What do you think?
Rate this book
Jasmine
When Jasmine is suddenly widowed at seventeen, she seems fated to a life of quiet isolation in the small Indian village where she was born. But the force of Jasmine's desires propels her explosively into a larger, more dangerous, and ultimately more life-giving world. In just a few years, Jasmine becomes Jane Ripplemeyer, happily pregnant by a middle-aged Iowa banker and the adoptive mother of a Vietnamese refugee. Jasmine's metamorphosis, with its shocking upheavals and its slow evolutionary steps, illuminates the making of an American mind; but even more powerfully, her story depicts the shifting contours of an America being transformed by her and others like her -- our new neighbors, friends, and lovers. In Jasmine, Bharati Mukherjee has created a heroine as exotic and unexpected as the many worlds in which she lives. "Rich…one of the most suggestive novels we have about what it is to become an American." -- The New York Times Book Review
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1989
141 people are currently reading
3770 people want to read
About the author
Bharati Mukherjee
47 books227 followersBharati Mukherjee was an Indian-born award winning American writer who explored the internal culture clashes of her immigrant characters in the award-winning collection The Middleman and Other Stories and in novels like Jasmine and Desirable Daughters.
Ms. Mukherjee, a native of Calcutta, attended schools in England, Switzerland and India, earned advanced degrees in creative writing in the United States and lived for more than a decade in Canada, affording her a wealth of experience in the modern realities of multiculturalism.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Calcutta in 1959 and a master’s degree from the University of Baroda, in Gujarat, in 1961. After sending six handwritten stories to the University of Iowa, she was accepted into the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she studied with Philip Roth and Vance Bourjaily in her first year. She earned an M.F.A. in 1963 and a doctorate in comparative literature in 1969 at Iowa.
After years of short-term academic appointments, Ms. Mukherjee was hired in 1989 to teach postcolonial and world literature at the University of California, Berkeley.
Bharati Mukherjee died on Saturday, January 28, 2017 in Manhattan. She was 76.
Ms. Mukherjee, a native of Calcutta, attended schools in England, Switzerland and India, earned advanced degrees in creative writing in the United States and lived for more than a decade in Canada, affording her a wealth of experience in the modern realities of multiculturalism.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Calcutta in 1959 and a master’s degree from the University of Baroda, in Gujarat, in 1961. After sending six handwritten stories to the University of Iowa, she was accepted into the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she studied with Philip Roth and Vance Bourjaily in her first year. She earned an M.F.A. in 1963 and a doctorate in comparative literature in 1969 at Iowa.
After years of short-term academic appointments, Ms. Mukherjee was hired in 1989 to teach postcolonial and world literature at the University of California, Berkeley.
Bharati Mukherjee died on Saturday, January 28, 2017 in Manhattan. She was 76.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 333 reviews
March 31, 2025
Kind of heartbreaking....
First of all, this is not a book for everyone, more so not for beginners and a younger audience.
The story and the characters demand a much mature audience to understand and precieve the writing and the plot better.
What it is about:
A story of a woman who was married off to her first love as a child bride but who unfortunately became a widow at the young age of seventeen. She tries to live her husband's dream which made her go to America but she found out that it's a totally different world. It's her story where she finds the real meaning of love and romance though quite differently from what she believed in and how she dreamt.
I kept having conflicting thoughts the entire time while reading the book.
The writing is quite genuine and so honest that the reader cannot help feeling uncomfortable at times and would want to question the characters frequently.
There are disturbing parts which I find quite inappropriate for a parent-child kind of relationship.
The story focuses on survival within a certain family where the characters have to adjust and compromise. It deals with family dynamics and questions certain social beliefs and traditions. It also brings up the issue of disability and adoption.
Content warnings for sexual assault, racist remarks and discrimination, gender disparity and gun violence.
The writing itself is quite accessible. However, it's the characters that we meet that have multifaceted personalities.
The story shows the stark realities about life in the rural areas as well as the struggle and the hushed up work related to migration and adaptation to survive in a foreign land.
The relationships in this story are quite mature with complications due to circumstances. This part is the highlight of the book.
The only issue I had with the book was the lack of emotions which I really wanted to feel while reading it considering the kind of story it is. I was a bit disappointed in this regard.
But a mature read with mature characters and realistic scenarios.
First of all, this is not a book for everyone, more so not for beginners and a younger audience.
The story and the characters demand a much mature audience to understand and precieve the writing and the plot better.
What it is about:
A story of a woman who was married off to her first love as a child bride but who unfortunately became a widow at the young age of seventeen. She tries to live her husband's dream which made her go to America but she found out that it's a totally different world. It's her story where she finds the real meaning of love and romance though quite differently from what she believed in and how she dreamt.
I kept having conflicting thoughts the entire time while reading the book.
The writing is quite genuine and so honest that the reader cannot help feeling uncomfortable at times and would want to question the characters frequently.
There are disturbing parts which I find quite inappropriate for a parent-child kind of relationship.
The story focuses on survival within a certain family where the characters have to adjust and compromise. It deals with family dynamics and questions certain social beliefs and traditions. It also brings up the issue of disability and adoption.
Content warnings for sexual assault, racist remarks and discrimination, gender disparity and gun violence.
The writing itself is quite accessible. However, it's the characters that we meet that have multifaceted personalities.
The story shows the stark realities about life in the rural areas as well as the struggle and the hushed up work related to migration and adaptation to survive in a foreign land.
The relationships in this story are quite mature with complications due to circumstances. This part is the highlight of the book.
The only issue I had with the book was the lack of emotions which I really wanted to feel while reading it considering the kind of story it is. I was a bit disappointed in this regard.
But a mature read with mature characters and realistic scenarios.
September 8, 2017
“Can wanting be fatal?”
This captivated me. It’s about hardships, and fighting to overcome them. It’s about illegal immigration, why it can happen, and the terrifying journey it can be. There are vivid, even shocking descriptions of life in India, but to me this is a very American story—scrappy and full of ambition.
Jasmine undergoes multiple transformations along her journey—to her surroundings, her home, her family and her name. Mukherjee takes us back and forth in time through these worlds, which is a difficult thing to do, but she makes it look easy. Her writing is enchanting, giving us poetic language, symbols, and themes, but with such a light touch that her words go down remarkably easy.
A timely and important tale, beautifully told.
“We are the outcasts and deportees, strange pilgrims visiting outlandish shrines, landing at the end of tarmacs, ferried in old army trucks where we are roughly handled and taken to roped-off corners of waiting rooms where surly, barely wakened customs guards await their bribe. We are dressed in shreds of national costumes, out of season, the wilted plumage of intercontinental vagabondage. We ask only one thing: to be allowed to land; to pass through; to continue.”
