Still Here: A Novel by Lara Vapnyar: A Review

Sergey has been living, and struggling, in the United States for awhile.  His wife, Vica, is perpetually angry at him because he can't seem to keep a job, despite his PhD earned in Russia and his MBA earned in the US.  Vica is frustrated because she gave up medical school in Russia so that she could follow Sergey to the US and now she works in a cancer hospital, where she can't seem to fit in.  Sergey has an idea for an app which will keep a person's online persona alive once a person has died.  Vica desperately wants Sergey to develop and pitch the app so that she can be a rich man's wife like her friend, Regina.

Regina is married to Bob, a wealthy American who develops web applications.  She used to be a respected translator but has since become depressed since losing her mother to cancer.  She spends her days watching TV and eating foods that an app recommends to her based on her viewing habits.  Her mother's best friend, Masha, wants her to adopt a child but Regina is unsure whether or not she could manager with such a task.

Vadik is a programmer that can't seem to find his place in the world.  He loves his job but he can't find a woman that he loves or a city that he feels at home in.  He moves from place to place and dates multiple women, sometimes at the same time, that he meets on social media.  The story follows the group of friends and their relationships.

One of the first reviews that I read about this book was that it was "Friends with a heavy Russian accent."  I was under the impression that this was a comedic novel of sorts.  While there are some funny parts in it, I wouldn't say that the book is completely dedicated to being a comedy.  That doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy it, though.  There were some very current, interesting themes in the book.  The book touched on themes of our obsession with social media and family.

While it is an immigrant story, it is a completely different immigrant story than we currently read.  The characters are upper-middle class immigrants that try very hard to assimilate into American culture.  I thought that was very refreshing to be able to see an immigration story that wasn't cliched and stereotypical.  The story may be literary fiction but the writing style is very easy going and feel's almost like chick lit when reading it.  Overall, I really liked this book and I think it would be great for anyone looking for a book about immigrants that is different from others.  Those that like novels based on current themes will really like this book.

My rating:
★★★★☆

More reviews of books like this one:
The Guest Room by Christ Bohjalian
The Heirs by Susan Rieger
Tell Me How This Ends Well by David Samuel Levinson

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