Salt and Boiled Water: Jhumpa Lahiri

“When Deepa poured Bela some water from the urn that stood on a little stool, in the corner of the room, her grandmother reproached her.
Not that water. Give her the boiled water. She’s not made to survive here.”
― Jhumpa Lahiri, The Lowland

“Relax,” Edith says. “The perfect name will come to you in time.” Which is when Gogol announces, “There’s no such thing.” “No such thing as what?” Astrid says. “There’s no such thing as a perfect name. I think that human beings should be allowed to name themselves when they turn eighteen,” he adds. “Until then, pronouns.”
― Jhumpa Lahiri, The Namesake

“By now she has learned that her husband likes his food on the salty side, that his favorite thing about lamb curry is the potatoes, and that he likes to finish his dinner with a small final helping of rice and dal.”
― Jhumpa Lahiri, The Namesake

“Amid the gray, an incongruous band of daytime blue asserts itself. To the west, a pink sun already begins its descent. The effect is of three isolated aspects, distinct phases of the day. All of it, strewn across the horizon, is contained in his vision.”
― Jhumpa Lahiri, The Lowland

“He learned not to mind the silences.”
― Jhumpa Lahiri

“Too much information, and yet, in her case, not enough. In a world of diminishing mystery, the unknown persists.”
― Jhumpa Lahiri, The Lowland