NEWS & REVIEWS

“HABITATIONS will stun you. This debut maps, with deep artistry and sensitivity, the interior terrain of a brilliant scholar, an immigrant who carries the childhood loss of her beloved sister no matter where she goes. In Vega, Sheila Sundar has rendered a character of remarkable subtlety, one who bristles with intelligence and life as she seeks new homes among an international community of travelers many of us will recognize. As these friends throw their doors open to Vega, you will want to do the same.”—V. V. GANESHANANTHAN, author of Love Marriage and Brotherless Night

“Sheila Sundar’s irresistible debut is a provocative meditation on grief, desire, and the unexpected ways the two entangle. Brimming with emotional intricacies, crisp prose, and sly humor, HABITATIONS traverses the complicated, intimate politics and promises of the places we seek to call “home.’”—DEESHA PHILYAW, author of National Book Award Finalist The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

“Habitations is a delightful novel, written with immediacy, warmth, and wry humor. Covering dramas both personal and universal, Sundar offers insightful reflections on the desire for arrival and the longing for return. This is a significant addition to migrant fiction.”—HA JIN, author of National Book Award winner Waiting

“A striking reflection on migration, family, loss and home, and a vital portrait of race in American academia. Through sharp, up-close narration, we share Vega Gopalan's piercing observations about the world that surrounds her, and the friends, loves, and city-dwelling strangers that come to shape her life as she tries to find her place in it.”—MECCA JAMILAH SULLIVAN, author of Big Girl

“Masterful storytelling.  A sweeping, immersive and utterly perfect debut of a new talent and a fresh perspective on the Indian diaspora.  In its multilayered, nuanced way, this novel will teach you about the strength of family, the force of love, the power of hope and the resilience of spirit. In other words, HABITATIONS will take you fearlessly by the hand and remind you of the purpose of living.”—WEIKE WANG, author of Chemistry and Joan is Okay

“Insightful and hopeful, Habitations delivers on all fronts.”—BookPage

“Sundar’s debut novel is a wondrous mix of quiet heartache and unexpected hope, making it the best kind of literary fiction.”—Booklist

“Sundar debuts with an earnest meditation on an Indian American graduate student’s grief, loneliness, and longing… a fresh perspective on the pressures of motherhood and desire for self-fulfillment… This leaves readers with much to chew on.” –Publisher's Weekly

“A debut novel that explores the contours of grief and globalization with conviction…. The story unfolds episodically, in a good way; in Sundar’s hands, the scenes tumble together hypnotically. The book captures a moment in time—before smartphones and social media as we know them today—among a particular set of people who cross international borders for higher education and enticing opportunities. The catch is that their lives can be as circumscribed by capricious visa policies and systemic prejudices as by any personal limitations. This yields a sense of transience; Sundar captures the cascades of smaller griefs as Vega and the people in her universe develop close ties when they overlap in cities and on campuses, then move on for coursework, jobs, fellowships, and family.”—Kirkus