There is no question that Jhumpa Lahiri is a talented writer. Her latest, The Lowland, is wonderfully written. However, there is a pallor over this book. It is so intensely sad. And I had such a hard time identifying with a story where a mother abandons her daughter. Intellectually, I understand Gauri, and the sadness she felt and what motivated her to leave, but emotionally, I couldn’t travel with her through this story.

About midway through the story, I wanted to give up. I was so disheartened by the lives of the characters. It picked up by the end, but I was still left with a feeling of gloom. It didn’t help that I read the ending on a rainy day. The whole book felt like a rainy day. Even in the happy ending moments in Ireland, it still felt dreary.

The writing compels me to recommend this one, but I am going to look for something lighter for my next read.