An enjoyably fluffy LGBT-themed novel set in the Indian-diaspora community in the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio. Harit is a socially-awkward middle-aged bachelor shop assistant, living in what seems to be an atmosphere of mutual misunderstanding with his elderly mother after the Barbie-related death of his sister; Ranjana is an unfulfilled empty-nest mother-and-housewife whose son has gone off to be a high achiever at Princeton. Both of them clearly need to break out of their current lives in one direction or another. And Satyal, of course, ensures that they get the chance to do so.

There’s a lot of nice observation of the social structure of immigrant communities, with some delightfully cringe-making Indian parties, and Satyal also has a lot of fun at the expense of the Creative Writing industry, with a splendidly comic grand finale at a writers’ conference where the keynote speaker is a bigshot writer of novels about Indians in America (she’s recently moved to Lisbon and is about to publish her first book in Portuguese: Satyal can’t possibly be making fun of any real celebrity here, can he…?).

I was a little bit disappointed to find that there was nothing specific about the Cleveland setting: it’s all very generic suburbia, apart from the names of a real university and a few fictional shops and bars. Even when a character lands at Hopkins, he doesn’t feel compelled to notice its quaint period charm. The book is presumably set in Cleveland merely because Satyal grew up at the other end of Ohio and doesn’t want to embarrass his own family and friends.

In the end it’s a rather conventional American novel (Satyal is a publisher in his day-job), where the characters achieve fulfilment largely through becoming more integrated into America and (eventually) going to bed with the correct person, but there are quite a few enjoyably bizarre touches along the way. ( )

This book is easily my second favorite read of the year so far after Girl, Woman, Other. It’s funny, touching, warm-hearted, and surprisingly deep. It’s also ferociously well-written. (One chapter made me close the book, say WOW, & sit for a while with the words. ) I can’t believe I’ve never heard of Satyal before–I’ll be reading as much of his other work as I can get my hands on. ⠀
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This is an ordinary book about ordinary people, some of whom are Indian immigrants to the midwestern United States. There is some insightful commentary (mainly about being an Indian immigrant to the midwestern US), but otherwise the story is inconsequential and the characters are forgettable. Not recommended.

Towards the end of the book, one of the characters, an aspiring writer, contrasts herself against a famous novelist (a thinly veiled Jhumpa Lahiri) and self reflects: "But she was not exceptional, so her characters would never have exceptional lives." That sentence accurately describes this book. ( )

At first, I picked this up because the blurb made me laugh.

"For some, America is a bewildering and alienating place where coworkers cannot pronounce your name but will eagerly repeat Sanskrit phrases from their yoga classes."

And at first, I didn't like Harit. I wasn't sure what type of book this was going to be. Was it literary fiction? Was it a summer romp? All of the above?

But I kept reading and I'm so glad I did.

I feel like Satyal really comes alive when he writes characters interacting together. He so skilfully weaves dialogue and ideas about our expectations -- he writes a character's thoughts beautifully.

I loved Ranjana. I loved her for her spirit, for her tiny little triumphs, for her insecurities and flaws. This book started carefully and just kept building and building and I kept reading and reading. It's so, so readable.

The author manages to acknowledge so many parts of our lives that are so fraught -- grief, immigration, an unhappy marriage, a damaged ego, and he does so with such care. Each conversation felt like it had real stakes, that each character was going to take something away from. Every word felt worth it and that feels like such an accomplishment.

Moreover, Satyal incorporates LGBTIQA themes and issues so delicately and so lovingly and I adore him all the more for it. This is why I read fiction, so I get to experience characters that are this authentic.

Here is Satyal who acknowledges Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which a section of law which calls "for a maximum punishment of life imprisonment for all carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal (primarily interpreted to be homosexuality, especially sodomy, including between consenting adults)," which, by the way, was introduced by the British Empire. No such code had existed prohibiting anything before then.

Here is Satyal who creates joyful, queer characters, who adds a little more depth to a character with each chapter until I loved them all. I don't normally use the word "heart-wrenching" in a review, but it feels like it really fits here.

Each chapter is generally features one of three characters, but not always, and the wonderful part about it is, it never feels forced or a trope or a mechanism to move the story, it just is. Satyal has something that feels so natural about his craft and I can't imagine the thousands of hours he must've put in to make this book as seamless as it feels.

This book is about coming into yourself and becoming who you really are and how you feel most comfortable and the uphill battle that comes along with it. It's about fitting in, standing out and everything in between. I loved it so much.

This was such an unexpected and beautiful surprise.

SATYAL. What are you doing to me.

If you need me, I'll be cradling this book against my chest and whispering into it because I love it.

4.5 stars ( )

This unique novel kept me reading until 3 AM. The primary characters are Indian immigrants Ranjana, a discontented empty-nester mom, and Harit, a shy and unhappy man who cannot recover from a terrible family tragedy for which he feels responsible (the real culprit is a shocker). They are both stuck at the bottom of a well of despair when they meet and, with the help of several amusing friends, climb out to find both tremendous and moderate success. Ranjana's son Prashant's romantic efforts as a Princeton freshman are entertaining but not really relevant to the real action, but Harit's co-worker Teddy gets his back story told and he's a force, as is Ranjana's ridiculous co-worker Cheryl, who gets the best lines. Harit's story unwinds slowly and painfully, but that's what kept me up reading way too late. This unusual and winning story brings us vivid slices of immigrant life from flyover country.

Quotes: "The unit was one floor underground and dispensed roaches like a pinball machine."

"Cheryl shouted over the robotic GPS voice as if it were a football game."

"You could pull a foreign language over yourself like a cloak and retreat into a private world."

"As usual, she couldn't tell if Cheryl's happiness was authentic or the by-product of overwhelming mental dimness."

"Her gut-punch conclusion was that she might never be good enough to give her characters the writing they deserved." ( )