This captivated me. It’s about hardships, and fighting to overcome them. It’s about illegal immigration, why it can happen, and the terrifying journey it can be. There are vivid, even shocking descriptions of life in India, but to me this is a very American story—scrappy and full of ambition.
Jasmine undergoes multiple transformations along her journey—to her surroundings, her home, her family and her name. Mukherjee takes us back and forth in time through these worlds, which is a difficult thing to do, but she makes it look easy. Her writing is enchanting, giving us poetic language, symbols, and themes, but with such a light touch that her words go down remarkably easy.
A timely and important tale, beautifully told.
“We are the outcasts and deportees, strange pilgrims visiting outlandish shrines, landing at the end of tarmacs, ferried in old army trucks where we are roughly handled and taken to roped-off corners of waiting rooms where surly, barely wakened customs guards await their bribe. We are dressed in shreds of national costumes, out of season, the wilted plumage of intercontinental vagabondage. We ask only one thing: to be allowed to land; to pass through; to continue.”
May 3, 2017
"For the uncle, love was control. Respect was obedience. For Prakash, love was letting go. Independence, self-reliance: I learned the litany by heart. But I felt suspended between worlds."
"In Hasnapur, Dida told stories of Vishnu the Preserver containing our world inside his potbellied stomach. I sit, baffled, in the dark living room of our house in Baden, loaded rifle against my belly, cocooning a cosmos."
Five stars! W/o a flinch!
The Gods never lost their androgyny in the East, did they!?
I'm quite at a loss as to what should I begin writing about! All I can say is that this book never failed to put a smile on my face—despite the unwholesome violence at times! I think it's her language; one of those that really gets me. Like really gets me!
The book tells the story of Jasmine, now twenty-four living in Elsa County Iowa—how she grew up in a mud house in Hasnapur, India; her initiatory and berserk encounter with an astrologer at seven; her confrontation with a rabid dog; her finding a husband and falling in love with him; the gruesome deaths of her husband (before her own eyes in a terrorist attack!) and father (gored by a bull); how she fled to the United States as an illegal immigrant after being widowed at fifteen; her numerous relationships with men and the accompanying changes in her personality; a gruesome, painful and extremely sad rape scene with a Half-Face; her murdering this Half-Face; her falling in love with Taylor; her escape, again; her relationship with Bud and his maiming; her escape from Bud with Taylor....
It's a long freaking roller coaster full of surprises! Recommended.
"In Hasnapur, Dida told stories of Vishnu the Preserver containing our world inside his potbellied stomach. I sit, baffled, in the dark living room of our house in Baden, loaded rifle against my belly, cocooning a cosmos."
Five stars! W/o a flinch!
The Gods never lost their androgyny in the East, did they!?
I'm quite at a loss as to what should I begin writing about! All I can say is that this book never failed to put a smile on my face—despite the unwholesome violence at times! I think it's her language; one of those that really gets me. Like really gets me!
The book tells the story of Jasmine, now twenty-four living in Elsa County Iowa—how she grew up in a mud house in Hasnapur, India; her initiatory and berserk encounter with an astrologer at seven; her confrontation with a rabid dog; her finding a husband and falling in love with him; the gruesome deaths of her husband (before her own eyes in a terrorist attack!) and father (gored by a bull); how she fled to the United States as an illegal immigrant after being widowed at fifteen; her numerous relationships with men and the accompanying changes in her personality; a gruesome, painful and extremely sad rape scene with a Half-Face; her murdering this Half-Face; her falling in love with Taylor; her escape, again; her relationship with Bud and his maiming; her escape from Bud with Taylor....
It's a long freaking roller coaster full of surprises! Recommended.
July 18, 2012
I was recommended this book following a lecture series on US-Indian literature, and unfortunately, it does not live up to its hype. A young Indian widow's quest to fulfill her late husband's will by traveling to America and visiting the college he attended would make an interesting starting point for a story about a woman's search for her identity in a foreign country, but sadly, this endeavour soon falls flat due to one-dimensional protagonists and plot "twists" in the style of an improbable Bollywood comedy.
That is not to say that the book doesn't have its good points. Its non-chronological narrative is a point in its favor, as are the lush descriptions of Jasmine's home village, the Indian lifestyle, and her young romance with her husband.
However, when Jasmine makes the journey to America following her husband's death in an act of terrorism, the book begins to falter badly. The foreshadowing, which Mukherjee employs somewhat effectively in the section set in India, becomes heavy-handed and is employed with such frequency that the reader stops caring about what happens to the characters. If one is constantly told what could/might happen exactly before it does happen, in exactly the same manner and with exactly the previously outlined consequences, foreshadowing ceases to be an effective tool. Plot threads are introduced only to be discarded with little care for a satisfying solution, such as Jasmine's adoption of a Vietnamese boy, who suddenly finds his long-lost sister and moves out of Jasmine's household with barely any emotion involved in the parting.
Added to this is that as the main character, Jasmine cannot carry the weight of her own story and fails to go through all the transformations Mukherjee conveniently marks with a change in her name. "Jasmine," "Jase," "Jyoti" and "Jane" are virtually the same person, who seems content to adopt whatever role the people around her want her to adopt — not because this is part of her character, but because the author does not give Jasmine and her "transformations" enough character to make them feel like changes are taking place, like Jasmine is completing stages in a personal journey.
Perhaps worst of all, however, are the plot "twists" Mukherjee employs to shuffle Jasmine from location to location, which, not to spoil too much, are among the most contrived I have seen outside of a soap opera and include such ludicrous ideas as Jasmine having to flee from her husband's killer, who somehow stalks her, an illegal immigrant who hitchhiked her way around the country, in the guise of a snack vendor in the middle of twenty million people New York City. Whether this is real or just in Jasmine's head is never clear, but even if it is just a product of Jasmine's wild imagination, it doesn't have any logic to it and Jasmine's reaction (fleeing to Iowa) doesn't seem like it would do anything to deter her (real or imagined) assassin.
I won't even get into the ending, which is something that occurs completely out of the blue and is squeezed into the remaining five pages, without any logic, emotion or consequence. We're supposed to cheer for Jasmine for finding out what she really wants, except her character never developed in any significant way, and thus, all the ending represents is another change in location on what already felt like an insanely long train ride.
That is not to say that the book doesn't have its good points. Its non-chronological narrative is a point in its favor, as are the lush descriptions of Jasmine's home village, the Indian lifestyle, and her young romance with her husband.
