Saumya is an author, resident psychiatrist, and co-founder of thisisforHER. Her writing has been featured in The New York Times, Huffington Post, Refinery29, and others. Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & the Six raves that WHAT A HAPPY FAMILY is a “full, big hearted novel.”
Nestled in the suburbs of Atlanta, a family learns the funniest punchlines can
hide the hardest truths in this evocative women’s fiction novel from the author
of Well-Behaved Indian Women
From the outside, the Joshi family is the quintessential Indian-American
family. Decades ago, Bina and Deepak immigrated to America, where she became a
pillar of their local Indian community and he, a successful psychiatrist. Their
eldest daughter, Suhani, is following the footsteps of her father’s career and
happily married. Natasha, their middle daughter, is about to become engaged to
the son of longtime family friends. And Anuj, their son—well he’s a son and
what could be better than that?
But a family scandal shows that nothing is as it seems. Bina’s oldest
friendship starts to unravel and she finds herself as an outsider in the
community she helped build. Suhani discovers that her perfect marriage isn’t as
solid as she thought. Natasha faces a series of rejections that send her into a
downward spiral.
As they encounter public humiliation, gossiping aunties, and self-doubt, the
Joshi family must rely on each other like never before. But sometimes, family
has to fall apart in order to come back stronger than before.
Meet
the Author: Saumya Dave
As
a writer, she enjoys exploring the unique dynamics that exist in immigrant
families. Her second novel, What
a Happy Family, was published in June 2021. Her debut novel, Well-Behaved Indian Women, was featured in The New York Times Book Review,
ELLE, Bustle, Buzzfeed, and more. Saumya's essays, articles, and poetry
have been in outlets including The New York Times, ABC News, Refinery29,
and HuffPost, among others.
Saumya
has a passion for women’s mental health and wellness. She and her husband,
Samir Sheth, founded thisisforHER, a nonprofit which uses art therapy to
improve mental health awareness and education for women and girls in low- and
middle-income countries. She is a practicing therapist, as well as an Adjunct
Professor of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai, where she teaches Narrative
Medicine.
Saumya
was born in India and grew up in Atlanta. In her seventh-grade journal, she
wrote: "I will be a psychiatrist and writer someday". She is a
graduate of Georgia Tech and the Medical College of Georgia, where she was an
inductee into the Gold Humanism Honor Society. She completed her Psychiatry
Residency at Mount Sinai Beth Israel, where she was a Chief Resident and an
inductee into the AΩA Medical Honors Society. She completed a Psychoanalytic
Fellowship with the New York Psychoanalytic Society and Institute.
Thanks
so much for stopping by today. While this book may sound a bit complex, don’t
you think it sounds fascinating?
It really does sound fascinating.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a book it would be hard to put down. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteOh, this does sound interesting, Mason! Family dynamics can really be engaging in a story, and I like it that we learn what happens through different perspectives. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete