ABSTRACT
Perceptions and realities of life in North America are interwoven with memories of South Asia in this first anthology of literary works focusing on South Asian American perspectives on the United States and Canada. Most of the short stories and poems deal explicitly with South Asian American experiences, but the evocative themes of love, loss, exile, nostalgia, loneliness, and renewal are present throughout. Living in America is a stimulating compilation of established authors such as Meena Alexander, Agha Shahid Ali, G. S. Sharat Chandra, Rienzi Crusz, Chitra Divakaruni, Ved Mehta, and Bapsi Sidhwa and talented writers as yet undiscovered by general readers. The diversity and strength of these South Asian American voices illuminate the wide range of South Asian history and traditions as well as the complexity of cultures - Asian as well as American - that undergird the work of authors of South Asian descent.