However, when Jasmine makes the journey to America following her husband's death in an act of terrorism, the book begins to falter badly. The foreshadowing, which Mukherjee employs somewhat effectively in the section set in India, becomes heavy-handed and is employed with such frequency that the reader stops caring about what happens to the characters. If one is constantly told what could/might happen exactly before it does happen, in exactly the same manner and with exactly the previously outlined consequences, foreshadowing ceases to be an effective tool. Plot threads are introduced only to be discarded with little care for a satisfying solution, such as Jasmine's adoption of a Vietnamese boy, who suddenly finds his long-lost sister and moves out of Jasmine's household with barely any emotion involved in the parting.
Added to this is that as the main character, Jasmine cannot carry the weight of her own story and fails to go through all the transformations Mukherjee conveniently marks with a change in her name. "Jasmine," "Jase," "Jyoti" and "Jane" are virtually the same person, who seems content to adopt whatever role the people around her want her to adopt — not because this is part of her character, but because the author does not give Jasmine and her "transformations" enough character to make them feel like changes are taking place, like Jasmine is completing stages in a personal journey.
Perhaps worst of all, however, are the plot "twists" Mukherjee employs to shuffle Jasmine from location to location, which, not to spoil too much, are among the most contrived I have seen outside of a soap opera and include such ludicrous ideas as Jasmine having to flee from her husband's killer, who somehow stalks her, an illegal immigrant who hitchhiked her way around the country, in the guise of a snack vendor in the middle of twenty million people New York City. Whether this is real or just in Jasmine's head is never clear, but even if it is just a product of Jasmine's wild imagination, it doesn't have any logic to it and Jasmine's reaction (fleeing to Iowa) doesn't seem like it would do anything to deter her (real or imagined) assassin.
I won't even get into the ending, which is something that occurs completely out of the blue and is squeezed into the remaining five pages, without any logic, emotion or consequence. We're supposed to cheer for Jasmine for finding out what she really wants, except her character never developed in any significant way, and thus, all the ending represents is another change in location on what already felt like an insanely long train ride.
Read
August 12, 2012I have no idea what to think about this book. Did I like it? Hm... Did I dislike it... Hm... I kinda nothing it.
While reading this I kept wondering wether it would get a spot in my bookshelf or go to a second hand. The latter won. Because of the ending. What the heck was up with the ending? It destroyed the whole story that COULD have been something. Thanks to the ending I know for sure it was nothing.
Identity crisis and culture shock is a serious matter that affects a lot of people. Doesnt mean books about it are automatically good though. Kinda like The kite runner. It's like you have to think it's good just because it has a serious story. But I didnt really like it.
So Jasmine is Jyoti. Jasmine is Jase. Jasmine is Jane. The story begins when she is Jane (living in Iowa) and slowly we get to go all the way back to her childhood in rural india, where she was named Jyoti. When she gets married at -teen (something) her husband renames her Jasmine, after the flower. She is widowed and moves to USA.
It really had no story. More reflections on how she can have all these identities in one tiny body. And sure, those were very interesting but I could have read some autobiography or something on that.
Plus I was confused. Loads of namedropping. And loads of jumping in time. Is she a child in India? Married in India? Au Pair in NY? Pregnant in Iowa? At least be a little clear with which time you're in.
It was not a bad book. Not a good book either. It's just... a book.
While reading this I kept wondering wether it would get a spot in my bookshelf or go to a second hand. The latter won. Because of the ending. What the heck was up with the ending? It destroyed the whole story that COULD have been something. Thanks to the ending I know for sure it was nothing.
Identity crisis and culture shock is a serious matter that affects a lot of people. Doesnt mean books about it are automatically good though. Kinda like The kite runner. It's like you have to think it's good just because it has a serious story. But I didnt really like it.
So Jasmine is Jyoti. Jasmine is Jase. Jasmine is Jane. The story begins when she is Jane (living in Iowa) and slowly we get to go all the way back to her childhood in rural india, where she was named Jyoti. When she gets married at -teen (something) her husband renames her Jasmine, after the flower. She is widowed and moves to USA.
It really had no story. More reflections on how she can have all these identities in one tiny body. And sure, those were very interesting but I could have read some autobiography or something on that.
Plus I was confused. Loads of namedropping. And loads of jumping in time. Is she a child in India? Married in India? Au Pair in NY? Pregnant in Iowa? At least be a little clear with which time you're in.
It was not a bad book. Not a good book either. It's just... a book.
July 13, 2023
"Something that I enjoy when I read stories about people who have immigrated is to see how their identities change as they go from place to place. This transformation of character belies an unshakable strength that escapes many people who stay stagnant all their lives.
...For women and female bodied persons the threat of being denied their agency and personhood is much higher than for a man or male bodies person. Sadly, women and female bodied persons face the danger of being sex trafficked, raped, and a slew of other dangers as they make the journey to a better life that is often not faced by a man or male bodies person. Mind you, this isn’t to say a male immigrant's path to a new life is riddled with ease, but Mukherjee places emphasis on the difference in her female or female bodied person character’s struggle to pin down their identities. This left me questioning how different subgroups of immigrants build their identities once they start their new lives."
Read full review here: https://introvertinterruptedcom.wordp...
...For women and female bodied persons the threat of being denied their agency and personhood is much higher than for a man or male bodies person. Sadly, women and female bodied persons face the danger of being sex trafficked, raped, and a slew of other dangers as they make the journey to a better life that is often not faced by a man or male bodies person. Mind you, this isn’t to say a male immigrant's path to a new life is riddled with ease, but Mukherjee places emphasis on the difference in her female or female bodied person character’s struggle to pin down their identities. This left me questioning how different subgroups of immigrants build their identities once they start their new lives."
Read full review here: https://introvertinterruptedcom.wordp...
August 21, 2007
In the name of honesty, I read this book for a class taught by the author. It was a great class, and she used the novel as a great example of things like how a writer thinks, approaching symbolism, and the writing and publishing process generally.
Still, this book, although unique, failed to really strike a chord with me. I felt no sympathy or disgust for any of the characters, even though I got the sense that I was supposed to feel SOMETHING. What this book did do well was intrigue me enough to read another one of her books as soon as I can to see if a different novel offers the completeness that this book seemed to lack.
Still, this book, although unique, failed to really strike a chord with me. I felt no sympathy or disgust for any of the characters, even though I got the sense that I was supposed to feel SOMETHING. What this book did do well was intrigue me enough to read another one of her books as soon as I can to see if a different novel offers the completeness that this book seemed to lack.
