The Immigrant - Manju Kapur

Fiction

Verdict: Read it

This is the first piece I've ready by Manju Kapur. It was definitely an interesting start.

The story opens with 2 different families - Nina's and Ananda's. Both are well into their 30's and unmarried. Through chance, they end up getting an arranged marriage. Ananda is a dentist who has emigrated to Canada and is constantly looking to remove anything from himself that reminds him he is Indian. Nina is a school teacher. After a lengthy, mail driven courtship they get married and Nina follows Ananda to Canada. The remainder of the novel follows Ananda and Nina as they adjust to each other, the new situation, and life.

I found this novel both familiar and interesting for a few reasons. The familiar: Nina's story is one I've read quite a few other times. A simple, traditional girl leaves her home to be with her husband. She is enamored with the idea of life in the West but has no idea what that means and she ends up lonely and unfulfilled sitting at home. It's tragic and tired, even if it's a common experience. It just made me incredibly sad. 

The interesting: The book addresses some interesting subjects. 1. Ananda suffers from premature ejaculation. This is spelled out and explored in a way that I have never seen in an Indian novel. The author went into male mindset on this too, which was very brave of her. He goes alone to see a therapist about it and over comes the problem, but from then on is obsessed with counting and timing to the point where their lovemaking becomes about his counting and not a connection. The couple is unable to have children. Again, the author delves into the typical mindset of masculinity and how it shouldn't be his problem. Both Ananda and Nina end have affairs that are fun but ultimately unfulfilling. The novel ends with Nina leaving Ananda. The spotlight on arranged marriage and the lack of intimacy that has resulted is very startling.  It's a great example of how you can't just throw 2 people together and expect them to be moving the same direction and truly invest in each other and intimacy. The author also addresses clinging to traditional mindset versus trying to distance as far as possible from that mindset. 

I found the characters relatable and the writing well done. It's not a sunshiny book, and I ended up thinking a lot about the subjects the author included. I felt all of them were good ones to get out in the open. 

Read it!

~Becky~