<http://schema.org/articleBody>
" Today&amp;#039;s book review is from Woman&amp;#039;s Day Copy Editor Lauren Kuczala. She read Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri. Not having read any of Lahiri&amp;#039;s previous work, I can&amp;#039;t make comparisons, but this newest collection of short stories from the Pulitzer Prize\u00AD winning author of Interpreter of Maladies and The Namesake definitely lives up to her distinguished literary reputation. Divided into two parts\u2014the first consisting of five standalones; the second, a trilogy\u2014the set of tales is mainly inhabited by Bengali-American characters and often addresses their culture-specific struggles. Yet despite my very different cultural background, I had no difficulty connecting with the protagonists. The stories&amp;#039; themes are universal at their core: the struggle to maintain family ties while coming into one&amp;#039;s own, the inevitable problems that arise within relationships, the far-reaching consequences of our choices, the little tragedies of daily life\u2014-and the much bigger ones. Lahiri&amp;#039;s characters are, for lack of a better way to define it, very real, and they pulled me readily into each story. Part II, with the expanded development that a longer devotion to the characters allows, drew me ever deeper in with its quiet suspense, and resonated for days after I&amp;#039;d finished it. As a lover of short stories, I&amp;#039;ve now put Interpreter of Maladies high on my list of must-reads. \u2014 Lauren Kuczala  We&amp;#039;d love to hear about what you&amp;#039;re reading, too. Send your reviews to LitFix@womansday.com and we&amp;#039;ll post them right here on the blog.  "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/life/entertainment/reviews/a45810/unaccustomed-earth-by-jhumpa-lahiri-1139/?src=shelter_footer>