November 13, 2014
I first read this in graduate school with a professor who assigned the book and then once we finished reading it proceeded to totally deconstruct it. A post-colonial Indian himself, he took umbrage with the backward depiction of rural life in India. I was very impressionable and spent the next ten years thinking Mukherjee was a hack writer with simple minded constructions.
On a second read at a more mature age, I see now that there is much to like in this novel; the fragmented and nonlinear construction of the story create for an intriguing read and the character development is often fascinating; however the end of the story does not live up to its potential and the title character is incredibly uneven. Mukherjee's attempts to incorporate the latter into the fabric of her craft fall short. Jasmine is consistently referring to the many version of her self that exist, and while I appreciated the literary techniques being utilized by matching up various names (all attributed to her by more dominant figures in her life, usually men) with stages of her development and inevitable Americanization, the tactic felt heavy-handed, as did much of the novel. The end result is a text that has some superb elements but that don't create a cohesive overall piece.
On a second read at a more mature age, I see now that there is much to like in this novel; the fragmented and nonlinear construction of the story create for an intriguing read and the character development is often fascinating; however the end of the story does not live up to its potential and the title character is incredibly uneven. Mukherjee's attempts to incorporate the latter into the fabric of her craft fall short. Jasmine is consistently referring to the many version of her self that exist, and while I appreciated the literary techniques being utilized by matching up various names (all attributed to her by more dominant figures in her life, usually men) with stages of her development and inevitable Americanization, the tactic felt heavy-handed, as did much of the novel. The end result is a text that has some superb elements but that don't create a cohesive overall piece.
October 25, 2023
3.5 maybe? i need to sit with this a bit more……
July 30, 2023
Unlike anything I've read before. As hard and as faceted as a gem. As beautiful.
Read
May 28, 2024ahh the kali imagery goes so so fucking hard holy shit. like actually insane. but this was so interesting and i found myself so immersed in it, especially the parts w her w taylor, duff, and wylie. i was so surprised when the book ended bc i wanted more lol but i also love that it ends w her leaving for du with taylor and duff ahhh. i wish we knew more about du but her bond w him vs bud is soso good. the karin and bud vs her and bud was also rly interesting. bc of how episodic the book is i feel like you get glimpses of all these different experiences like the part abt her in flushing which paints all these different pictures of immigration. i also thought her looking up to lillian and mother ripplemeyer was interesting, they portray such distinct versions of femininity/benevolence/maternity.
i love how this book only minimally explains itself, i feel like there are a lot of references that may not have made sense if you’re not familiar with indian/hindu culture/history but the references rly worked for me. there was something familiar about the whole book even though ive never experienced anything the main character goes through in this. i also thought it was rly interesting how all of her names are given to her by men in her life idk (or at least the major ones ig). is the title jasmine bc that is the name she resonates most with? but it’s also not rly the one she ends with unless we’re viewing jase as part of jasmine? idk lol.
i love how this book only minimally explains itself, i feel like there are a lot of references that may not have made sense if you’re not familiar with indian/hindu culture/history but the references rly worked for me. there was something familiar about the whole book even though ive never experienced anything the main character goes through in this. i also thought it was rly interesting how all of her names are given to her by men in her life idk (or at least the major ones ig). is the title jasmine bc that is the name she resonates most with? but it’s also not rly the one she ends with unless we’re viewing jase as part of jasmine? idk lol.
February 13, 2022
26 June 2007 – second read - ****. I've been working with Indians for about 20 years, but they're all from the educated middle class, and come to America with the help of corporate INS lawyers. In contrast, Jyoti in this book comes from the rural poor of Punjab, and immigrates to America illegally. At each stage in the progression of her life, she is known by a different version of her name - Jyoti, Jasmine, Jase, Jane. Finally, in the end, she makes a choice for herself, rather than simply to meet the needs of others. So, this is a story of her transformation into an American, and her personal liberation.
Mukherjee sees the unity of the poor from every part of the world, and in this book finds parallels between Indian Punjab after the partition from Pakistan, and the farm credit crisis of the American Midwest in the 1980s. Sadly, the shocking events of Jyoti's life are not so shocking in a world that has seen Bosnia, Rwanda, 9/11, Iraq, Darfur, etc. in the years since this book was written.
2 August 1990 – first read - ***. When it was new, I read this novel from the library. A young Hindu woman flees her family's poverty, and the Sikh terrorism that bloodies her village. After a time in New York, she moves to a small town in Iowa. In corn and hog country, now prey to farm foreclosures and despair, she notes the symptoms of a new Third World.
Mukherjee sees the unity of the poor from every part of the world, and in this book finds parallels between Indian Punjab after the partition from Pakistan, and the farm credit crisis of the American Midwest in the 1980s. Sadly, the shocking events of Jyoti's life are not so shocking in a world that has seen Bosnia, Rwanda, 9/11, Iraq, Darfur, etc. in the years since this book was written.
2 August 1990 – first read - ***. When it was new, I read this novel from the library. A young Hindu woman flees her family's poverty, and the Sikh terrorism that bloodies her village. After a time in New York, she moves to a small town in Iowa. In corn and hog country, now prey to farm foreclosures and despair, she notes the symptoms of a new Third World.
October 16, 2020
When Jasmine is just seventeen she is already a widow. She lives in India, but wants more than living there can offer her, so she moves to America.
I read this some twenty years ago (damn, has it really been that long?) at uni, and I remember I thought at the time that it was an interesting story. Don’t know how I would react to it now. There are fond memories attached to it, so I don’t know if I’m willing to read it again to find out.
I read this some twenty years ago (damn, has it really been that long?) at uni, and I remember I thought at the time that it was an interesting story. Don’t know how I would react to it now. There are fond memories attached to it, so I don’t know if I’m willing to read it again to find out.
April 23, 2018
I appreciated the story but I didn't really get along with Mukherjee's narrative
February 8, 2020
I don't know what to say about this book. I was hoping to read about Indian culture, to learn about the struggles of those who are escaping their miserable realities, seeking for brand new identities and searching to fit in.
However, the synopsis was so misleading. That was not what I expected. The first few chapters were loaded with Hindi expressions, agricultural more precisely, and as someone who knows absolutely nothing about India and its agruculture, it was such a turn off.
The other few chapters were about the three men she fell in love with and the difficulties she is facing with the man she's currently dating. So I felt like she deviated from the main topic.
I couldn't connect with the protagonist, I couldn't sympathize with her or feel any of the "hardships" she went through. Even when reading the passages where she describes a rape scene, Bharati Mukherjee couldn't transmit any feelings to me, I wasn't disgusted nor angry at the rapist, I felt nothing that I was supposed to feel. It is not only about the content of the book but it is something about her narration that did not work with me.
