Hello April 2021 + All Bengali Books in April + Current Reads!

 

Hello April! 

Hello Bengali New Year! 

Hello Summer! 

Hello Reading Bengali Books and Authors all month long! 

I am so excited April is here. 

A month of reading from my corner of the world. Doing my annual #AllBengaliBooksinApril where I celebrate all things Bangla and read books written originally in Bengali and the works of Bengali writers. 

My goals for this month are simple: 

Read good books. 

Journal. 

Be creative. 

Hopefully writing a little bit. Finish a story I've been working on and getting it out in the world. 

Maybe go for a little road trip. 

:) 

Oh and read Jhumpa Lahiri's new book. I am so excited for it. 

To kickstart my reading of Bengali books, I have started with an old favourite. 

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri: Join Ashima in her journey through complex Indian situations 

Namesake is the brainchild of Jhumpa Lahiri. The story unfolds with Ashima’s grandmother coming to know that Ashima is pregnant. She was very excited when she came to know this and extremely happy as well on the fact that she would have the opportunity to name the family’s first Sahib. As the story unfolds, Ashima and her husband Ashok have yet not decided a name for their baby until a letter arrives from their grandmother. 

Join Gogol as he faces the stigma of his name and the situations that he faces 

Ashima’s father sends a letter to Baby Boy Ganguli, actually putting up the name as 'baby boy’. But the American bureaucracy demands a name. In a hurry, they put the name 'Gogol’ not realizing the harsh consequences that this name would have in the future. As time passes, Gogol is raised in suburban America. As he grows, he finds his name ridiculous and is reluctant to us it. His awkward name twitches him. He decides to leave behind the inherited values of Bengali lifestyle and starts on his path to find a good life and comes face to face with conflicting loyalties, love and loss along the way. 

Will Gogol survive the torture and make a name for himself? 

Gogol finds his way through complex situations and still dreams of a perfect life. Grab the book to find out how he goes along his path and will he survive with the stigma of his name?

An extraordinary story about family and the immigrant experience. I love this book. I have read it some two times but that was years ago and I am definitely due a re-read. I am so happy to be coming back to this story and it's darling people. I am ready for the tears and the gentle heart break that will follow. 

:) 

I hope April is good for you and me. 

Happy Reading Folks! 

:)