My Little Friend: Anthology of short stories

The 20 stories in this anthology reflect author's experiences and perceptions arising from she living in two continents--India and America over a period of seventy-five years. She has spent one half of her life in India and the second half in America, (and continues to live in America) and thus has achieved a perfect balance, so to speak. Malathi has gotten interested in cultural studies ever since she has set foot on American soil and been fascinated by the apparent variants in the two cultures as well as the underlying commonalities in our intrinsic values and principal beliefs. These stories illustrate various issues we come across in our everyday lives and often let them pass by without noticing their peculiarities or their significance. It may be a small incident like a bug flying into your living room, a little boy extending his hand to a passerby, or a life-changing event like a letter written by a man to another woman. In all these cases, we see things that can happen anywhere across the globe and the differences in the manner in which the issues are handled or the lessons learned. An added dimension to these incidents or occurences is the cultural nuance. A given topic, skin color for instance, may carry different message in different cultures. In America it carries racial connotation while in India it is significant as a part of beauty. There is a caste connotation, the untouchables are considered dark-skinned, but that is rarely referenced in India. However, a foreigner who has studied Indian culture may bring it up in a casual conversation. Readers may find these interesting for that reason--the element of multiculturalism. In that, readers may pay special attention to how individuals behave, what they say, how they react, what their mode of thinking is, and so on.