In these stories there is an interweaving of the past and the present while the main characters -women are seemingly engaged in some ordinary pursuit of daily life. As in The Long Journey where Kamala is traveling by rail, or in the case of Nirmala in The Corner Laundromat, Asha waiting to pick up her child outside school in Blessing From Above, Uma commuting to work in Silicon Valley in Suburban Mona Lisa; the small betrayals or infidelities in their lives, whether real or imagined, and their effort in surmounting these form the main theme of this collection. The stories are short and precise and written in a compelling narrative voice that draws the reader in. There are no boundaries here, whether it be the U.S. or India, they all celebrate women's lives--their trials and tribulations and the heartfelt messages of soul and survival.