RaveWorld Literature Today... a lyrical meditation on translation and a manifesto establishing translation as an artistic pursuit as creative and authentic as writing in the original language ... In reflecting on her twin vocations of writing and translation, she is critical of the public perception that translation represents a lower form of creativity because of received notions of the authentic versus the derivative. Lahiri deconstructs this notion by arguing that no writing is truly original but a constant renegotiation of old myths and situations ... The collection also offers us Lahiri’s insights as a literary critic responding to works of other translators. Lahiri’s extraordinary efforts in reading Italian are exemplified in her chapter on Antonio Gramsci ... This personal essay is powerful in its reticent expression of grief even as it reinforces the role of poetry in anchoring the author during life’s colossal upheavals.
Jhumpa Lahiri
PositiveWorld Literature Today... a powerful portrait of a woman, neither young nor having the usual comforts of middle age, but whose inner struggles and external sojourns are still compelling. Lahiri’s prose is sparse and lyrical. The economy of the language and its origin from a foreign tongue complement the intricacy of the novel.
Ayad Akhtar
RaveWorld Literature Today... simultaneously a poignant reflection of the complexities of being a Muslim writer in post-9/11 America as well as a tender and funny tribute to [Ayad\'s] parents, particularly his father ... Nothing is off limits for Akhtar: he writes about his checkered dating life with a Muslim woman he falls in love with and whose parting gift is syphilis. Every stereotype harbored about Muslims is shattered, from his whiskey-loving father to Riaz, the venture capitalist/gay philanthropist. In these moments of comedic exuberance, Akhtar is reminiscent of the early Salman Rushdie and of Hanif Kureishi. However, unlike these writers of an earlier generation, Akhtar’s quest for multiracial belonging is far more ardent during a moment in history that has unleashed even deeper layers of intolerance.
