Earth Says. Review on Unaccustomed Earth - Jhumpa Lahiri

“Be happy, love baba”, he signed them, as if the attainment were as simple as that.

A daughter trying to come in terms of relationship with her father; a father who is seemingly immune to to her presence or as a matter of fact anybody in his life. Any display of affection unfamiliar to him.The sudden demise of Ruma’s mother takes her further away from the stranger she addresses her as her dad;and then out of the blue he visits her during her second pregnancy-Unaccustomed Earth

“He appeared without warning, never phoning beforehand simply knocking on the door the way people did in Calcutta and calling out “Boudi”!

A daughter witnesses her ever subdued mother falling in love out of marriage; A stranger addressed as Pranab Kaku becoming the centre point in their lives and a journey from hell to heaven and then back to hell .A mother daughter relationship which has its share of high and lows.-Hell-Heaven

It was something, after all these years , that she didn’t know about him.In spite of her anger his past still preyed on her, if only because she hadn’t been a part of it.

Amit and Megan attend the wedding of Amit’s ex-girlfriend and end up in a tug-of -war of emotions.In process they discover each other; a story of a couple despite being married for years have a thing to say to each other-A Choice of Accommodations

None of this mattered after Rahul arrived.Sudha had slipped through the cracks, but she was determined that her little brother should leave his mark as a child in America.

An over-protective sister always rising in defense of her alcoholic brother, who fails her trust in every aspect of life;Sudha’s endless efforts to bring her brother back and her inner turmoil of blaming herself for his condition.Till ultimately the  realization dawns on her and she takes the decision-Only Goodness

Rolling her eyes, coin-colored eyes that were sometimes green, she would slouch in her chair, looking bothered but resigned as if a subway she were riding had halted between stations.

Paul is deeply in love with Sang or Sangeeta , and despondently witnesses her for falling for the wrong guy .His repeated attempts to save her from the heartbreak fail miserably.A story portraying truly the fact that Love is blind-Nobody’s Business

Story of Hema & Kaushik-

I stood there, my hands wedged up under my cheekbones to catch the tears, mortified that you were witnessing such a pathetic display

Hema and Kaushik are offsprings of  two close friends and a particular event throws them in close proximities when in  both are in their teens, to part and go different ways later.-Once in a lifetime

I did not attend my father’s wedding .I did not even know there had been a wedding until my father called early one Sunday…

Kaushik tries to come in terms with the fact that his widower father needs a new companion in life when he’s away for college years.-Year’s end

We had been careful, and you had left nothing behind.

Hema and Kaushik meet again, both middle-aged and desperately in search of love.The old memories are revived hence bringing forth the tide of emotions , love and lust; but Hema is already engaged to be married to else…-Going Ashore

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This book was released on 4th april 2008, and I had booked it  well in advance;my passion for the Bengali society is a big contributing factor for being the sucker of Jhumpa’s books.

She had always created a vivid impression in my mind and this was my first rendezvous with her short stories collection.All the stories scream in unison, Relationships! Every possible relationship between two human beings is examined in the stories and beautifully portrayed. Sometimes a lull moment which we so experience in our life, a point where the choices are as difficult as the relation itself. The finer nuances of being a dad, of understanding as a daughter, of knowing that your mother is as human as you, of being the armor of the family, of being married , are expressed in not so many words.For being in love with somebody for years and unsure endings takes a major portion of the book.

How does one justify his/her passions and desires to own offspring

How despite spending so many years together , they are revelations still remaining to be discovered of your soulmate?

How the eldest offspring of  the family shoulders all the responsibilities of the wrongs?

How love builds and destroys a soul?

The ever trademark of Jhumpa , the characters are of the Bengali background staying overseas.Their traditions which still keep them rooted to India though they survive as Americans or English for that matter. The women are portrayed as wearing the thick vermilion powder in the centre parting of their hair and wear red and white bangles.A tangail saree and two-three safety pins hanging from the bangles depict the strong Bengali background of the characters.The mention of words like luchi and boudi depict Jhumpa’s own strong Bengali background.For few characters are those also who mediate between their Indian and foreign background.

For when I started the book I was not sure whether it would impress me as much as The Namesake;but confessing it took a complete five hours sitting from me in one go and I was hooked completely with the mannerisms and the perfection so brought in human relations. Jhumpa sure has a winner in this one.

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Jhumpa  Lahiri was born in London, England and raised in South Kingstown, Rhode Island, and is of Indian descent. She’s won the Pulitzer Prize for Interpreter of Maladies (this one still remains unread by me). She currently lives in New York City.