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A review by spaddy29
Immigrant, Montana by Amitava Kumar
4.0
Who is a book written for- the author or the reader?
This book is an amalgam of memories blended by reality and fiction (after all, isn’t that what memories are?) that takes the reader through the narrator’s journey through grad school. While the writing is inaccessible at times, particularly if one doesn’t have the prerequisite literary or cultural background, the struggle to overcome imposter syndrome, stemming from both an immigrant identity and incessant comparison to peers, is relatable.
Most of all, reading this feels like (and probably is) an intrusion on someone reminiscing on their past. If anything, it seems like this book was primarily written because the author couldn’t bear not writing it.
As an Indian-American, I also found fascinating the history detailing the relationships between early 20th century Indian revolutionaries and American leftists, which I didn’t know about before.
This book is an amalgam of memories blended by reality and fiction (after all, isn’t that what memories are?) that takes the reader through the narrator’s journey through grad school. While the writing is inaccessible at times, particularly if one doesn’t have the prerequisite literary or cultural background, the struggle to overcome imposter syndrome, stemming from both an immigrant identity and incessant comparison to peers, is relatable.
Most of all, reading this feels like (and probably is) an intrusion on someone reminiscing on their past. If anything, it seems like this book was primarily written because the author couldn’t bear not writing it.
As an Indian-American, I also found fascinating the history detailing the relationships between early 20th century Indian revolutionaries and American leftists, which I didn’t know about before.