Naina’s life as a fifty-something year old living on her own in dazzling New York City is equal parts a breath of fresh air and an intriguing box dictated by unwritten rules of society. It is a breath of fresh air because an Indian widow of her age isn’t expected to be as independent and a lover of life itself as she is; and that is exactly where the unwritten rules of society of the kind ‘what will people say?’ or ‘is that how you behave at this age?’, and the worst, ‘think of your kids at the very least’ rear their ugly heads.

"The day had been unusually busy, filled with continuous movement, mostly of the mind. It had been like a one long paragraph without commas, semicolons, or periods." Haven’t we all experienced such days, the kind that don’t seem to end and when they finally do, it’s almost the next day already. While Naina’s story is quite relatable in parts and it is possible to explain her actions and behaviour, it is quite a long one at about 350 pages and the elaborate descriptions of her feelings and overthinking make it seem like it is even longer. Be ready to gain a ton of information about art, books, food, and even movies amidst the details.

"While trauma isn’t a person’s fault, healing that wound is definitely an adult’s responsibility."

Naina is written quite well and in enough depth to include every dimension of her life. She is all yours to love, hate, question, and judge in this eye-opener. Thank you @netgalley for my advance copy.

The book is an eye opener - especially for women in the Asian community (maybe other communities
too) who may live long in liberal communities but are bound by unwritten rules and expectations
engrained by generations repeating the same mantra.

Naina fiftyodd recently widowed two grown up professional children is struggling to cope with the "inevitability" and I like this "startlement" of death. There is no turning back, you just move on. sheexpected Harish to be with her for decades, a comforting security blanket who would take up all the insecurities, the barbs and issues of life. Taking the step to move to New York after being in the haven of New Jersey surrounded by over thirty Indian families who were familar was the first battle. Finding a low level job in an art gallery was a major plus for Naina, but even here she hid the actual work she did even from her children not wantung them to know the actual work she did. it was only after many years of grit and hard work and results of being promoted was she confident enough for her children to visit her at her place of work.

The massive issue was when she developed feelings for the boyfriend of her daughter - Jai. ten years younger than her twelve years older than Amaya,she did the unthinkable revealing her feelings to him thinking it was reciprocated and being rebuffed brutally. the story then evolves into a hitherto little known area of online dating for the Asian single older woman. scandalous to many, unknownto many uncharted territory to many.

Cultural barriers, stigma exists even amongst second generation Asians and it is difficult toerase. to those first generation Asian Americans it takes great courage to break the barriers
and live your life the way you want to. Naina herself felt guilty at her ability to find and develop relationships which were making her happy, and fulfilled when her daughter and son wereboth failing in their quest to find partners.

this was a emotiinal book dealing with peculiar, specific issues facedby only some people. This was seen in the attitude of Naina's American friends who could not figure out the need for hide and seek, for hiding evidence of a partner or a sexual relationship from family and friends. they could not comprehend at all and by including it in the story, the author was able to highlight the divide.

this was for me a page turner, rich, varied, so symtomatic of the system itself and the unwritten rules in life.

A very different book from what I read till now.

As you must have guessed from the blurb, Naina is in her fifties and is a widow. She and her husband had a typical arranged marriage; almost like a contract. After his death, she makes a bold decision to leave New Jersey where she lived for almost three decades, moves to New York and takes up a job at an art gallery. Her son, like a typical Indian man, doesn't like his mother being independent and making her decisions. Her daughter, Amaya, is cool about it all. As for friends, there are a few people Naina really talks with; the rest are for namesake. Naina considers having a partner, which is outrageous and forbidden for widows in the community she comes from.

Till here, I liked it. The author elaborately describes how Naina never got to be her true self in the marriage and explores a lot after Harish's death. She is confused - whether to follow her heart or be the good Indian widow. As I was liking her character development and the internal conflict, she does something unjustifiable. I can't write what it is because you have to read it.

The author did an amazing job with the descriptions and emotions. The book feels much longer than 400 pages. I took around 4 days to finish it. As much as I admire Naina for breaking the stereotype and daring to do something for herself, she is sometimes just bad.

The writing is impeccable. Naina is a literature fan who can't stop talking about books and inserting bookish references effortlessly (like most of us).

The book is an average read. I would suggest it to hard core fans of this genre.