The Namesake

I liked this book, but I didn't love it. I LOVE Lahiri's short stories, so I'm wondering if her talents are just less suited to the novel.

I enjoyed learning about the Indian-American experience, and contrasting that “American dream” story with the more conventional variety. And I also thought it so interesting to think about the importance of naming and names: how meaningful names are, both culturally and individually, and how names shape our identities.

However, the characters felt distant and ill-developed. We are allowed to peer into the consciousness of most of the main characters, but there was little variation and richness to each, lending a flat feeling to the book. There is some beautiful writing, but little that truly made me pause. And then in the end, it was pretty depressing...

One sentence synopsis... ‘The Namesake' is a beautifully written, introspective portrait of one immigrant family's experience - specifically spanning three formative decades in the life of the eldest son, Gogol Ganguli.

Read it if you like... ‘Americanah' or ‘Exit West' for books that highlight the immigrant experience. The tv show ‘Love Life' for the series of women Gogol dates from his teens to late 30's who shape his life.

Dream casting... Disclaimer: Age-wise this doesn't work but since we follow the characters as they grow up they wouldn't necessarily play opposite each other. That being said, Megan Suri as Moushumi and Dev Patel as Gogol. And for the beginning of the book, which focuses on Gogol's parents when they were young - Rahul Kohli as his dad and Richa Moorjani as his mom.