Reviews

Dove mi trovo by Jhumpa Lahiri

thechanelmuse's review against another edition

5.0

"Solitude: it's become my trade. As it requires a certain discipline, it's a condition I try to perfect. And yet it plagues me, it weighs on me in spite of my knowing it so well."

Originally written in Italian (Dove mi trovo), Whereabouts is a lyrical and meditative prose with 46 interconnected chapters (short vignettes) about a woman's quiet life, mundane routine, and her observation of life around her. It's written so beautifully you wish this novella was a little longer.

kimbermorgan's review against another edition

4.0

I’d like to read this again. I feel like there’s a deeper meaning that maybe I haven’t quite grasped yet. I loved the way this was written, and how much exploration existed in a space with not a lot of detail. I felt as if I knew the narrator without ever knowing her. A beautifully done piece.

noriam_reads's review against another edition

4.0

What a ride.

lavrendy's review against another edition

4.0

Beautiful vignettes. I love when a book can reel me in with its rich scenes even if the narrative is blurry.

mirandasusan's review against another edition

lighthearted reflective relaxing slow-paced

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

4.0

celynnamarie's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

anvh_01's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted reflective relaxing sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Non so come spiegarlo ma questo romanzo ha un'atmosfera estiva come il film "aftersun";  malinconica e nostalgica... La nostra narratrice parla di tutto e di niente, mentre noi la accompagniamo nella sua solitudine. Mi ha piaciuto molto e sono contenta d'avere potuto leggerlo nella sua lingua originale: italiano 

lottie1803's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

tokarczuk's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.25

sharkybookshelf's review against another edition

3.0

An unnamed woman moves through the unnamed Italian city where she lives, noticing details of life around her…

A quiet book, without a plot beyond glimpses of life told through vignettes, it should have been right up my alley. It was enjoyable enough in the moment, and it’s refreshing to read a middle-aged, contentedly single MC, but there was something missing for me, the novel lacked…soul.

I’ve been wondering if it’s related to Lahiri’s decision to write in Italian, a language I understand she has gained fluency in relatively recently. It’s an impressive endeavour, but I’m not convinced by the choice - fluency is one thing, but truly feeling the depths and nuance of a language in your bones and wielding it accordingly is something else - it can be done, but the lack of spark suggests perhaps Lahiri isn’t quite there yet. I am keenly aware that I express myself differently across languages, not just due to my own varying levels of eloquence but because I think differently in different languages (and I’m not alone in that), including my two “native” languages, and the framework of a language inevitably affects how we tell a story. Or, perhaps something was lost in translation, though that would be unfortunate as Lahiri translated her own novel. All of that said, I haven’t read any of Lahiri’s other work (though I am keen to), so it’s hard to draw conclusions - is it the language thing or is it simply a topic that Lahiri couldn’t quite bring to life?

Anyway, that rambling tangent doesn’t really tell you much about the book… I don’t actually have much else to say, other than I found it occasionally verged on dull, and the character, her life and the setting have failed to leave an impression. In fact, I came out of the book more interested in the question of choosing which language to write in, than any aspect of the book itself (as you might have gleaned).

Quiet glimpses of a middle-aged, single woman’s life in an unnamed Italian town, enjoyable enough but not particularly memorable.