The Immigrant: A Novel

by Manju Kapur

In a world of rapidly changing values and traditions, an Indian woman enters into an arranged marriage to a man she barely knows and moves to distant Canada

Thirty-year-old Nina is an English teacher living alone in Jangpura, India. With diminishing prospects, she agrees to an arranged union. Her groom is the Indian-born Ananda, who lives in Canada. He once dreamed of becoming a doctor but settled for dentistry. He is lonely, and also in want of a spouse.

Their life together is not what either expected. Unable to find work teaching in Nova Scotia, Nina takes a job at the local library. Ananda is troubled by his own response to the sexual aspects of their relationship. Assimilating into a new culture pales in comparison to the trials of marriage—its ups and downs, its inevitable compromises . . . and the temptations of illicit passion.

Genres: Fiction, India, Indian Literature, Historical Fiction, Asian Literature, Adult, Canada

342 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Manju Kapur is the author of four novels. Her first, Difficult Daughters, won the Commonwealth Prize for First Novels (Eurasia Section) and was a number one bestseller in India. Her second novel A Married Woman was called 'fluent and witty' in the Independent, while her third, Home, was described as 'glistening with detail and emotional acuity' in the Sunday Times. Her most recent novel, The Immigrant, has been longlisted for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature. She lives in New Delhi.

Reviews

[Val Penny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Manju Kapur was born in Amritsar, India. She is an Indian novelist. Her first novel, Difficult Daughters, won the 1999 Commonwealth Writers' Prize, best first book, Europe and South Asia. She teaches English at Delhi University under the name Manjul Kapur Dalmia. She studied and received an M.A. in 1972 from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada, and an M. Phil from Delhi University. This novel, The Immigrant published in 2011, draws on life in Canada, although it is a novel, not autobiographical. The Immigrant was shortlisted for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature. The author is married to Gun Nidhi Dalmia; they have three children and three grandchildren, and live in New Delhi.

The Immigrant was book of the month at my book group. It is not a book that I would automatically have chosen, however, reading out of your comfort zone is part of the joy of being in a book group. The book is about a couple. Nina is a college teacher of 30 in India. Ananda has moved to Canada to get his degree and practise dentistry. When he is sufficiently established that he feels he should have a wife he finds it easier to have his Indian family find one and arrange a marriage than for him to find a Canadian wife on his own. So he brings Nina back and settles her down in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. For years, he had to face the awful loneliness of the recent immigrant, but he does not give any consideration to Nina being bored or lonely: as far as he is concerned, she has him.immigrant
The daily lives of the couple are set out for the reader in all their everyday challenges and frustrations. Once Ananda or Andy as he is known in Canada is married, the reader sees him only as he relates to Nina and as he tries to solve his sexual anxieties. This is an interesting reversal of the perception, frequent among male writers, of women as existing only as sexual beings and in relation to men.

The reader does not hear much about Ananda's dentistry practise, but does learn a lot about Andy's problem with premature ejaculation. The story of his worries, his secret Berkeley cure, his alarm clocks and, in due course, his triumphs, is related straightforwardly. This is a serious matter, and the author does not jeer or sneer. Still, Andy, in his earnest and exclusive concern for the behaviour of his penis, is very funny. The comedy in The Immigrant is hard to describe. It does not come out in exaggerated wording or an overtly comical scene. It is gently pervasive and deliciously subtle flavour, like that of ginger or coriander and it is used with a light hand. I did not laugh while reading this book, but I smiled often, and I smile remembering The Immigrant. I highly recommend this book.

[Emmy Hermina Nathasia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was surprise by how the book pulls me gently to keep on reading until I finished. It has a calming effect despite the plot twists and all. Weirdly enough, without too much words used to describe feelings, the writer manages to write enough for me to keep on going. The plot is not bland or anything like that, it has enough wonder and inquiry in it for me to keep on reading. But I remember no upset exclamation or shouts along the process, except the ending.

[HadiDee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this on the strength of Difficult Daughters, but this book is so different that it seems to have been written by another person.

It's a real mish-mash of issues: arranged marriages, late arranged marriages, genteel povery in India, politics, immigrant integration, premature ejaculation, rape, extra-marital affairs, overseas qualifications etc etc.

