“The knowledge of death seemed present in both sisters—it was something about the way they carried themselves, something that had broken too soon and had not mended, marking them in spite of their lightheartedness.”

Jhumpa Lahiri is an American novelist and short story writer of Bengali descent. She gained prominence for her nuanced exploration of immigrant experiences, particularly through works like *Interpreter of Maladies* and *The Namesake*. Her writing often examines cultural displacement and the complexities of identity.