Jhumpa Lahiri Proves Pulitzers Are Not a Glass Ceiling

In March 2008, Jhumpa Lahiri released her third published book, “Unaccustomed Earth,” her second collection of short stories. Although it has been over a year since its release, this book remains on The New York Times Best Seller List, as well as on the Old Firehouse Books’ Best Seller List.

Aside from the top-ten lists, “Unaccustomed Earth” is a popular choice among book clubs, which the Tattered Cover Bookstore book club is reading in June and the Between the Sheets book club read in May.

So why does this book continue to be so popular?

Simple, Lahiri’s prose stands out because her books don’t entertain readers through predictive plotlines and thrills like the other authors (Roberts, Picoult and Brown) on the lists. Instead, Lahiri’s prose reveals what all literature seeks to show: the human condition.

After reading “Unaccustomed Earth,” “The Namesake” (2003) and her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of short stories, “Interpreter of Maladies” (2000), Lahiri proves that winning a Pulitzer doesn’t create a glass ceiling because she has evolved passed it.

Her books often detail the lives of immigrant Bengalis and Indians, but readers don’t feel bombarded by Indian and Bengali ethnicity. According to Lahiri, she does not write specifically about Bengalis, she writes about them as people.

One large difference between her two short story collections is length. Her current book is 333 pages with each story about 50 pages long; whereas, “Interpreter of Maladies” was 212 pages with stories averaging 20 pages. This simple difference allows Lahiri to do what she does best – explore the depths of realism.

Lahiri’s stories are all rooted in realism. Change doesn’t necessarily happen because the plot is character driven, which usually means the changes are emotional. Lahiri does this exceptionally well, so much so that readers will become attached to characters and experience the palpable loneliness Lahiri details.

The first chapter entitled “Unaccustomed Earth” details Ruma’s life after she moves with her husband and child, Akash to Seattle and her recently widowed father comes to visit. When her father arrives, Lahiri doesn’t tell readers their relationship is strained, she shows it by describing all of the things each character does not say to each other.

She accomplishes this by her uncomplicated, poised and delicate prose, while simultaneously maintaining focus and motion in the story.

But not every writer can do this.

For example, Lahiri uses drying tea bags waiting for their second use as signposts. These signposts are simple, yet shows that if the bag isn’t reused there is obviously something more going on with the characters using the tea bag. Without these images, the character’s emotional changes would not be complete.

In each story, readers become more attached to characters and empathize with their palpable, digging loneliness. Lahiri is the master of detailing what it is like to need to belong, whether it is to belong to another person, nationality or idea.

And since this book’s popularity remains steady, readers understand it too because it is what the human condition is all about.

Top Ten Best Seller Fiction Books and Local Authors

Often, The New York Times Best Seller Lists reign supreme because they offer a comprehensive list of the top books sold throughout the nation. But take a peek at the top ten list from Old Firehouse Books, you might just be suprised.

Old Firehouse Books Best Seller List for Paperback Trade Fiction

1. "The Tortilla Curtain" by T. Coraghessan Boyle
2. "Different Seasons" by Stephen King
3. "Garden Spells" by Sarah Addison Allen
4. "Odyssey" by Homer and Stanley Lombardo
5. "Tallgrass" by Sandra Dallas *
6. "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho
7. "Unaccustomed Earth" by Jhumpa Lahiri
8. "Breakfast with Budda" by Roland Merullo
9. "Red Glass" by Laura Resau *
10. "Dancing in Combat Boots" by Teresa R. Funke *

(* indicates local author)

NY Times Best Seller List for Paperback Trade Fiction

1. "Vision in White" by Nora Roberts
2. "The Shack" by William P. Young
3. "The Guernsey Literacy and Potato Peel Pie Society" by Mary Ann Shaffer
4. "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" by Jane Austen and Seth Grahme-Smith
5. "City of Thieves" by David Benioff
6. "Olive Kitteridge" by Elizabeth Strout
7. "Unaccustomed Earth" by Jhumpa Lahiri
8. "7th Heaven" by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
9. "Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown
10. "My Sister's Keeper" by Jodi Picoult

While the top sellers on each list still contain popular authors, local authors appear to be popular, too.

Laura Resau is a Fort Collins-based children's book writer. "Red Glass" is her third book and won several awards, including the Américas Award.

Local regional author Teresa R. Funke writes history-based fiction for children and teenagers. Her latest book, "Dancing in Combat Boots" details a few short stories of the fictional lives of women during World War II. Funke particularly focuses on women entering the workforce during the war.

Sandra Dallas, a regional writer lives in Denver and has been a journalist and writer in this area for several decades. According to the Old Firehouse Books Web site, her most recent book, "Tallgrass" is a historical thriller novel set during WWII that details a Japanese internement camp set in a small Colorado town.

For more information about local authors visit Old Firehouse Books or the Reader's Cove sites.