Both Ananda and Nina reveal themselves to be unpleasant individuals, too concerned with themselves and their egos. There a whole of lot of exposition telling us, rather than showing us, of their problems and issues.

As for the sex.... quite frankly WTF? Ananda's relationship with his penis is amusingly described and his efforts at sustaining his erection can be comic - spraying it with dental anthestic for example - but on the whole it's clinically and unpleasantly described, and really, I don't want to know about anyone's sex life in such detail.

Overall a mess of a book.

[Li Sian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nina was a compelling enough character, actually, and if given the chance I'll probably read some more of Manj Kapur's works. But what prevented this from being an actual good novel, and as one reviewer claims 'A truly compelling portrait of a marriage', was that Ananda was an UNMITIGATED DICK. So a good half of the novel (the half that wasn't about Nina) was his internal monologue going 'Dick, dick, dick, dick dick.' How did it take the entire novel for her to realise that?!

[John Bithell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having lived as an immigrant and the spouse of one, I empathised with Nina. It is not an easy life. The perceptions offered from east and west were touching.

[Patty · Rating 1 out of 5]

A novel about an arranged marriage (eh, that's not really the right term, because I'd just call it "an introduction was arranged by an intermediary, the marriage didn't take place until over a year later after dating" but all of the characters insist on calling it arranged, so whatever) between an Indian woman and an Indian man who had previously immigrated to Canada. Ugh, this book was terrible. The marriage (shockingly, because novels about marriages so often focus on happy relationships) doesn't work out, with the difficulties primarily centering around their sex life and the husband's problems with premature ejaculation. There's so much endless angst over this, but because this is a literary novel and therefore never described the sex in any detail, I had trouble figuring out what, specifically, the problem was. Even now, having finished it, I'm still not sure if they were upset because they weren't having sex at all, or upset because they were having non-penetrative sex. (Though I lean toward the no-sex interpretation, based on a scene fairly late in the book when the wife alludes to reading about oral sex in a textbook. In which case, Jesus Christ, characters, get it together and figure out your other options. Though it was set in the 70s, which perhaps makes a difference to the amount of sex education they might have had? I don't know, if I have to spend huge amounts of time trying to discern if your characters even know what cunnilingus is, when it's central to the plot, you have failed as a writer. Also apparently the husband doesn't believe in masturbation, so damn dude, no wonder you have problems).

Anyway, something like 80% of the book is the two main characters separately bemoaning their sex lives, and then abruptly at the end they both have affairs, there's a rape, and someone's mom dies, all coming out of nowhere with almost nothing to do with the previous chapters. Despite the book's conviction that it was about The Immigrant Experience, it never really managed to tie the sex theme into that.

And randomly, there were a ton of typos in my edition. I don't know what's up with that - I didn't read it as an ebook, so it wasn't a scanning problem.

[Dabarai · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Immigrant by Manju Kapur is a book of multiple layers: the story of arranged marriage of Nina and Ananda is only the opportunity to discuss the wide range of other issues: marital relationship, adultery, differences between Eastern and Western culture, life of an immigrant...
I've found the beginning of this book a bit of a struggle, I wasn't sure I liked the style it was written – it seemed a bit uneven and too jumpy. However, somewhere in the middle it all came alive to me. I've started to enjoy the storyline and characters – Nina, the lonely soul trying to adapt to life in different country, different culture, trying to find her feet, and Ananda, with all his flaws, secrets and annoying habits, trying hard to assimilate in his adopted country, losing a touch with his roots and his past. Personally, The Immigrant made me more aware of some aspects of modern Indian culture and on a more emotional level, it reminded me of my own experiences as a immigrant trying to make a living in a foreign country.

[Nitya Iyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grabbed this book off my mother's shelf because of how strongly I empathized with the main character described on the back blurb. After all, Nina is a smart well-read young woman who is told repeatedly how close she is to the end of her "marriageable girl" shelf life. Unfortunately, as I began to learn more about Nina's life, especially after her marriage, I realized how little I cared for a woman without the self-confidence and independence to deal with the struggles of settling into a brand new life in a brand new country. Granted, unlike Nina, and I suppose many of the other young immigrant wives I meet, I moved to the US with an American education and the confidence that my parents would not be shocked or heartbroken with any decision I could prove to them I had made carefully. But in the end, her inability to face up to reality and deal with tough situations head on really turned me off and made getting through the last third of the book incredibly strenuous.
So, although I think the book is well-written, it's just didn't do it for me.