Long story short, there was nothing to learn from this book, not even a single thing. I just can't recommend it.
However, the synopsis was so misleading. That was not what I expected. The first few chapters were loaded with Hindi expressions, agricultural more precisely, and as someone who knows absolutely nothing about India and its agruculture, it was such a turn off.
The other few chapters were about the three men she fell in love with and the difficulties she is facing with the man she's currently dating. So I felt like she deviated from the main topic.
I couldn't connect with the protagonist, I couldn't sympathize with her or feel any of the "hardships" she went through. Even when reading the passages where she describes a rape scene, Bharati Mukherjee couldn't transmit any feelings to me, I wasn't disgusted nor angry at the rapist, I felt nothing that I was supposed to feel. It is not only about the content of the book but it is something about her narration that did not work with me.
Long story short, there was nothing to learn from this book, not even a single thing. I just can't recommend it.
August 30, 2024
Loved most of it except the ending. So many interesting representations of Hindu mythology. I was taken with the ways Mukherjee represented animals (especially dogs), fate vs. free will, she-ghosts, the ways men break her pitcher, reincarnation, and memory.
"There are no harmless, compassionate ways to remake oneself. We murder who we were so we can rebirth ourselves in the images of dreams."
"There are no harmless, compassionate ways to remake oneself. We murder who we were so we can rebirth ourselves in the images of dreams."
April 30, 2024
(3.5 stars) this book is very confusing structurally but i do think that was very intentional on the author's part. i think this book does a very excellent job of viscerally placing the reader through the experience of immigration and i really enjoyed how the author refuses to play into the tropes of the "immigrant experience" and works to subvert them with the different structural techniques throughout the novel. i wouldn't say this book was "enjoyable" to read just because it can be very confusing but it's also very well written at the same time. maybe if i wasn't cramming to finish this book a week before my final project (which i should be working on now instead of writing this review lol) i would like it more
February 12, 2015
Jasmine
(1989) is the third book of Bharati Mukherjee's that I've picked up, and I've definitely gained the sense that Mukherjee would really be a cool professor to have. Her writing tends to have a quality of being more successful as Professor Mukherjee's lectures on identity and global modernity than well-constructed narratives.
As a novel following the journey of Jyoti/Jasmine/Jane, who goes from Indian country girl/beloved wife to illegal immigrant/Upper West Side nanny to Midwest trophy wife/mother to a teenage son, Jasmine is too short and underdeveloped to be thoroughly satisfying. In addition to suffering from the same meandering quality which sunk The Holder of the World, Jasmine's characterization is thin. Key figures in the narrative, including love interests Taylor (the perfectly enlightened NY professor) and Bud (the simple-minded farmer), are mere cardboard cutouts. Truly, The only secondary character that pops is Du, the adopted Vietnamese son of Bud and "J", who shares with her a mutual understanding of the chameleon-like trajectories of the immigrant.
Additionally, the eponymous "J" never quite overcomes a certain elusiveness that is meant to be a symbol of her continual reinvention, but has a tendency to read as blankness. At one point, Mukherjee has "J" ironically question, "Can wanting be fatal?" --to which a delightful yahoo had written emphatically "YES!" in my copy-- but I never bought that sense of wanting from her, the endless desire essential to her destructive tendency. Consequently, the transformations "J" goes through feel entirely contrived to make a thematic point, rather than coming out of the characterization itself.
However, as a vehicle for Mukherjee's reflections on identity, and her riffs on the various segments of society that "J" encounters? Jasmine is pretty entertaining. Mukherjee appears to have a pessimistic view towards the dream of the multicultural melting pot, if not an outright cynical one. A scene at a PTA meeting, in which "J" meets with one of Du's teachers, sparks with provocation:
It's this quality of intelligence, of a willingness to offer real opinions in her writing which makes, for me, reading Bharati Mukherjee always interesting — ultimately, more rewarding against that of more safe and tasteful writersJhumpa Lahiri, despite the unevenness of her output. Rating: 3 stars
As a novel following the journey of Jyoti/Jasmine/Jane, who goes from Indian country girl/beloved wife to illegal immigrant/Upper West Side nanny to Midwest trophy wife/mother to a teenage son, Jasmine is too short and underdeveloped to be thoroughly satisfying. In addition to suffering from the same meandering quality which sunk The Holder of the World, Jasmine's characterization is thin. Key figures in the narrative, including love interests Taylor (the perfectly enlightened NY professor) and Bud (the simple-minded farmer), are mere cardboard cutouts. Truly, The only secondary character that pops is Du, the adopted Vietnamese son of Bud and "J", who shares with her a mutual understanding of the chameleon-like trajectories of the immigrant.
Additionally, the eponymous "J" never quite overcomes a certain elusiveness that is meant to be a symbol of her continual reinvention, but has a tendency to read as blankness. At one point, Mukherjee has "J" ironically question, "Can wanting be fatal?" --to which a delightful yahoo had written emphatically "YES!" in my copy-- but I never bought that sense of wanting from her, the endless desire essential to her destructive tendency. Consequently, the transformations "J" goes through feel entirely contrived to make a thematic point, rather than coming out of the characterization itself.
However, as a vehicle for Mukherjee's reflections on identity, and her riffs on the various segments of society that "J" encounters? Jasmine is pretty entertaining. Mukherjee appears to have a pessimistic view towards the dream of the multicultural melting pot, if not an outright cynical one. A scene at a PTA meeting, in which "J" meets with one of Du's teachers, sparks with provocation:
And then he said, "He's a quick study isn't he? They were like that, the kids who hung around us in Saigon." He didn't make "quick study" sound like anything you'd like to be. We're all quick studies, I should have said. Once we start letting go—let go of just one thing, like not wearing our normal clothes, or a turban or not wearing a tika on the forehead—the rest goes on its own down a sinkhole. When he first arrived, Du kept a small shrine in his room [...]Not exactly providing your typical take on the American dream of reinvention, eh? Mukherjee obliterates the myth of obsequious assimilation or peaceful pursuit, while not ruling out the possibility of finding that life, liberty, and happiness (if in another form than we expected).
"I tried a little Vietnamese on him," Mr. Skola went on, "and he just froze up."
I suppressed my shock, my disgust. This country has so many ways of humiliating, of disappointing. How dare you? What must he have thought? His history teacher in Baden, Iowa, just happens to know a little street Vietnamese? Now where would he have picked it up? There are no harmless, compassionate ways to remake oneself. We murder who we were so we can rebirth ourselves in the images of dreams.
