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| The Namesake: A Novel | 
| Author: Jhumpa Lahiri
Publisher: Mariner Books
Category: Book
List Price: $14.00
Buy Used: $0.70
You Save: $13.30 (95%)
New (87) Collectible (9) from $3.74
Avg. Customer Rating:  475 reviews
Sales Rank: 1510
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 304
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.9
ISBN: 0618485228
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
UPC: 046442485227
EAN: 9780618485222
ASIN: 0618485228
Publication Date: September 1, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
Excellent! February 4, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
"The Namesake"'s start was somewhat shaky--would this be another book about an unempowered immigrant woman seeking happiness through her children? Thankfully, once Gogol entered his teens and the book centered more on him, it became much more readable.
Somewhat magically, Lahiri manages to defy the "show not tell" rule of good prose; the book is almost all tell, with very little dialogue. But in her skilled hands, it works. She central motif of the book--the significance of names and naming--is conveyed well, not at all overdone or with a heavy hand. And I wanted to hug Gogol and his family by the end--always a sign of a good book, for me!
It's not a perfect book, and I can see why other reviewers prefer her short-story collection "Interpreter of Maladies" (which I haven't read), as at times "The Namesake"'s structure as a collection of time-encapsulated vignettes is slightly off-putting. But Lahiri's prose is unrivaled--absolutely magical.
 Touching and a little sad January 29, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Well-written narrative by an obviously talented writer, describing the day by day lives of a professional class Indian family becoming adjusted to life in Boston as the father gets his PhD, becomes a professor and dies of a heart attack. The story then becomes mostly about his son, and his struggles to find himself - his loves, joys and disappointments. We empathize with the young man, and see that these things of the heart are universal, not a function of culture. I personally found the story rather sad, because of it's very existential nature - the trying to find meaning in a Godless life - full indeed of culture, friends, entertainment, drinking, food, and sex, but in the end always ending in disappointment -the cycle of life without larger meaning.
 Where's the plot? January 25, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
First off, let me say that Jhumpa Lahiri's "Interpreter of Maladies" was an incredible book, and one of my favorites. That collection of short stories is a five star effort. Lahiri is a master of the short story. I wish I could say that she is a master of the novel as well, but alas, "The Namesake" proves that she's human like the rest of us and couldn't get it right on the first try. The Namesake has beautiful prose and description, but lacks characters you can connect to and a plot. I think it's also lacking a subplot, which in reality would make this book a 300 page short story.
If you want to experience the best Lahiri has to offer, forget this one and go get "Interpreter of Maladies".
 The Namesake January 19, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
The book is amazing, takes a life long veiw of the life of a man and his family life, name and his constant struggle to accept himself. I would recomend this book to anyone who appreciates a good read.
A new look at the immigrant experience December 30, 2007
2 out of 4 found this review helpful
You've heard this story before. Junot Diaz, Julia Alvarez, Anzia Yezierska, and Edwidge Danticat are just a few of the authors who have told their own versions. The story they all have in common: The immigrant experience in the United States. Each of the above authors tackles this subject from a different enthnographic perspective, but the pull between the old (native) culture and the new (immigrant) one is always present.
Pulitzer prize winning author Jhumpa Lahiri adds to this conversation with "The Namesake" (her first novel which was a follow up to her short story collection "Interpreter of Maladies" which won the Pulitzer): the epic story of the Ganguli family's arrival and assimilation into the world of the United States.
The story begins when Ashoke and his wife (of an arranged marriage), Ashima, come to Massachusetts where Ashoke is a graduate student at MIT. The year is 1968. At the beginning of the novel Ashima is pregnant with her first child, a son.
In Bengali culture, it is common for people to have a formal name and a pet name (nickname). Ashoke has no problem coming up with a nickname for their son: Gogol. Unfortunately, due to a variety of mishaps and misunderstandings, the formal name proves harder to settle on and even harder to enforce. So Gogol Ganguli grows up with only a pet name--one that is not American, or Indian, or a first name.
No one really cares that Gogol's name is so unique, except Gogol whose anxiety over his name is bothersome enough that no external taunts are necessary. Gogol eventually resolves to rename himself, but not after learning the life-changing story that inspired his father give Gogol his name in the first place.
Despite the vast period Lahiri writes about, the novel's focus remains narrowly focused on the characters, especially Ashima and her son. Despite the authenticity that Lahiri brings to her main characters, certain scenes remain naggingly artificial--feeling simultaneously improbable and contrived.
Lahiri's writing here (I've yet to read her short stories) is beautiful without being pretentious or overly self-aware. The story feels authentic and compelling despite the fact that so many of the cultural references remain worlds away.
Even more interesting is the fact that I enjoyed almost the entire novel despite having a strong dislike of Gogol and several of the secondary characters. (I'd say more about what this means in terms of the writing style/skill but I still haven't figured out how that happened.) Despite my misgivings throughout the novel, Gogol does work toward redeeming himself by the end of the story.
Regardless of my nitpicks, "The Namesake" remains a must for anyone interested in the immigrant experience in America. Lahiri's narrative hearkens back to Jeffrey Eugenides' "Middlesex" which has a similar scope, tracing three generation's relationship with Detroit.
"The Namesake" deals with common themes but, as any good book should, Lahiri makes these subjects new and original with her unique characters and wonderful writing.
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