[Maia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was (pleasantly) surprised by how much I enjoyed this book, which I picked up in a hurry on my way to a 5-day holiday (not much in English to choose from in Frankfurt!) mostly by the title & blurb. It is the deceptively simply told story of Nina, a bright, apparently attractive 30-year-old 'spinster' (by current Indian standards) whose widowed mother is desperate she marry and reverse the bad times they've fallen on since the brilliant and charming (though he left them destitute) father/husband's unexpected death. The beginning is a bit slow and bogged down by not the clearest or tightest writing, but characterization and interaction is so alive and vibrant that I found myself drawn in, interested and curious to see where it would all lead. An especial note of interest, from the first, is Nina's childhood background, the years spent 'in the West', notably Brussels, when her father was a diplomat. What especially caught my attention was how obviously better that time was, both in Nina's and her mother's estimation, and the clear advantages that even then they saw to Western as opposed to Indian life. This was interesting because, in some ways, Kapur later seems to contradict such a belief system with Nina's later experience in Canada.

The second thread to this story is (again, interestingly,) from Nina's future husband, a good Indian boy from a good Indian family who, though not good enough to become a doctor, successfully becomes a dentist instead, sets up his own practice, takes care of his parents, does as he's told and follows the rules, only to have both his parents die suddenly and tragically--essentially, leaving him with no follow-up to his life plan. So he then (and rather abruptly) immigrates to Canada, where he has to become a dentist all over again. In Canada, he lives with his dentist uncle, who emigrated about 20 years prior and is now married to a not entirely sympathetic non-Indian Canadian, and, at the start, it is he who is 'the Immigrant', although later Nina will be, too. He comes off as a nerd, a guy good at his job but not terribly insightful at much else, and its not surprising to learn that he has sexual problems. It is also not surprising that (mostly due to such sexual issues) he decides to accept his sister's help in an arranged marriage via India, which is he marries Nina.

All of this beautifully told and very much alive. Nina's subsequent arrival in Canada, her culture shock and social classes, are described with perfect pitch, as is the ins and outs of the marriage. I lost a bit of interest when both explore other sexual options but, in general, it is a strong book.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story about the immigrant experience from the perspective of a woman who moves to Canada from India because of an arranged marriage. Anybody who has ever moved away from their home town should be able to relate. The story held my interest. The only reason I didn’t give it four stars is that I never really understood the husband. I understand why he cheated on his marriage, but didn’t he want to create a family of his own, especially after losing his parents? He was a dentist with some medical and scientific training—why wasn’t he more sensitive to his wife’s biological clock? Did he truly not want a family? I also would have liked to know more about what eventually happened to them. Did she ever confront him? Did they ever reconcile? Or if they split, was she ever able to put down roots somewhere? Was he ever able to mature enough to commit to a family? It felt too much like reading a short story. It needed to be fleshed out. Still, it was a good story, and worth a read, especially if you’re interested in the subject matter (e.g., marital and family issues, the immigrant experience, Indian culture).

[Smita · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have really enjoyed all the earlier books by Manju Kapur - Home, Difficult Daughters, A Married Woman. But The Immigrant was quite a dampner. The story was just not strong enough for me. I think Kapur should stick to stories set in India rather than explore the immigrant life as many others have done earlier. She is best at telling stories set in India - she brings to life the realities of India like none others.

[Diane Dunn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably 3.5 stars, enjoyed it. Told from the perspective of the immigrant, from one who had little ties to his home country and his adopted country was the promised land, and yet his wife who initially felt the same became disillusioned. The trials and tribulations and minutiae of their lives, marriage difficulties and differing opinions all make for an interesting read.

[Biogeek · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have enjoyed all of Manju Kapur's previous books, but was disappointed by this one. Maybe it was because I am not particularly interested in the middle-class immigrant story, or because I was put off by what seemed gratuitously graphic scenes. Either way, this book did not hold my attention.