It's this quality of intelligence, of a willingness to offer real opinions in her writing which makes, for me, reading Bharati Mukherjee always interesting — ultimately, more rewarding against that of more safe and tasteful writers
September 13, 2014
This book is about a child's immigration to India. For we see all through the novel that Jasmine, call her what you will, is only a child. And the name changes, people call my Christy, Chris, some even take pride in calling me by my imaginary full name, Christina while I am just Christy. That doesn't mean I have multiple personalities, it means people like to call you differently. And also in many places, I find Jyoti or Jasmine acting like a child. When Karin calls her a gold digger, she defiantly replies, yes, the husband I am taking away from you, Bud is gold, and if digging means I am digging away his sorrows, then I am a gold digger. This retort is much like a child's "Nah na na na na". I am sorry but no, Bharati Mukherjee, I cannot believe that every man you come in contact with falls in love with you. Even Scarlett O Hara and other beauties like her had their limits. Jazzy or Jase must have had some kind of superpower. And Jasmine, isn't it convenient or extroardinarily co-incidental that the wives of the men who are interested in you just up and go away or the guy leaves them or them are not married, like Darrel. All the characters were flat characters, no change in any of them and I don't know enough about Bud's pre-Harlan life to compare with the present one you give in the novel, as he is not vastly described as a healthy, fit man. Professor Vadhera gives you the money, Taylor gives you a home and security and Bud gives you a lot more, a slow and steady climb, isn't it but not very realistic. Mother Rippleyer had to be there when you were asking around for the job and lo and behold, another man falls in love with you. Karin calls you a tornado, leaving destruction in your wake, but I think you are more like a child, leaving lovelorn men in your wake. I also think the book misrepresents Indians. You say all Indians are like fisherman looking for fish. I didn't know all Indians meant Punjabi, Hindu, fair-skinned ones. There's also a pretty racist comment by Bud where he imagines all Indian women to be dark-skinned, pot-bellied, starving women. All in all, it was an initially intriguing but finally disappointing read.
February 20, 2015
What will you give to be an American? What will you give to experience the American dream, to grasp all the prosperity and security and happiness that so many Americans seem to have?
For Jyoti, a seventeen-year-old widow who lost her husband to the violence that plagues India, there's not a lot she won't do. Illegally immigrate? Sure, why not? Commit murder? Steal another woman's husband, and then leave him? There you go. As Jyoti gradually acclimates to the society and values of America, she leaves more and more of her Indian self in the past, and undergoes many transformations as she tries to discover who she is and what she wants. Duty and common sense compete with desire and passion; which way of life will she ultimately adopt?
Oddly enough, you'll have a lot of sympathy for Jyoti. She's just a woman, trying to survive and make a life for herself...and will bring home to many of us, secure and smug with our prosperity, what many people are willing to do to gain the uniquw opportunities of America...
For Jyoti, a seventeen-year-old widow who lost her husband to the violence that plagues India, there's not a lot she won't do. Illegally immigrate? Sure, why not? Commit murder? Steal another woman's husband, and then leave him? There you go. As Jyoti gradually acclimates to the society and values of America, she leaves more and more of her Indian self in the past, and undergoes many transformations as she tries to discover who she is and what she wants. Duty and common sense compete with desire and passion; which way of life will she ultimately adopt?
Oddly enough, you'll have a lot of sympathy for Jyoti. She's just a woman, trying to survive and make a life for herself...and will bring home to many of us, secure and smug with our prosperity, what many people are willing to do to gain the uniquw opportunities of America...
July 16, 2020
This book was full of action and explored Jasmine’s shifting identity and needs as she progresses through the various different parts of her life however I felt like the narrative became a little too fast paced with little time spent cultivating genuine relationships with each of the characters. The ending felt rushed and out of the blue and the sorrow that I should have felt at some of the final events got lost. However, I will add that the narrative between Prakash and Jasmine in India was a major part of the story that I did connect with - this was the best part of the book for me. This book certainly highlighted some great points about femininity, culture, identity and the American drive to keep seeking and the writing was enticing but unfortunately I couldn’t sympathise with the narrative as much as I wanted to.
February 13, 2024
The most poorly structured novel I’ve ever read. Flat writing and flat characters who border offensive terrain. One of the most ableist and misogynistic books with prose which show a total lack of ignorance to the complexities and nuances of the diversity within the Asian-American diaspora. This is a shallow book which baits it’s audience with emotional intricacy, when in reality depicts a tacky hollywood-esque melodrama filled of conflict riddled trauma-porn.
“Jasmine” reads as an exploitative narrative of real-life tragedies, and I’d advise anyone going into this to research the author’s economic and cultural background before reading this novel. If I had to describe this book in one word it would be disgraceful.
“Jasmine” reads as an exploitative narrative of real-life tragedies, and I’d advise anyone going into this to research the author’s economic and cultural background before reading this novel. If I had to describe this book in one word it would be disgraceful.
September 10, 2012
Not a YA book - too many mature scenes. I chose this story because the main character is a Punjabi woman who ends up in rural Iowa. The story contains several flashbacks to her life first in rural India and as a young bride living in the city but also in New York City and Florida where she first lived when she came to the U.S. Initially, it was a bit confusing to follow what was happening and who some of the characters were (like Taylor). While Jasmine (or Jhoti, Jase, or Jane depending on where she's living) does have some insight into American culture and the idea of remaking yourself is appealing, overall the story was not one of my favorites.
November 5, 2021
I was going to give this book 3 stars, but I see that it has an average of 3.49. It's definitely more than a 3.5, in my opinion.
First, what I didn't like: The author's style consists of lots of little sections: a paragraph or two followed by some blank space, followed by another paragraph or two. As the book progresses, there are longer sections. But it was really hard for me to get into the book; I often use those spaces as a place to take a break and get some work done (work-work, housework, exercise, etc.), but these were insubstantial. I can't for the life of me figure out why the author (or editor?) chose to write in little sound bites. It's annoying. Maybe it made the book long enough that people would want to buy it?
I enjoy fiction from a multicultural perspective, and Jasmine fits the bill perfectly. In the beginning, she's "Jyoti." The name "Jasmine" only comes later, in one of her several personal reinventions.
