UNACCOSTOMED EARTH

Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri - Whenever people ask me about favorite authors, I never think to say Jhumpa Lahiri, but she is definitely at the top of the list.  Unaccustomed Earth is a generous compilation of long short stories.  The short story's only fault is that it's sometimes too short, and the fault of the novel is that it can drag somewhere along the line.  A long short story solves those concerns, to provide a story of perfect length.  I love these people of Indian background, and I enjoy being allowed in to their particular way of talking, cooking, living, communicating and being seen in the world.  Ruma, Pranab Kaku, Amit and Megan, Rahul, Sang, Hema and Kaushik populate these stories with grace and human fault.  Hema and Kaushik are especially strong and their story is the powerful one that still moves me days later.