist, the firstborn son of the Ganguli family, with extraordinary acuteness. The boy is named Gogol, after his father's favorite Russian writer, but Ashoke gives him this name not only as a tribute to the novelist. It is a memory of an important event in his life, he treats the name as a symbol, a sign. Gogol, however, hates his name and we go with him through the rebellion years, contesting the values of his family, trying the new ways, name change, falling in love with American girls (or more with their lifestyles), slowly and gradually getting to understand, accept and finally appreciate the Indian heritage and his parents (although there are many failures on the way). I was left with a profound feeling of melancholy and thoughtfulness.
Formally, there are some uncomfortable shortcuts (especially towards the end of the novel) and the plot feels sometimes a bit awkward (I would like to make a more general remark here, namely that the new generation of authors who attended the Creative Writing courses has something in common, as if the rules they learn left on each of them the same mark, difficult to wash away and cover with the personality; it might be expected from beginners but surely must fade away if they do not want to be called beginners any more), but it is an interesting novel. I treat is as somewhat of an appetizer, a promise of the masterpieces yet to come from under Jhumpa Lahiri's pen.
Book Review: A rose by any other name still smells sweet
Summary: 5 Stars
The biggest controversy around Jhumpa Lahiri's "The Namesake" -- her second book and first novel -- is if it is better than her Pulitzer Prize winning "Interpreter of Maladies", a book of short stories. Well, it turns out that her novel is not better than her previous book. But, that doesn't mean that this is a bad novel -- actually it is pretty good. The point is that her collected stories were so good that she set her standards too high, and some readers were disappointed.
The second controversy -- and this some people seem to be a way too harsh or narrow-minded-- was whether she can or not write long narratives. Taking "The Namesake" as exhibit one the answer is yes, she can, thank you very much. No matter how long her narrative is, Lahiri has absolute control of the language, plot and character development required to all good novels. If we feel that her narrative has some highs and lows -- this is not really a defect that is common in most books we read nowadays. And, mind you, her lows are not that low too qualify her debut novel as an awful book.
"The Namesake" cover about thirty years in the lives of a group of people having as central character Gogol Ganguli -- named after the famous Russian writer. The story of the man's name is worthy a book itself -- actually it is the central issue of the novel, most of the time. The Gangulis are a family of Indian that move to United Stated and have to establish their lives there. What rises as one of the most important themes in the novel -- and that is also present in Lahiri's "Interpreter of Maladies" is the cultural clash between the two civilizations, or in other words, between Western and Eastern cultures.
Gogol is the product of his time and place. The man can nor connect to the US's culture, not to India's. He is a person who is torn between two worlds and can't come to terms to accept neither of them. Due to Lahiri's background and work, it seems that this is (or was) an issue that the writer has faced in her life and work.
Her prose is astonishing -- and so is her lexicon. The choice of words is crucial to develop her characters and their lives. And she never fails to choose the most beautiful and useful word to build her sentences.
After her two books, Lahiri is one to watch. Her books will be talked about for years to come. People will read and love her words for many years. And we're looking forward to her next book that will certainly surprise us again.
Book Review: The ordinary story of an ordinary man and his ordinary life
Summary: 3 Stars
Gogol Ganguli is just your average Indian-American guy. Unfortunately, the story of his life, and its telling, are just as average. His is born in 1968 to a couple living in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His father, Ashoke, is a "doctoral candidate in electrical engineering at MIT," who later becomes a college professor. His mother, Ashima, travels 8,000 miles from their native Calcutta to be with him after their arranged marriage. Preparing to leave the hospital with their newborn, the parents are unconcerned that the baby names (one boy, one girl) chosen by his maternal grandmother have not yet arrived by mail. Although they feel that the naming can wait, a staff member convinces them otherwise and a temporary "pet" name is given. "Gogol" is the surname of one of Ashoke's favorite Russian authors and "had saved his life." The letter never arrives. And after a well-meaning principal foils his parents' attempt to foist a "good" name on him upon entering kindergarten, the name sticks. What follows would probably qualify as standard fare for many first-generation hyphenated-American families. The parents adhere to their cultural traditions, while sampling some American ones. The children (there is a younger sister, Sonia) quickly assimilate into the local culture, while shunning some of their ancestral customs. They tolerate trips to India to visit relatives, while longing for certain comforts of home. There is no "extra" in the ordinary that is the life of the Ganguli family. Additionally, Gogol's friends appear, disappear, and are unmissed. He partakes in a series of romantic attachments, becomes an architect (failing the exam twice before succeeding), neglects his parents, and, after a family member passes away, regrets his indifference. The remaining characters and those who appear after his death are tedious. In fact, the exclusion of several of them, including his sister, would affect the story only slightly. "In so many ways, his family's life feels like a string of accidents, unforeseen, unintended, one incident begetting another...his father's train wreck...the name [his] great-grandmother had chosen for him, lost in the mail...the accident of his being named Gogol..." Although The Namesake, the accident-prone Ganguli family's story, is uninteresting, Lahiri's first novel, a collection of short stories entitled Interpreter of Maladies, is not. Each story contains engaging people, places and plots. It should be chosen over this unremarkable book.