Jasmine is a survivor in several important ways, which I won't go into (no spoilers here!). It's that survivor mentality that propels her into periodic reinvention, and some of those incarnations are more interesting than others, although not necessarily more believable. But we see that Jasmine isn't necessarily a reliable narrator; in one sentence she'll profess love for somebody, and in the next mere fondness. You sense that she is so determined to survive that she hides a lot from herself. The problem with this first-person narrative, then, is that a lot is hidden from the reader. It takes a master to produce a book in which characters hide a lot from themselves but the reader understands far more than they do about them. Think Kazuo Ishiguro's of The Remains of the Day, an astounding example an unreliable character being "outed" by skillful writing.
Unfortunately, in Jasmine, I never quite understood when the title character's descriptions were remotely accurate, and it was confusing. There were also some parts of the plot that I just didn't fall for (an Iowa farmer/banker who has some sort of revelation and adopts a 14-year-old Vietnamese boy, who immediately starts treating the two main adults in his life as "Mom" and "Dad", in particular).
I would say that for the first third of Jasmine I was pretty sure I wouldn't keep reading, and yet I did, and I'm glad I did. I'm also glad that the ending is somewhat unsure, as it potentially (to me) changes much of what Jasmine has said about herself.
Anyway, this isn't a masterpiece for the ages, but it's skillful and interesting in its portrayal of the title character, as well as other characters. It's also a fantastic commentary on American life (overprivileged New York academics, genuine "do-gooders" who positively change the lives of others, midwestern folks in a small farming community, among others), and how completely clueless we can be, meanwhile happily thinking ourselves to be the gold standard of humanity on this planet. At least Jasmine notices it, and never seems to aspire to that mindset. She's a survivor, who will be a chameleon forever, if necessary, and thus able to look with amused curiosity at obliviously earnest personalities who are sure that theirs is the only way of life that makes sense.
First, what I didn't like: The author's style consists of lots of little sections: a paragraph or two followed by some blank space, followed by another paragraph or two. As the book progresses, there are longer sections. But it was really hard for me to get into the book; I often use those spaces as a place to take a break and get some work done (work-work, housework, exercise, etc.), but these were insubstantial. I can't for the life of me figure out why the author (or editor?) chose to write in little sound bites. It's annoying. Maybe it made the book long enough that people would want to buy it?
I enjoy fiction from a multicultural perspective, and Jasmine fits the bill perfectly. In the beginning, she's "Jyoti." The name "Jasmine" only comes later, in one of her several personal reinventions.
Jasmine is a survivor in several important ways, which I won't go into (no spoilers here!). It's that survivor mentality that propels her into periodic reinvention, and some of those incarnations are more interesting than others, although not necessarily more believable. But we see that Jasmine isn't necessarily a reliable narrator; in one sentence she'll profess love for somebody, and in the next mere fondness. You sense that she is so determined to survive that she hides a lot from herself. The problem with this first-person narrative, then, is that a lot is hidden from the reader. It takes a master to produce a book in which characters hide a lot from themselves but the reader understands far more than they do about them. Think Kazuo Ishiguro's of The Remains of the Day, an astounding example an unreliable character being "outed" by skillful writing.
Unfortunately, in Jasmine, I never quite understood when the title character's descriptions were remotely accurate, and it was confusing. There were also some parts of the plot that I just didn't fall for (an Iowa farmer/banker who has some sort of revelation and adopts a 14-year-old Vietnamese boy, who immediately starts treating the two main adults in his life as "Mom" and "Dad", in particular).
I would say that for the first third of Jasmine I was pretty sure I wouldn't keep reading, and yet I did, and I'm glad I did. I'm also glad that the ending is somewhat unsure, as it potentially (to me) changes much of what Jasmine has said about herself.
Anyway, this isn't a masterpiece for the ages, but it's skillful and interesting in its portrayal of the title character, as well as other characters. It's also a fantastic commentary on American life (overprivileged New York academics, genuine "do-gooders" who positively change the lives of others, midwestern folks in a small farming community, among others), and how completely clueless we can be, meanwhile happily thinking ourselves to be the gold standard of humanity on this planet. At least Jasmine notices it, and never seems to aspire to that mindset. She's a survivor, who will be a chameleon forever, if necessary, and thus able to look with amused curiosity at obliviously earnest personalities who are sure that theirs is the only way of life that makes sense.
November 22, 2019
Just when your life is all figured out and seems to be settling down BOOM!!! A bomb hits you and all is destroyed. Would you be willing to kill the man that raped you? Could you justify why you did it? Jasmine takes you on a ride of ups and downs, sadness, joyfulness, heart-pounding adventures. Just when you think you are comfortable with where you are at reading you get a 360-degree turn to something new yet it all comes together. There were times when reading that my heart was calm but as soon as the page turns my heart is pounding as though I just ran a marathon.
Jasmine is a beautiful girl who lived in India up until she was 16. The story is told by her as a woman living in Iowa at age 24, with her paralyzed boyfriend and his family. Before she came to America she was married women to a traditional Indian man who was going to school to have and provide for his family. As Jasmine and her husband were walking to get their information to head to the United States a bomb went off and killed her husband. Jasmine was still determined to carry on to the United States in the hope of a better life. Jasmine talks about the hardships she had to go through like finding her way in a foreign country and a different culture then she has seen. Jasmine has to find her way and stand up for herself in the hardest time of her life. Along the way, she finds friends and a family that love her and cares for her. Jasmine still struggles with finding her identity of how she truly is instead of what people tell her to be. Finding who you are and what you are can be hard but always keep reaching for the stars.
I wanted to read this book because it was out of my comfort zone and something different. This was a good different. This book reminds me of life because of the struggles and the love and cares that people have and show. Yes, there may be people out there that don't show much love or care but if you look hard enough you can find them and sometimes it may be the people you least expect. It is hard to find good and kind people in this world. So many people can put up a face but that can change in a split second. When Jasmine talks about her life in Iowa and living in a town that doesn't have much, it reminds me of my childhood living in a town that doesn't have much to do and you have to find your fun things to do. The book defiantly lives up to its potentianl. You can read it through the eyes of Jasmine and feel her hurt feel her love and feel her journey all the way through.
If you love to read a book with page-turners and different challenges and struggles and understanding what the main character is going through then Jasmine is the book for you. the whole book is flashbacks and they don't always go in chronological order so if you get confused easily with that stuff it may be more difficult to read (as I am one of those people). There were times I just couldn't put it down but there were other times I had to re-read a page or chapter just because it had so many flashbacks that I got lost. This is something that can relate to many people if not all maybe not the exact situations but with the same idea in everyone's life.
