The Unknown Errors of Our Lives

By Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

This is a book of short stories spun around the topic of living in a different culture (America) to where you come from (India). It reminded me of why I do not like short stories very much. Once you get to know the characters and start enjoying the story, it is already over. I think this book could have been so much better had it been nine separate novels instead of nine short stories, because all the stories are so beautiful and interesting.

* Mrs Dutta Writes a Letter. The widowed Mrs. Dutta moves from India to the US to stay with her son's family. She tries to adapt to the new country and culture as best she can, but sometimes it is not only cultural differences that can cause problems in a family.

* The Intelligence of Wild Things. A story of a brother and sister who live in different parts of the US. The brother did not at first want to leave India to study in the US, but when their mother takes ill he does not want to return to India to see her.

* The Lives of Strangers. American born Leela goes back to her parents' roots in India where she goes on a pilgrimage. Here she meets a woman who makes a great impression on her.

* The Love of a Good Man. Mona has a hard time forgiving her father but after her mother dies her husband persuades her to let him visit. However, the wounds of the past heal slowly.

* What The Body Knows. The birth of her first child nearly kills Aparna. It takes a young doctor to bring her back to life.

* The Forgotten Children. Two young children dream of a life with more money and a non-abusive father.

* The Blooming Season for Cacti. Mira wants to be independent and leaves her brother and his family to settle in California. She meets a woman with a sad past, who wants to be more than her friend.

* The Unknown Errors of Our Lives. Ruchira used to write down all her mistakes in a notebook. Now that she is about to get married she sees that the biggest mistakes are the ones we do not even know we are making.

* The Names of Stars in Bengali. A young mother goes back to India to visit her mother, bringing along her two sons. Everything is not what it used to be in her village and her boys see things differently than herself. She also gets a shock when her youngest son falls ill and her husband arrives from the US.