Book Review: A tale of first and second generation immigrants
Summary: 3 Stars
I've never heard of Jhumpa Lahiri before a friend recommended this book to me. So I read it with an open mind, not even knowing what the story was about. It is not a bad book. The first few chapters describe the live of a couple (Ashima and Ashoke) that move to the U.S. from India. The plot continues following the live of their son (Gogol). The chapters about the couple (Ashima and Ashoke) are worth reading; the chapters about Gogol are there to fill pages -- a complete waste of time. There might be hundreds of books about the lives of immigrants. This is not a bad one, but well below Kundera's "Ignorance."
(As a warning: pages and pages are spent on meticulous descriptions; this book is just too descriptive for my taste: the kind of cheesse the characters are eating, the brand of this, the color of that... It's easy to get used to Lahiri's way of writing, though. So after a while, the descriptions are not that painful.)
The first few chapters are fairly well developed, and the characters gain some depth as the reader goes into the cultural shock and the feeling of loliness are experienced by Ashima and Ashoke. Both are likeable individuals, although I can not avoid wondering whether Indian stereotypes were abused by the writer.
The plot moves then to follow Gogol's live. Gogol is not a likeable character. He is a smart but insecure and spoiled kid. He experiences the difficulty that many second-generation immigrants may experience -- are they American or are they Indian? To which Lahiri seems to have a very strong opinion: they are first, and foremost, American. The character of Gogol, however, is not interesting (and again, it might be just full of stereotypes). We know about his life just from a series of fortunate and infortunate events to which he just tags along. The character is very pasive, seems to make no desicions by himself, and does not seem to think at all. In fact, an astute reader could skip the majority of chapters about Gogol's life without losing any of the meat of the novel. (It would actually make a great short story!!!).
Which brings me to the well delivered end of the novel: it's not about Gogol's misadventures anymore. At the end, Ashoke and Ashima reappear, and Lahiri delivers a powerful ending. The character and strenght of Ashoke and Ashima give this book three stars.
Book Review: A question of idnetity.
Summary: 5 Stars
Asihma's greatest event in America happens in the Subway. She returns home exhausted after a long shopping trip in which she bought dozens of presents for all her Indian relatives. The train is crowded and when she manages to leap out she forgets all her bags. She weeps freely knowing that she can't possibly afford to go back and buy it all again. However, Ashoke, her husband calls the Lost and found and the following day the bags are returned, not a teaspoon missing. This small miracle causes Ashima to become attached to America in a way she has previously not thought possible. I mention this part in the book since it made me smile with a lot of identification. This is also an experience that American borne cannot feel as surprised about as people coming from other countries. Indeed this is a miracle.
This is a book about life in between cultures. A sort of experience which is no doubt similar to many houses across America. All sorts of everyday questions about what is right and what is wrong in your culture and in the new culture and what makes you feel comfortable. I guess a stronger word would be that this is a book about the question of identity. The in between feeling is most strongly felt by the second generation. Gogol, Ashima's and Ashoke's son is the main character of this story. In a certain stage of his life Gogol seems to turn away from his culture, from his heritage, then he seems to come back, but not in the "right way". By the end of the story he seems to have reached a certain acceptance with a true "Gogol" identity, with a private heritage unique to himself and his parents which is above American or Indian culture.
This is a very good, very interesting book, mostly because it does not use any pompous language, vague metaphors or descriptions that are strange to the reader. This is a story about a family and its everyday life, coming from India and trying to adjust to America. Each part is seen from a different person's eyes. The story however centers on Gogol and his life in between, what he makes of his life and how much are his choices connected to how he sees and understands his parents and their past. What he wants to embrace and what he wants to get away from. A very enjoyable reading.