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Tag Archives: India

Jhumpa Lahiri’s “The Lowland”

I made the mistake of allowing some time to pass since I finished “The Lowland” by Jhumpa Lahiri. I much prefer writing immediately after finishing a book.

I chose this book because I so enjoyed Lahiri’s lovely writing in “Unaccustomed Earth” several years ago when it was part of the 2009 American Library Association Notable Books list. That collection of short stories captured so well how people want to do the right thing, want to love each other well, and so often fall short. Yet hope remains. Lahiri has mastered the art of revealing big issues through small observations.

What I recall from “The Lowland” is that same yearning, and the author’s continued kindness in drawing attention to good intentions and honest personal assessment, even when the reader can clearly see that behavior falls short.

This is the story of two brothers, Subhash and Udayan, born in Calcutta just before Indian independence. Subhash is more withdrawn and quiet, Udayan more adventurous and impulsive. Born barely a year apart, they seem separate parts of one personality. Subhash ends up pursuing an academic career in the United States. Udayan remains in India, living with his parents, engaging in dangerous politics, and marrying for love. Udayan’s untimely death (in the lowlands behind their house) shapes the novel, both in the time leading up to it, and in the subsequent passage of time for Subhash, Udayan’s widow, and others who follow. The background of Indian culture and the period following independence provide a distinct backdrop for the general themes of sibling bonds, family ties, finding one’s way in a new country, forgiveness, and the balance of individual dreams with social responsibilities.

I recommend this heartily to fiction readers, with an especially strong nod toward book groups.