The Continents Between – Bani Basu

Description

Looking over their shoulder at the home they left behind, the lives of immigrants Sudeep and Kamalika are suffused with a permanent sense of nostalgia. This is America in the 1980s, and it throws up all the challenges and insecurities they must fight against as they raise their rather American children in a conventional Bengali household.
Reminiscent of Jhumpa Lahiri’s Namesake, The Continents Between is a rich and thoughtful translation of Bani Basu’s epic novel, Janmabhoomi, Matribhoomi. Debali Mookerjee Leonard’s translation straddles difficult questions of identity, immigration, betrayal, love and politics with sympathy and skill and leaves you wanting more.