Immigrant, Montana

Starred review from May 14, 2018
The plot of Kumar’s droll and exhilarating second novel (following Nobody Does the Right Thing) may feel familiar at first, but this coming-of-age-in-the-city story is bolstered by the author’s captivating prose, which keeps it consistently surprising and hilarious. Indian immigrant Kailash arrives in New York in 1990 wide-eyed but also wry, self-aware, and intellectually thirsty. Kailash lives uptown and attends college, and soon has his first sexual experience, with the socially conscious Jennifer, a coworker at the bookstore where he works, who brings him hummus and takes him ice skating. After he and Jennifer break up, he begins to date the mischievous Nina, followed by a series of other young women; the novel’s seven parts are titled after Kailash’s romantic partners, his formal education intertwined with his personal education. Nina takes Kailash to Montana, where his memories of lovemaking are tangled with snippets of Victor Hugo, Wittgenstein, and the history of British colonialism in India. After several peregrinations, explorations, and women, Kailash lands back in Manhattan with a similarly academically curious woman named Cai Yan, who is also from India. Ultimately, his journey is more intellectual than physical, and the book includes a plethora of lively literary and cultural references in footnotes, sidebars, and illustrations. This novel is an inventive delight, perfectly pitched to omnivorous readers. 50,000-copy announced first printing.

Author Amitava Kumar narrates this exploration of Kailash's early years in the United States. Part memoir, part novel, Kailash's story is told with tongue-in-cheek humor. Kumar recounts the hilarious, sex-obsessed inner monologues of a 20-something Indian man who lands in the country of his dreams. Listeners are privy to the awkward, silly, and painful moments of a stranger in a strange land. From Kailash's first date to his girlfriend's abortion, we have a front row seat on his induction into American life, told in the lilting rhythm of Kumar's narration. His delivery is steady, precise, and deliberate as he takes us on his search to make a home thousands of miles away from everyone he has ever known. Part melancholic and part ironic, this audiobook is full of feeling. M.R. � AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine