In Other Words was originally written in Italian by Jhumpa Lahiri, a first-generation American in an Indian family whose first language was Bengali. This book has been published as a bilingual edition, so most American readers (myself included) will probably only be reading the right-hand pages. Although Lahiri is a prolific writer in English, she has departed from her literary language to write solely in Italian. She even chose not to translate this novel herself, further solidifying her position as a new Italian writer.
This book contains two short pieces of fiction, but is mostly comprised of Lahiri's thoughts on approaching the creative process from a different linguistic mindset. Her passion for Italian and Italy itself is very apparent throughout and will feel familiar to any bi- or multilingual reader. The book is divided into short chapters, each focusing on a different aspect of becoming a foreigner to the art on which she has founded her entire career. Lahiri has stated that she wants to establish herself as an Italian writer going forward, and this book is both a love letter to Italian as well as her self-introduction to the Italian literary world. It just might be worth picking up Italian to be able to read this and future works by Lahiri.
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