Summary

The novel starts with Ajay explaining his parents. He explains his father as being more “glum” natured, and his mother as being more cheerful. The positive interaction shown in the very first section of the first chapter is one of the only positive interactions Ajay shares with his parents throughout the entire story. This interaction is when Ajay is a 40-year-old man; the rest of the novel is Ajay from age 8 through his early 30s.

The author spends much time describing Ajay’s father and Ajay’s perspective on his father: the fact that his dad never felt like he really mattered or belonged in India; the fact that he loves science and, therefore, liked to spend time around scientific things, like hospitals and doctors; and the fact that his father was an accountant who wanted to live in America, a place that was...