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There is so much humanity, so many poignant moments in the stories in this collection
by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, that each one feels like it carries the weight of a
century's worth of knowledge about some aspect of the human spirit, tradition, dedication,
commitment, and the love for things greater than yourself --- your children, your
homeland, whatever that may be. THE UNKNOWN ERRORS OF OUR LIVES is a seemingly slim volume
that carries a million times its book weight in beauty.
In "The Lives of Strangers," a young woman who has survived her own suicide
attempt ends up finding great empathy for a mysteriously quiet yet strong Indian woman on
a trip to Kashmir. This is the kind of story that wins awards, big awards, the kind of
awards that get the story read in English classes all around the country for years to
come. Divakaruni is at the height of her powers as a storyteller here, and then goes on to
top this wondrous achievement with the story "What the Body Knows," about a new
mother's difficult journey between life and death and what pulls her safely to the other
side. These are the small moments, the exquisite details of the emotional lives of women
who have experienced the Mardi Gras side of capitalist America but who know that the
answer to their souls' very being lies with the old world traditions and family
experiences left behind in India. These stories are about the building of bridges between
old and new, even if, in the end, old seems more substantial. Divakaruni's work is
disquieting but remarkably profound.
It is rare to find stories that mark you in such a way, as if you had been an eyewitness
to some truly horrible event, then had the lucky chance to walk away unscathed, except for
the inner pictures you carry with you from that day. Whatever you learn from these
near-miss situations is summed up in Divakaruni's THE UNKNOWN ERRORS OF OUR LIVES --- time
is fleeting, carpe diem, everything old is new again. The hearts and minds of these
characters will matter to you as if they are members of your own family --- and the honest
and utter pain and spirit with which these (mostly) women face their predicaments will
haunt you well into your own life, every day of it. You don't have to be Indian to get the
gist of what she's saying. THE UNKNOWN ERRORS OF OUR LIVES is a great literary
achievement.
--- Reviewed by Jana Siciliano
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