[Nayanthara Rajeev · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘The Immigrant’ by Manju Kapur was a novel that accidentally entered my TBR list and became my first read of the year. The story revolves around Ananda, who moves to Halifax as a dentistry student and gradually evolves into Andy, absorbing the Canadian soul - from food habits to social interactions - and Nina, whom he marries through an arranged marriage.
The novel offers a glimpse into their married life, a relationship that gradually turns sour over the issue of having a child. The Eastern influence of shame attached to sex and anything related to sexuality continues to linger with Ananda, pushing him to remain discreet about his sexual insecurities. However, this secrecy leads him into sexual encounters that he keeps hidden from Nina. Meanwhile, Nina, in her search for an identity of her own, pursues a degree in library science, during which she begins to explore her sexuality, just like Ananda, ending up in adultery just like Ananda.
The story touches upon several themes such as adultery, liberation, guilt, consent, shame, and more. However, the aspect I connected with most was Nina’s search for identity.
For an educated woman in her 30s who is single, the world can be harsh even today. So one can imagine the price a woman had to pay in the 1970s. Nina, the only daughter of an IFS officer who had experienced a sophisticated life in a European country, is forced to retreat to Jahangirpuri after her father’s death. Despite the loss of luxury, she still had an identity - one that went beyond being someone’s daughter. She was a teacher at Miranda House, DU.
After marrying Ananda, an NRI dentist in Canada, she uproots herself and moves to a foreign land. She has everything materialistically, yet lacks an identity of her own. As someone who moved to a different state after marriage without a job, this deeply resonated with me. “Feeling lost is inevitable in a new place—and if you are a woman without a job, far away from friends and family, it must be doubly hard.” I thought of myself when I read this.
“Every person, on their first trip to a foreign country where they know neither the people nor the language, experiences childhood.” I knew neither the people nor the language. And yes, I experienced that childhood-like helplessness.
The only person I had was my husband, and my world revolved around him. For someone like me - the eldest daughter, used to independence, this didn’t sit well. I was reduced to being a ‘wife’ rather than an ‘individual’ with capabilities. It hurt deeply. But I survived. I survived with the love and companionship of my partner. Eventually, we decided to stay apart so that I could build my career. Staying away from your partner, who is also your best friend, is not easy, it is heartbreaking.
Coming back to the novel, the story is not just about Ananda and Nina’s marriage. The book also explores the immigrant experience -  adapting to a new country, navigating freedom, sexual liberation, and personal transformation.
Overall, I loved the book.

[Shweta Kulshreshtha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story is so specific to the indian diaspora that it exposes so many of the cruel biases and expectations of people in age old customs. I don't think I have ever hated any character more than I hated Ananda. The sole justification is his trauma and ironically he is the most apathetic character I have ever read. And there is no character I have felt for as much as I felt for Nina. I disliked the abuse the writer puts her character through and yet she represents so many south Asian women in the last few decades who have saddled both old world customs that put men at the center of everything and the new world where women are starting to realize they hold more value than traditional gender roles. Also, manju kapur captures the loneliness of an immigrant so well. I could relate to the melancholy with dreadful.winters, icy winds and the feeling of loss of connection that is so easily available in India. I haven't read many novels that capture the indian immigrant experience and I really enjoyed reading this book.

The reason I rated it poorly is because the narrative plays a bit much into stereotypes. I couldn't quite grasp the flip flop between what the characters did out of a sense of duty vs out of a sense of awakening. I mean Ananda's entire story was that his dick didn't work and everything in life circled around it. Nina's acceptance of her marriage was very confusing. They said they loved each other but they also resented each other? I mean these are 30 year.olds with life experiences yet they sounded like teenagers who are following orders.

And the portrayal of infidelity was very gendered and stereotypical. Especially ananda's fascination with sleeping with white women. It's a very common "prize" in the diaspora and is disrespectful to all women. I guess I hate Ananda because he reeks of male insecurity, the typical indian male subservience to a higher object (god/political leader/ adoptive country) and lack of depth so often visible in men who want to play roles rather than deal with their emotions. It was very triggering to read his story. I just couldn't understand if the author was being critical or endorsing the behavior as if it is meant to be accepted.

This was a very thought provoking book for me. It touched a lot of things and I guess that's why it left me feeling a little.disappointed because it could have done so much more but remained a stereotypical portrayal of patriarchy, subjugation of women and arranged marriages.

