Destination Wedding

Destination Wedding by Diksha Basu, 288 pages

Indian American Tina Das has never felt truly comfortable as an American, despite parents that always encouraged her to embrace American culture. So perhaps when she travels to Dehli for her cousin's lavish wedding, she'll feel a bit more comfortable. Nope. Turns out, she doesn't fit in there either. As she finds herself at a crossroads both personally and professionally (she's a producer of Indian American content for a streaming video service), Tina's floundering alongside her divorced parents who are both trying to figure out the later-in-life dating thing and her best friend Marianne, who also doesn't seem to know what's going on in her life. 

This book is an interesting examination of imposter syndrome in its many forms, and Basu does a great job of balancing everything while giving everyone the agency to change their own lives. And props for creating the fantastically hilarious character of wedding planner Bubbles. She's a hoot!

The Hundred-Foot Journey

The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais  245 pp.

A lively Indian family of restaurateurs emigrates to Europe after a family tragedy. They settle in a small French Alpine village where they open a restaurant in a mansion across from a classic French restaurant and it's owner/chef the indomitable Madame Mallory. Mme. Mallory is incensed by the popularity of the Indian interlopers and does her best to get rid of them. Then an accident causes a change of heart and she takes on young Hassan Haji as an apprentice. Under her tutelage he learns classic French cooking techniques and goes on to Paris to work as a sous chef and later open his own restaurant. The "hundred foot journey" represents the distance between and yet the closeness of the different cultures that clash and come together in the story. I have yet to see the film based on this book but plan to soon.

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal  298 pp.

This book could have been titled "Erotic Stories BY Punjabi Widows" since that is what happens in the story. Nikki, the daughter of Indian immigrants, is a modern London girl who tries to distance herself from the traditional Sikh culture of her parents. While performing a favor for her sister who has suddenly decided to seek an arranged marriage, Nikki sees a want ad for a writing teacher. What she ends up with is a group of Sikh widows who are expecting to learn basic English, not how to write short stories. But these women have outlandish imaginations and the stories they begin to tell are racy ones. There is danger in these stories from a Sikh men's group who use threats and violence to keep people on a conservative Sikh path. There is also the mystery surrounding the death of a young woman in the community and Nikki's own love story. There is a lot going on in this novel which is entertaining but briefly bogs down in the middle. The writing class widows are very entertaining and the results of their efforts has a positive ending.

One day we'll all be dead and none of this will matter

One day we'll all be dead and none of this will matter:  essays by Scaachi Koul, 241 pgs.

A collection of essays by Scaachi Koul, a daughter of Indian immigrants to Canada.  These essays focus on being an outsider, looking for identity, and sometimes just mortifying experiences.  The story of a cousin's wedding gives you a taste of India. The story of having to get cut out of an outfit in a store after trying it on and not being able to get it off gives you a taste of being a woman.  Stories about her parents give you the idea of what its like to be a daughter of Indian immigrants, or actually a daughter of many other types of parents too.  The story of being roofied seems very current. Often funny, sometimes heartfelt and occasionally horrifying, Koul is an interesting read and suggested for fans of witty women.

Before We Visit the Goddess

Before We Visit the Goddess by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni  225 pp.

This is the story of three generations of strong, determined, and headstrong women and the effect secrets had on their mother-daughter relationships. Sabitri learned the art of making spectacular Indian sweets from her mother. After she successfully sues a company for the wrongful death of her husband she opens a sweets shop which becomes immensely successful. But her workaholic ways and strident rigidity with her daughter, Bela, leads to abandonment when her daughter elopes to America with her shady boyfriend. Even after the birth of her daughter, Tara, Bela has very little contact with her mother until she enlists Sabitri's help when Tara drops out of college. Bela is a survivor, coping with a divorce and estrangement from her own daughter. She is befriended by Ken, a young gay man who lives in her apartment building. With his help she regains her self-confidence and begins a successful food blog and cookbook writing career. Tara tries to distance herself from her Indian heritage until a job puts her in contact with a visiting Indian businessman who takes her to the temple. Tara has her own problems and secrets that keep her away from her mother. By the end of the book multiple secrets are revealed that caused the behavior that created wedges in their relationships. Even Bela's dishonest ex-husband's secrets come to light and explain much of his behavior. There is a lot packed in this short novel and it's characters are fully fleshed and interesting.

The Sleepwalker's Guide to Dancing

The Sleepwalker's Guide to Dancing: A Novel by Mira Jacob  502 pp.

This story of an Indian-American family has deservedly landed on many "Best of the Year" lists. It is the story of the Eapen family told in chapters that jump from the 70s to the 90s. The story revolves around Thomas, a brain surgeon who has begun acting strangely; his wife Kamala who copes with everything by cooking; Akhil, the gifted son; and Amina, the daughter who is the only American born member of the family. The story is narrated by a thirty year old Amina who comes back to Albuquerque when her forceful mother insists something is wrong with Thomas. As the story evolves multiple family tragedies are revealed including Thomas' possibly terminal illness, a suicide that caused Amina to give up a promising career as a photojournalist, and a deadly fire. While all this death, destruction, and illness sounds like a fodder for a morbidly depressing book, there is much humor, usually provided by Kamala and her malapropisms and futile attempts at being in control. In the end it is a book about the importance of family, even when they get on your last nerve. And you can't help but come away from this book craving Indian food. I listened to the audiobook version and the reader captures the characters perfectly.