Unaccustomed Earth - Jhumpa Lahiri

Five stories  with  3 parts to the last story, taking us through three continents.  I read "The Intrepreter of Maladies",  part of  "The Namesake" (had to return it to the library) and watched the movie "The Namesake".  So this was sort of a literary overload. I think, I suffer from an overdose of Jhumpa Lahiri and hence an indigestion of sorts.  I liked only 3 of the stories in this set.  There is also a pattern in her books.. the thread tying all the characters invariably starts from Kolkotta(Calcutta). Usually well educated Bengalis.  Invariably an immigrant's experience.  These form the base for her stories.

"Unaccustomed Earth" weaves through the delicate relationship with an estranged Father who comes to visit his daughter, Ruma.  Ruma is married to a Caucasian and has a son.  With the death of her mother, the glue that held them together, there is an uncomfortable silence between the two.  The story delves into the expectations of a Daughter, the reluctance of the Father to let her in and how each gets to the point of acceptance.  I enjoyed the layers in this story.  That feeling of, theres more to this than the eye can see.  The earth plays a part through these phases- theres a garden, travelling to different places the world, staying near yet unable to cover the distance between hearts that add to the why of the title "Unaccustomed Earth".

"Hell-Heaven"  was the other story that I liked. Its a recollection of the childhood of a now adult woman of a time when another Bengali becomes family friends and a part of her life only to realize later that he was big part of Her Mother's life.  I liked the way this story was told. 

"A Choice of Accomodations" talks about a mixed marriage, middle aged couple with kids who re-discover themselves at a Friend's wedding.  Somehow the story wasnt impressive. I had this feeling of "Big Deal!" after I finished reading.

"Only Goodness" deals with a Model Sister's guilt about her Brother Rahul's alcoholism.  She feels responsible as she feels she must have help start it. 

"Nobody's business", lived up to its title, like it wasnt my business(to read it I mean).

The last story was "Hema and Kaushik" told in three parts. The first part tells Hema's side of the story of when Hema and Kaushik first met as teenagers, when Kaushik's family moved to the US. The second is Kaushik's version three years later.  The third part "Going ashore" is told from both points of view, with both characters adrift around the world, building careers within their respective fields and ends with an impeding marriage and the Tsunami of 2005.

Of all the characters in the stories, I felt Kaushik and Rahul(the alchoholic brother) were the passionate ones, every other character has a "Feeling yet Restrained", somehow incomplete in their Being.

Though it is a set of short stories some are long enough to give the feeling of a mini-novel.   Would I recommend this book?  Its  Alright, not a bad read but not Impressive like I felt the "Interpreter of Maladies" was.   Borrow from the Library, dont buy to add to your collection.