[Aditi Mukherjee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Manju Kapur's writing. Finished reading - The immigrant. It doesn't beat Jhumpa Lahiri's writing on immigrant identity but is pretty good in itself considering the simplicity of the plot and the focus of emotions. Here is a short review:

Set in the political backdrop of the 1975 emergency in India, Manju Kapur’s – The immigrant is a story still relevant and connectable in the current times. Anyone who has lived abroad even for a brief time will identify with the characters of Ananda and Nina; the former a dentist and his wife Nina who joined him several years later through an arranged marriage setup.

The book explores complex emotions most immigrants are faced with when settling in a country they wish to make their own. While for Ananda, it is about gaining respect and being accepted as a westerner – a process that begins with overcoming his dependencies on the extended family settled in Canada and learning to eat meat. Ananda appreciates the opportunities and the blessed life of the developed world, constantly comparing it with the stifling atmosphere back home. And yet, when he is unable to secure a wife in his adopted country, Nina enters his life after a brief courtship arranged by his sister.

Nina’s story is similar to that of the thousands of woman who accompany their husbands to the developed world. Married late in life and after much deliberation, Nina relishes the freedom of anonymity in quiet Halifax. Her initial euphoria, however, wanes with time as she questions her existence independent of her husband’s. This coupled with her husband’s sexual ineptness, her inability to conceive a child and her own transgressions creates a new dimension to her understanding of life.

Manju Kapur’s delves deep and unhinged in the area of spousal compatibility and adjustment while seamlessly narrating an immigrant’s experience. Here’s a paragraph that sums up her story:

“The sense of community was there, warming but temporary – everything temporary. Perhaps that was the ultimate immigrant experience. Not that any one thing was steady enough to attach yourself to for the rest of your life, but that you found different ways to belong, ways not necessarily lasting, but one that makes your journey less lonely for a while. When something failed, it was a signal to move on. For an immigrant, there was no going back.”

[Sneha Pathak (reader_girl_reader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The immigrant who comes as a wife has a more difficult time. If work exists for her, it is in the future and after much finding of feet. At present all she is, is a wife, and a wife is alone for many, many hours. There will come a day when even books are powerless to distract. When the house and its conveniences can no longer completely charm or compensate. Then she realizes she is an immigrant for life."

Manju Kapur's The Immigrant is a story of migration and marriage. Ananda moves to Canada after the death of his parents and becomes a dentist. Nina is a thirty year old leacturer who accepts Ananda's proposal and shifts to Canada to be with him. The temperament of both these people are very different and the challenges of being an immigrant and the opposite feelings towards it become the driving force behind the novel and the unraveling of this couple's marriage.

For neither of them is perfect. Ananda has his own complexes and a mindset that the more imaginative Nina finds difficult to accept and move with. Nina, on the other hand, finds the entire immigrant experience such a mixed bag that she's unable to assimilate like Ananda has and this leads to further complications. Things become more out of hand when both of them start covert affairs with other people and communication becomes even tougher. I felt that the book did quite a good job of talking about marriage in all its complexities and problems. Both Ananda and Nina have shades of grey in their characters and neither of them - thank God - is built in the mould of the stereotypical Indian man or woman living abroad.

Even though the book's action takes place in Canada and being an immigrant does play a role in the breakdown of the couple's marriage, i couldn't help but feel that theirs would have been a very unhappy marriage even if they'd been living in India. Perhaps the pressure/support of family and society would have kept them together, but barely so. Despite its rather low ratings on GR, most of which comes from Western audience, I would definitely recommend The Immigrant.

[Rhoda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nina is a thirty year old teacher in Delhi, whose mother is getting increasingly worried as she is still unmarried. Ananda is a dentist who has moved from India to Canada following the death of his parents, but has started a search for a suitable wife in India. When they are matched by mutual acquaintances, Nina must give up everything she is familiar with to make the move to Canada, which turns out to be a vastly different experience to what she was expecting.

I have very mixed feelings about this book! The writing is superb and the character development is excellent. The story is quite multi-layered and would be a great book club choice as there are some very thought provoking topics and behaviors to examine.

The topics were also a point of frustration to me though. They are all well developed and fleshed out - but we seem to move from one to the other sequentially, (almost) never to be mentioned again 🤔 for example, we start with the immigrant experience (which was excellent by the way) and then move on to infertility, then premature ejaculation etc etc.

