Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

17 reviews

lizzield's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


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eelizard's review against another edition

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sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75


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vireogirl's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Very tangled in the nitty gritty of not belonging. 

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raon_miru's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5


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writersrelief's review against another edition

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emotional sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 
An epic family saga, an intimate personal journey, a thought-provoking exploration of identity and its many intersections: All of these phrases accurately describe Jhumpa Lahiri’s modern classic THE NAMESAKE. 
 
The namesake of the title, Gogol, is the son of Indian immigrants who have made a new life in the Boston suburbs. His father, an MIT professor and a devoted fan of the Russian author Nikolai Gogol, is a survivor of a devastating train crash. Since he was reading the short stories of Gogol at the time of the accident, he chooses to give his son this name. Gogol, for his part, struggles with this name and what it ultimately means for him. This journey of coming to terms with his identity as an Indian-American—and how it impacts his life as he grows up, attends college, and gets a job as an architect—is the beating heart of THE NAMESAKE. 
 
In addition to Gogol, Lahiri also dedicates chunks of the novel to the supporting characters (particularly Gogol’s parents), providing a lovely contrast in their experiences as immigrants. The amount of detail and psychology Lahiri invests in her characters makes them feel real and palatable. Lahiri’s prose is straightforward, sharp, clean, and precise; assuredly guiding the reader through years and decades in the lives of this family. 
 
At approximately 290 pages, THE NAMESAKE is a relatively brief book, but Lahiri’s writing and characters make it feel much more expansive and epic. Some readers may find the pacing too slow, but those who love character-driven stories will be thrilled by this book. 

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uhhlexiconic's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Finding beauty in the mundane aspects of life, The Namesake is a sweet meditation on identity: both the one we're assigned and the one we struggle to create.

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abe26's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.0


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maria_borges1507's review against another edition

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informative inspiring reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0


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bookcaptivated's review against another edition

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informative reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5


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nenya's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

I borrowed this book from my english teacher when we discussed colonialism in class and she recommended it - and regarding that topic, it definitely fulfilled my expectations. Since neither I, nor my ancestors have been colonized or have migrated somewhere, I am in no position to judge the authenticity of the plot and characters but I must say, it felt very true and accurate to me. It gives excellent and thoroughly elaborated insights into different perspectives of Indian immigrants as well as their children growing up in America and their struggles with balancing the two different cultures. 
However, the story telling sometimes left me a bit bored - generally speaking it was well written but what bugged me was how when the plot got a bit mysterious and anticipation was being built up, the chapters tended to end in a small cliffhanger being followed by a time jump in the new chapter which very passively explained the past events/the outcome of the cliffhanger. This kind of took some of the suspense out of the story telling in my opinion and was a bit unsatisfying at times.
Yet, it is most definitely a good book and I would totally recommend it.

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