Roman Stories, by Jumpa Lahiri

Nine new stories from Jhumpa Lahiri

Acclaimed British-American writer Jhumpa Lahiri moved to Italy some ten years ago, and now writes in Italian. Her new collection, Roman Stories, comprises nine stories, with Rome featuring as both place and state of mind. They are translated from the Italian by Lahiri and Todd Portnowitz.

Anyone familiar with the author's writings will know she concentrates on the minutiae of daily life: the particular slant of light during a summer afternoon, the memories a favourite restaurant conjures, warm and inviting houses. Lahiri interweaves these descriptions with various narratives about middle-class life, relationships between husband and wife, parent and child, and the ups and downs of close friendships. A particular theme that recurs is the feeling of being an outsider, of locals suspicious, even hostile, to foreigners (Lahiri is the daughter of Indian immigrants).
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The stories have a ruminating, Proustian feel, of memory in search of lost time, of raking over old personal events and trying to glean meaning from them. Lahiri's fiction is deceptively simple and easy to read, yet her writing, while subtle, is psychologically rich.
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An intimate and highly enjoyable collection, for readers of Rachel Cusk and Deborah Levy.

Roman Stories, by Jumpa Lahiri. Published by Picador. $34.99

MAR24