Invisible Lives [Paperback]

Anjali Banerjee (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 5, 2006

From the acclaimed author of Imaginary Men comes an enchanting new novel about a young woman with an uncanny ability to see deep into every heart but her own.

Lakshmi Sen was born with a magical ability to perceive the secret longings in others. Putting aside her own dreams to help run her widowed mother's struggling Seattle sari shop, Mystic Elegance, Lakshmi knows exactly how to bring happiness to customers -- from lonely immigrants to starry-eyed young brides. And to honor her father's dying wish, she has agreed to marry a respectable Indian doctor who will uphold her family's traditions.

But when a famous Indian actress chooses Mystic Elegance to provide her wedding trousseau, Lakshmi finds herself falling for the actress's sexy chauffeur -- all-American Nick Dunbar -- and her powers seem to desert her just as she needs them most. As Nick draws Lakshmi into his world, however, new dreams awaken in her, and she begins to uncover deeper, startling longings in her mother, her friends, her fiancé, and even herself. But choosing between Nick and her fiancé seems an impossible task, like intuiting the very nature of true love. Is it instantly recognizable or does it need time to grow? And how can she possibly know for sure?

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

In Banerjee's sophomore effort, she introduces Lakshmi Sen, a young woman who has the uncanny ability to read people's emotions. She puts her gift to use in her mother's Seattle sari shop--finding fabrics that ease a bride's cold feet, evoke a widow's first love, and even soothe a young autistic boy's fears. Her notoriety draws the interest of a Bollywood star, but whenever the actress' charming chauffeur Nick is around, Lakshmi has trouble keeping her own emotions in check. Will she allow herself to fall for Nick or marry the Indian doctor her family has chosen for her? Banerjee captures the struggle between tradition and modernity in this accessible chick-lit tale. Readers will appreciate that Banerjee doesn't choose sides and offers a variety of perspectives through her characters. The book has a romantic, magical quality that isn't a bit treacly. It's exciting to see how much Banerjee has grown since her debut, Imaginary Men (2005). Aleksandra Kostovski
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About the Author

Anjali Banerjee was born in Kolkata, India, and grew up in Canada and California. Her short fiction has appeared in literary journals and she has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. A graduate of the University of California at Berkeley, she lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband. Visit her website at www.anjalibanerjee.com.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books; Original edition (September 5, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416517057
• ISBN-13: 978-1416517054
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #582,637 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Anjali Banerjee was born in India, raised in Canada and California and received degrees from the University of California, Berkeley. Her books have received accolades in many review journals and newspapers. The Philadelphia Inquirer called her young adult novel, Maya Running (Wendy Lamb Books/Random House) "beautiful and complex" and "pleasingly accessible." The Seattle Times praised Anjali's novel for adults, Imaginary Men (Downtown Press/Pocket Books) as "a romantic comedy equal to Bend it Like Beckham."

Anjali has always loved to write. When she was seven, she penned her first story about an abandoned puppy on a beach in Bengal. Then, inspired by her maternal grandmother--an English writer who lived in India--she wrote a mystery, The Green Secret, at the age of nine. She illustrated the book, stapled the pages together and pasted a copyright notice inside the front cover. After that she churned out a series of mysteries and adventure novels with preposterous premises and impossible plots.

Growing up in a small town in Manitoba, Canada, Anjali's favorite family event was the weekly drive to the garbage dump to watch for bears. She also loved jaunts to the library, where she checked out the same Curious George books dozens of times. She adored a picture book called The Bear Who Couldn't Sleep, starring a baby bear who refused to hibernate in winter. Her favorite authors were Enid Blyton, Agatha Christie, Alexander Key, C.S. Lewis and others. Every night her father read to her from C.S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia or Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

After she grew up and finished university, Anjali tried on jobs like new sets of clothes--veterinary assistant, office manager and law student--before rediscovering her love for writing. Since then, Anjali's Pushcart Prize-nominated short fiction has appeared in several literary journals and in the anthology New to North America. She was a contributing writer for three regional history books and local newspapers before she began writing novels. An alumnus of Hedgebrook, an esteemed retreat for women writers on Whidbey Island, Anjali has been a speaker at the South Asian Literary and Theater Arts Festival (SALTAF®) at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., at many schools, libraries and writers' conferences, and she has led workshops for Field's End and the Whidbey Island Writers' Association MFA program.

Anjali loves hiking, reading, watching movies, supporting local animal welfare organizations, feeding birds, and playing piano. She lives in the Pacific Northwest, in a cottage in the woods, with her husband and five rescued cats.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars chick lit Bollywood style, September 2, 2006

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Invisible Lives (Paperback)

In India almost twenty-eight years old Lakshmi has a gift that her mom says comes from the Goddess she is named after who visited her when she was still in the womb. Lakshmi shares her ability to see inside the hearts of people to observe the tribulations that haunt them and she lifts those burdens off of that individual. As a side benefit of her mental skills, Lakshmi knows the perfect color and fabric for patrons of the family's sari shop.

However, because of her age, her mother worries that her daughter remains single so she arranges a match with a friend. Reluctantly as an obedient daughter and to honor her late father, Lakshmi accepts her mother's arrangement. However, as fate (and romance novels) would have it, she meets chauffeur Nick Dunbar and knows he is the one for her because her ability to look into hearts fail whenever she is around him.

Readers will enjoy this contemporary romance starring a delightful likable young woman who balances having one foot in the modern world and another in her heritage. Lakshmi's dilemma feels real as she wants to honor the desires of her mother and her late father, but loves Nick. This is a fine tale that rings true as a genuine chick lit Bollywood style.

Harriet Klausner

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lakshmi made my day, July 10, 2007

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Mrs. F "Erica" (Guyton GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Invisible Lives (Paperback)

What an enjoyable read. For those who what a saucy romance this is not the book for you although I had a wonderful time trying to finish this book in three days. I would hate to be in the main characters' position. I could not for the life of me wait to see who she chose in the end so I sneaked a peak and still couldn't wait to read her story. What fun. This book was a wonderful comedy and everyone should take the time out to read it. I hope the author might some day make a movie out of this. I think it might could fall on the lines of a good TV Series!!!! Anjali Banerjee is a goddess at writing. I loved every minute of her book. Will look forward to the next one.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Gora Review, September 1, 2007

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Good Gora "Good Gora" (Marshfield, WI USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Invisible Lives (Paperback)

Even though I am an American I love this genre of books. It is well written, tells a story of triumph over trouble and how those involved make it through thier lives. I wondered if the Bollywood star was somewhat modeled after Aish!