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Words of a Bibliophile

"It's only words, and words are all I have, to take your heart away." —Bee Gees

SPOILER ALERT!

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

The Namesake - Jhumpa Lahiri

The book was just okay for me. I didn't like the whole relationship with Maxine, it felt too much like Gogol wanted to lose himself and disappear into Maxine's world, her house, her family. I also felt weird about Moushumi's affair. The way it's written from her perspective also made it a little jarring as I had become used to reading from Gogol's point of view. But then I thought maybe the author didn't want the ending to feel 'too good to be true', that Gogol and Moushumi spent their whole lives feeling conflicted about their dual identities but ended up marrying an Indian anyway. I felt the message was that just because they share the same heritage and upbringing doesn't mean Gogol and Moushumi is guaranteed a happily ever after.

The ending scene with the party and Gogol finding his dad's book was really good though. I felt he had really come full circle, maybe a little scarred but definitely wiser.