Pulitzer Prize-winning Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake is a fascinating tale about immigration, family roots, and acceptance of who you are and where you come from. This article brings to you a spoiler-free book review of The Namesake
This book contains complex relationships and emotion-provoking characters that will leave you feeling wistful and cautiously optimistic.
About the book:
Title: The Namesake
Author: Jhumpa Lahiri
Genre: Domestic Fiction
Publisher: Mariner Books
Type: Standalone
Pages: 291
Goodreads rating: 4/5
Ashoke and Ashima Ganguli are newlywed Indian immigrants in Massachusetts, away from their home in Calcutta. Expecting a baby soon, Ashima feels incredibly lonely in the foreign atmosphere of America. Her husband is frequently away at work, trying to manage a livelihood. However, the isolation doesn’t last long because her son is born. Their son is named Nikhil ‘Gogol’ Ganguly–the namesake a result of Russian writer Nikolai Gogol. As Gogol matures, he grows up thoroughly American. He is restless to leave his nickname behind because he finds it absurd and embarrassing. He convinces himself he doesn’t identify with the culture he belongs to and dreamily pursues the American lifestyle. But when his father suddenly passes away, Gogol feels the loss. He realizes then that the ‘weird’ name his father gave him holds enormous sentimental value. This propels Gogol to open up to his roots and family finally.
Book Review of The Namesake:
Writing a review of the book The Namesake is very special to me as the book holds a unique space in my heart.
The Namesake has left me feeling spellbound, emotional, and in a state of contemplation. Its beauty is in how it markedly balances grief and optimism, difficulties and delight.
As I have noted, every little instance has a meaning. Beginning with the book title—including the writer Nikolai Gogol and how that plays into Ashoke naming his son the same—makes for poignant storytelling. The title makes so much sense because of that.
Ashoke works day and night to provide for his family in a country where it’s difficult to survive. This makes it a realistic portrayal of how life is living abroad—it is not all made of dreams.
The plot is reasonably uncomplicated—it is a story about characters trying to find and accept themselves, but the unique situations and emotional nuances give the tale an inventive edge.
The ups and downs of parenting are there, indeed. Ashoke and Ashima, who find it difficult to adjust to a different country, see their children accepting that culture much more than they do their own. With the addition of such details, Lahiri’s writing masterfully portrays the disillusion and the subsequent acceptance of this fact by the parents.
This was undoubtedly one of the most heartbreaking moments for me in the book. The novel may not be fast-paced because it takes its time to set up situations and character interactions, but that never hinders the intrigue the plot maintains.
Lahiri’s writing is uncomplicated and yet, deeply profound. It is philosophical about marital disagreements, teenage rebellion, and eventual acceptance. Including Bengali in the predominantly English text adds an authentic layer to the conversation the characters share. You can understand where each character comes from, and each carved a special place in my heart.
“In so many ways, his family’s life feels like a string of accidents, unforeseen, unintended, one incident begetting another…They were things it was impossible to prepare but which one spent a lifetime looking back at, trying to accept, interpret, and comprehend. Things that should never have happened that seemed out of place and wrong were what prevailed, what endured, in the end.”
Jhumpa Lahiri, The Namesake
Gogol’s character arc has been written empathetically.
It is usual for someone to feel like they must fit in where they are. But it’s also equally important to be proud of where one hails from and where one receives true love from. This realization in Gogol is written at the perfect moment—filling the narrative with a bittersweet element. The few relationships Gogol shares with women relate to his identity crisis and are utilized to emphasize it.
The novel ends when his character comes full circle; thus, his character development feels complete and satisfying.
“Pet names are a persistent remnant of childhood, a reminder that life is not always so serious, formal, or complicated. They are a reminder, too, that one is not all things to all people.”
Jhumpa Lahiri, The Namesake
My favorite character in the book would be, rather than the characters, the way the Indian way of life is portrayed. So many of us, even today, think living more “western” is the way to be. But the void Ashoke and Ashima experience when they live amid people they have befriended, but can never really be their own, is a moving and relatable situation.
Besides that, Ashoke comes across as a wonderful, sensitive man and father. Some of the best dialogues in the book are by him.
Concluding, there’s not one thing I dislike or would like to change about the world Lahiri has created. It is a perfect read (if something like that exists). The Namesake has maturity and subtlety; it takes you over like a warm breeze that signals change awaits. As a result, once you read the novel, your thinking will be fundamentally affected and, maybe, changed.
Conclusion:
Rating: 5/5
Recommendation: Yes!!! Anyone who enjoys family dramas, coming-of-age fiction, and stories that resonate with India and its culture will be sure to appreciate the depths of this novel.
If you like books like The God of Small Things, The White Tiger, and The Interpreter of Maladies, give this book a try.
Buy The Namesake Now:
About the author:
Jhumpa Lahiri was born in London to Bengali parents. Her first novel, The Interpreter of Maladies, won the prestigious Pulitzer Prize. The Namesake is a feature film by renowned director Mira Nair. Also, It starred Irrfan Khan and Tabu in leading roles. She also writes in Italian. She lives in both Italy and America with her husband and kids.
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