Jasmine is a beautiful girl who lived in India up until she was 16. The story is told by her as a woman living in Iowa at age 24, with her paralyzed boyfriend and his family. Before she came to America she was married women to a traditional Indian man who was going to school to have and provide for his family. As Jasmine and her husband were walking to get their information to head to the United States a bomb went off and killed her husband. Jasmine was still determined to carry on to the United States in the hope of a better life. Jasmine talks about the hardships she had to go through like finding her way in a foreign country and a different culture then she has seen. Jasmine has to find her way and stand up for herself in the hardest time of her life. Along the way, she finds friends and a family that love her and cares for her. Jasmine still struggles with finding her identity of how she truly is instead of what people tell her to be. Finding who you are and what you are can be hard but always keep reaching for the stars.
I wanted to read this book because it was out of my comfort zone and something different. This was a good different. This book reminds me of life because of the struggles and the love and cares that people have and show. Yes, there may be people out there that don't show much love or care but if you look hard enough you can find them and sometimes it may be the people you least expect. It is hard to find good and kind people in this world. So many people can put up a face but that can change in a split second. When Jasmine talks about her life in Iowa and living in a town that doesn't have much, it reminds me of my childhood living in a town that doesn't have much to do and you have to find your fun things to do. The book defiantly lives up to its potentianl. You can read it through the eyes of Jasmine and feel her hurt feel her love and feel her journey all the way through.
If you love to read a book with page-turners and different challenges and struggles and understanding what the main character is going through then Jasmine is the book for you. the whole book is flashbacks and they don't always go in chronological order so if you get confused easily with that stuff it may be more difficult to read (as I am one of those people). There were times I just couldn't put it down but there were other times I had to re-read a page or chapter just because it had so many flashbacks that I got lost. This is something that can relate to many people if not all maybe not the exact situations but with the same idea in everyone's life.
July 2, 2024
I flew through the first 20% of this book, but I probably should've taken my time a bit more - the book's scenes alternate between various stages of the narrator's life, which take place in vastly different places and even include her living under different names. Because I didn't really follow that structure early on, I found myself a bit confused in the middle about the chronology of it all. I wasn't sure whether or not I was supposed to already know how the dots all connected or if I was meant to be wondering. Then by the end, I realized that there were things that I didn't know because I actually didn't know them and not because I was just confused, lol. It was just a very frantic reading experience in the beginning for me but maybe that was by design.
It still gets three stars though, I can't in good faith give it less, because the writing is really beautiful and the story is beautiful as well. It was compelling to read about the narrator's journey across continents, countries, and cultures to experience various definitions of love, success, and societal roles. I think the plot was meant to be secondary to the ideas it imparts anyhow, and those ideas were well-communicated. The book is very solitary and mostly takes place in the narrator's mind anyway, with the exception of when she gets a glimpse into the inner machinations of one of the handful of men who impact the trajectory of her love life. Hearing her perspective on it all was a fun experience. It read a little like a memoir or a longform newspaper op-ed, which I enjoyed.
It still gets three stars though, I can't in good faith give it less, because the writing is really beautiful and the story is beautiful as well. It was compelling to read about the narrator's journey across continents, countries, and cultures to experience various definitions of love, success, and societal roles. I think the plot was meant to be secondary to the ideas it imparts anyhow, and those ideas were well-communicated. The book is very solitary and mostly takes place in the narrator's mind anyway, with the exception of when she gets a glimpse into the inner machinations of one of the handful of men who impact the trajectory of her love life. Hearing her perspective on it all was a fun experience. It read a little like a memoir or a longform newspaper op-ed, which I enjoyed.
November 11, 2018
These days, I enjoy most of the books I read. Probably because I am more careful about what I read. I rarely turn to the latest in contemporary fiction as I used to. I spend more time on classics, feeling in these words that have endured the test of time a sense of connection that contemporary works rarely give.
When I saw ‘Jasmine’ at the second-hand bookstore I frequent, I picked it up because my reading of Indian writers has been scant this year. I have read more Indian works in translation, but Indian writing in English? Not much. I confess that ‘Jasmine’ is one of the few books that I just wanted to put away and forget about. Rarely has a story so failed to appeal to me. I thought the whole immigrant-seeking-new-life in American would appeal to me. But it didn’t.
From the villages of Hasnapur, Mukherjee traces the story of Jasmine, Jess, Jane, and all her various avatars. At heart, this is a good novel to discuss. Do we just strip bare our identities when we decide to live the rest of our life in a different country? Perhaps, we have to. Perhaps, we must. Perhaps, we choose. But the writing was oddly affective, bursting into life in fits and starts with characters that fade away from your mind as soon you read them. I wasn’t moved. I wasn’t in any way involved with the book. One of those books I didn’t make friends with.
When I saw ‘Jasmine’ at the second-hand bookstore I frequent, I picked it up because my reading of Indian writers has been scant this year. I have read more Indian works in translation, but Indian writing in English? Not much. I confess that ‘Jasmine’ is one of the few books that I just wanted to put away and forget about. Rarely has a story so failed to appeal to me. I thought the whole immigrant-seeking-new-life in American would appeal to me. But it didn’t.
From the villages of Hasnapur, Mukherjee traces the story of Jasmine, Jess, Jane, and all her various avatars. At heart, this is a good novel to discuss. Do we just strip bare our identities when we decide to live the rest of our life in a different country? Perhaps, we have to. Perhaps, we must. Perhaps, we choose. But the writing was oddly affective, bursting into life in fits and starts with characters that fade away from your mind as soon you read them. I wasn’t moved. I wasn’t in any way involved with the book. One of those books I didn’t make friends with.
March 9, 2019
Crucial part of the Asian (and specifically South Asian) American literary canon. Jasmine combines responses to Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God and Bronte's Jane Eyre, emerging with something spellbinding and germinal. The protagonist's transformations, moral choices, negotations of radically different worlds--rural and urban India, Flushing and Manhattan, Iowa--anticipates the world of diasporic mobility that was in its early stages of development. The central character is unforgettable.
April 3, 2020
I will admit, I read this for a class (please, forgive me). I had trouble getting into this book because of the constant time shifts, and I found myself really confused by the characters and when exactly everything was happening, but once I finally settled into the story and pacing I ended up really enjoying it. The questions of identity, especially in the experience of immigrants, along with the romantic elements kept me reading.
February 18, 2021
I didn’t dig for deep and veiled meanings while reading this story. I just let myself be carried along on Jyoti’s/Jasmine’s/Jase’s/Jane’s journey from the fate of being a child bride in India on a horrific underground journey to America. Maybe the idea that by chance she is rescued by benevolence and ends up assimilating with what seems like ease is a bit contrived, I did not mind.
For me, the language and writing made this a terrific read.
For me, the language and writing made this a terrific read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 333 reviews