Whilst I thought the character development was very good with some pretty fascinating behaviors to consider, by the end of the book I found Ananda to be quite superficial and Nina to just live in some fantasy land with unrealistic expectations, which left me feeling I had no one to cheer on and no conclusions to any of the topics raised. It just felt dissatisfying. ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

[Joy Ramlogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

starting out in New Delhi, Nina is an English Literature teacher in a prestigious college for women. She is desperate to be married as she approaches thirty and acquiesces to her mother's search for an arranged marriage. Her overseas Indian husband appears just in time - an immigrant dentist to Halifax, Ananada is a gung-ho immigrant, who has transformed from a vegetarian Hindu to a meat eating Canadian. This motif of changing from vegetarianism as part of the change to Canada was a returning one. With this background, The Immigrant launches into a study of these two ordinary people, charting the course of their marriage which cracks and splinters as Ananada finds sexual prowess and Nina fights loneliness and depression. What struck me was the interweaving of the cold winters and seasons in Nova Scotia, and the intersections that Nina encounters at Library School and the empowerment group versus the earth mother group of her husband's friend's wife Sue. There is a vein of wry humour throughout the novel which I found entertaining and necessary with such cold gloomy winters. In contrast the sojourns in India capture the chaos and warmth of friends and the split that occurs for immigrants. It is only on the death of her mother at the very end, that Nina becomes clearer on her desires and making a life for herself. A little rushed in the ending, and overall a well-crafted novel.

[Sruthy Pisharady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nina moves to Canada along with her husband at the age of 30 after her arranged marriage. She used to be an English lecturer in Delhi and lived with her widowed mother.
Set in a time before the internet and smart phones became ubiquitous, the story explores Nina's life and transformation. All though the story focuses on Nina's POV, it also switches at times to incorporate her husband Ananda's back story and his perspectives. The initial part of the story upto their wedding could have been shorter since it did not contribute as much to the rest of the plot. The author Manju Kapurr through her book The Immigrant has tried to examine the themes of marriage, sexuality and relationships in the context of immigrants and the dual cultures that are part of their lives. Something I really enjoyed in the book is Nina's self discovery journey which was very organic and brilliantly incorporated in the plot. Manju Kapur is an excellent story teller and is able to capture the nuances of various emotions experienced by the characters. I would have loved to get a little more closure as the ending was too open ended and left me with a lot of questions.
An interesting book from an Indian author about the immigrant experiences.

[Soumya · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely book primarily based in Halifax, Canada. The characters of Ananda and Nina are beautifully developed. One instantly relates to situations in the book and it seems familiar though one might never have faced those exact situations. A good book to really understand what immigrants go through, dealt better than Jhumpa Lahiri. Nina does a 2 year course on Library science, the parts about libraries are nicely described. Overall fast paced and a good read. Some favourite lines:

Yet to a certain extent this country freed emotional needs from the yoke of matrimony and social sanction.

Perhaps that was the ultimate immigrant experience. Not that any one thing was steady enough to attach yourself to for the rest of your life, but that you found different ways to belong, ways not necessarily lasting, but ones that made your journey less lonely for a while. When something failed it was a signal to move on. For an immigrant there was no going back.

When one was reinventing oneself, anywhere could be home. Pull up your shallow roots and move. Find a new place, new friends, a new family. It had been possible once, it would be possible again.

[Ramaswamy Raman · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book started with a nice premise but as it went ahead the plot became confused and complicated.
The story starts with two characters Nina and Ananda who have their own lives, tragedies and future. Their future merge as they get married and start their married journey in Canada. Ananda had started his life in Canada as a student studying dentistry. He was an immigrant and took time to adjust to the Canadian life.
Post marriage Nina also finds it difficult to adjust to the new found life. Initially it looked good but as the days of immigrants went all life became difficult.
Above that the author comes up with sub plots of issue with their unhappy sex life, the things the two try to get it working was all new and too descriptive. Then the plot of infedility added on made it boring and somehow finished the book.
Overall writing was excellent, the detailing to the dentistry, the sexual happiness, the librarian course and life on Canada was good. I thought the plot was good but felt stretched out if the ending was to be what it was, the reading dragged a bit more and became exhausting.

