The daughter of Indian immigrants, watchful and quiet Amina Eapen grew up in the shadow of her brilliant but difficult brother, Akhil, until his sudden death left the family reeling. Now a wedding photographer in Seattle, Amina is struggling to enjoy her work while secretly longing to return to her former photojournalism career. When her mother calls, panicked because Amina's father has begun having long conversations with his dead relatives, Amina is only too happy to escape to her parents' house in Albuquerque. But as the days in her childhood home stretch into weeks, Amina realizes her father isn't simply hallucinating: his visions of deceased family members have their origins in an ill-fated trip to India when Amina was a child. As his hallucinations worsen, Amina must figure out how to reassure him as she navigates her own personal struggles.
Debut novelist Mira Jacob weaves a complex, layered saga of the immigrant experience, deftly illuminating the Eapens' ambivalence toward their homeland. Like many immigrant daughters, Amina is frustrated by her parents' expectations: grudgingly proud of her career success, they still hope she'll marry a good Indian man and settle down. Amina also longs to find love, but first she must deal with her lingering grief. Though at times her watchfulness slides into passivity, Amina quietly begins to take control of her life, even as she recognizes there are some things she can't change. Heartbreaking and often surprisingly funny, The Sleepwalker's Guide to Dancing is a testament to the deep bonds of family and the importance of gaining the courage to move on. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams