Interpreter of Maladies (Edition 001)

I first encountered Lahiri through the movie version of The Namesake earlier this winter. (Unfortunately. I kept remembering the actor who played Gogol in his previous role as Kumar in Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. Rather than read that novel, I chose to start with The Interpreter of Maladies. The collected stories are tremendously entertaining. Lahiri depicts couples growing closer and...more

I first encountered Lahiri through the movie version of The Namesake earlier this winter. (Unfortunately. I kept remembering the actor who played Gogol in his previous role as Kumar in Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. Rather than read that novel, I chose to start with The Interpreter of Maladies. The collected stories are tremendously entertaining. Lahiri depicts couples growing closer and growing apart, the melange of Indian and American culture, and the dynamics and politics of domestic practices and spaces. The singularity of her characters and the richness of her writing make for pleasurable reading. I will definitely read more of her work.   hide

Didn't realize that this was short stories. I'm rarely in the mood for short stories. I did like the first story though. It just ends up taking me too long to read a book of short stories, because I'm not a person who can go from one, right into the next. Something about my brain shifting, or not having time to digest the point of the story.

exelent

This book is a mixed bag. I read The Namesake sometime ago and had high expectations about this one. I think I preferred The Namesake because the characters had more time to be developed. My favorite stories are "When Mr. Pirzada came to dine", "Mrs Sen", and "The third and final continent". On the first two, I enjoyed the way Ms. Lahiri describes the slowly building bond between adults and...more

This book is a mixed bag. I read The Namesake sometime ago and had high expectations about this one. I think I preferred The Namesake because the characters had more time to be developed. My favorite stories are "When Mr. Pirzada came to dine", "Mrs Sen", and "The third and final continent". On the first two, I enjoyed the way Ms. Lahiri describes the slowly building bond between adults and children. The last one has a special meaning for me: I am on my third continent as well and I hope it will be the last. I also love this story because, as far as I can remember, it's the only one in which marriage is shown in a positive light. On The Namesake, "A temporary matter", "Sexy", "This blessed house", and even "Mrs. Sen", marriage is an obligation and most characters are either hypocritical regarding marriage or distant from each other because the marriage was arranged. Although I can understand it is still a tradition very much alive in Indian culture, it is very disturbing to me. Overall, this is a very good book. I am glad I read The Namesake first, though. I will be looking forward to read other books by Jhumpa Lahiri in the future.   hide

Loved it. Great bedtime book of short stories that are each brief glimpses of very different people's lives

Jhumpa Lahiri's novel Interpreter of Maladies is an insightful, raw, and beautiful collection of short stories. I think short stories are very difficult to write because there has to be a great deal of character development in such little span. However, Lahiri does captivate the reader through each individual's personal journey. Much like her title, I think she leaves the reader to interpret...more

Jhumpa Lahiri's novel Interpreter of Maladies is an insightful, raw, and beautiful collection of short stories. I think short stories are very difficult to write because there has to be a great deal of character development in such little span. However, Lahiri does captivate the reader through each individual's personal journey. Much like her title, I think she leaves the reader to interpret the magnitude of the actions and experiences people go through. It leaves you thinking and stimulates a deep empathy towards a culture that may be completely unknown to the reader in a very demure way. She is a great writer with a very distinct style and it is a book worth reading for the short story lover. Her novel, The Namesake also reveals more of her strengths as a writer and gives some of the deepest scope into the relations and interactions between people; their conflicts to truly find themselves and be at peace with who they are and discover how a culture, and a name, can mean so little and yet can mean everything in a search to define one's self.   hide

I enjoyed reading the collection of stories, a style that I do not read very often. Lahiri writes vividly. Each story focused on relationships from an Asian Indian perspective (except for one story). At the end of every single story, I was left wondering what will happen next. Although a short book, I do not recommend reading it through quickly in one sitting. I believe each story needs to be...more

I enjoyed reading the collection of stories, a style that I do not read very often. Lahiri writes vividly. Each story focused on relationships from an Asian Indian perspective (except for one story). At the end of every single story, I was left wondering what will happen next. Although a short book, I do not recommend reading it through quickly in one sitting. I believe each story needs to be savored, honored, and reflected upon. I read one or two stories each night before bed. My favorite stories were the first one and the last two. I wonder what process/thinking the author went through in arranging the stories into the present format. Yes, can see that this book will foster some very interesting book club discussion. Looks like I'm going to buy a hardcover for my personal collection!   hide

I enjoyed it a lot. Some of the stories are quite good, others ended and I couldn't remember five minutes later what had happened. The title story is excellent, about a tour guide in India who moonlights as a doctor's interpreter, and the irony is that he interprets people's symptoms for a doctor, but he completely misinterprets others' behavior. I also really enjoyed the last story, about a...more

I enjoyed it a lot. Some of the stories are quite good, others ended and I couldn't remember five minutes later what had happened. The title story is excellent, about a tour guide in India who moonlights as a doctor's interpreter, and the irony is that he interprets people's symptoms for a doctor, but he completely misinterprets others' behavior. I also really enjoyed the last story, about a Bengali who begins his academic career in America while living in a room rented from a centenarian. No great moral, but a terrific illustration of the power of nostalgia and what it means to feel foreign, even in your own country. I can't wait to read her latest collection.   hide

The narrative was so intricate and subtle and yet loud with interlaced emotions making me stop and wonder-a very thought provoking read with paused smiles and gazed thoughts in between. lovely messages conveyed. brilliant story telling.