[Yoshine Une Krishnan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a 30 year old teacher, Nina from New Delhi who is desperate to be married.
The day after her thirtieth, her mother is approached by the sister of a dentist Ananda from Halifax, Canada who is looking for an Indian wife. He is also Indian but immigrated to Canada ten years earlier following the death of his parents in a rickshaw accident.
The book follows their marriage and the subsequent loneliness and isolation that they both experience in their own unique way, as immigrants to a new and wealthy culture that is quite alien to both of them. I enjoyed this story, it’s beautifully written, quite slow and considered, but ultimately, it’s the story of two people with very different expectations of marriage. It's easy to read but I wouldn't recommend it necessarily unless you have a special interest in the immigrant experience from an Indian perspective.

[Franziska Self Fisken · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is not a lighthearted book, but I was absorbed by it. It felt experiential. To a great extent I identified with the main character, female, a NRI (new resident Indian), because I too have a few times experienced being, or feeling like, an immigrant.
Manju Kapur describes and contrasts the very different living environments of New Delhi, India and Halifax, Canada, highlighting both the positives and negatives. In many respects these themes are like the ones Ruth Prawar Jhabvala explores.
I wondered whether Manju Kapur herself had visited Halifax.
Being an immigrant is challenging and uncomfortable, because there is no such thing as a perfect environment.
I felt her two main characters were convincing, admirable and developed during the book in a real way.

[Geeta Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Ms Kapur's stories and I can't never forget my first read book 'Difficult Daughters' many years back followed by 'Home'. Therefore my expectations were very high when I picked 'The Immigrant' up from the shelf the moment I laid my eyes on it. Something was lacking I felt although the Writer tried her very bit to bring the essence of a lonely Asian woman's plight in a foreign country with a situation she is not responsible for nor she can do anything about it. I read it till half way and yawned and consequently, returned the book back to its place from where I had picked it up. So I don't know what the end is in the story and how it is.

[Carol Fillmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wasn't sure when I began this book if I would like it. As I read page after page, it was evident that this book was growing on me. It was very good, complex and the writing was wonderful. Love all the culture of India woven in and the immigrant experience, first for the husband and then for the main character Nina. She had agreed to come to Canada as a bride in an arranged marriage. The story follows the marriage through its difficulties: infertility, husband's sexual difficulty, and adultery of both partners. I am not sure I liked the ending. Didn't hate it, though. It was just different from what I'd thought might happen.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I honestly did not think a book that gave off all the vibes of being a romance would contain so many pages devoted to premature ejaculation. And there's an entirely unnecessary sexual assault towards the end of the novel (at least, in my opinion).
Aside from that, it was an easy read. A little too much obsessed with exploring the psyche of the male main character and his, ahem, performance anxiety. But I did like the attitude of the female characters and the tension of marrying Indian and Canadian cultures for immigrants.

[Deep Driven · Rating 4 out of 5]

the immigrants are good a simple tale by Manju Kapoor.
every girl want to go foreign and wants a foreign husband they all see a dream that they will be going foreign and get married to an NRI so basically I want to say about the story she has a dream that she will be engaged with an NRI and became an immigrant to go with him but

when she was going wo9th her husband and de how wonderful;l; id this life after early marrai9ge but that is not the p; problem after three months she feels that she was ignored by her husband she remi9nd her reminiscence and after that, she was not in joy.

[Chloe Bardou · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Pull up your shallow roots and move. Find a new place, new friends, a new family. It had been possible once, it would be possible again." - Well if this isn't my life :)))

Took me forever to read this book, one minute I was hooked, the next the minutes and pages dragged. Interesting, explores a lot of different important themes but I think overlooks some of the more powerful ones like the very quick rape scene 15 pages before the end. Not at all what I expected from the start to finish and kept surprising me.

[S · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could give 6 stars to this book, I would. Years ago, I read 'Born Confused' by Tanuja Desai and I thought that resonated with my identity (it did at the time). With passing time, soul searching, plenty of reading, regurgitating, I think this book has got it - it is too close to home - too close to an immigrant's experience. The loneliness is encapsulated so realistically that I felt nauseated - I re-experienced it all over again. You never stop being an immigrant; even years later.