And Laughter Fell From the Sky

June 1, 2012
Inspired and influenced by Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth, And Laughter Fell from the Sky tells the story of family friends who reconnect after decidedly different postcollegiate experiences. While Rasika and Abhay both grew up as Indian Americans in Ohio, outspoken Abhay's early-adulthood rebellion and quiet Rasika's recent decision to proceed with an arranged marriage point to their disparate relationships with traditional Indian American culture. The novel follows Rasika and Abhay's unlikely reconnection from their first awkward conversation to a trip across the ocean and, ultimately, much deeper understanding of their culture, their families, and themselves. Sreenivasan writes with a tender, seemingly semiautobiographical view of her subjects and clearly understands the familial and cultural pressures on second-generation Americans and the expectations of traditional Indian American culture. Readers who enjoy the work of Anurag Mehta will relate to Sreenivasan's romantic coming-of-age tale. This is a witty, timely exploration of the varying definitions of success, belonging, cultural identity, and the human desire to connect.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)