Family Conflict in Unaccustomed Earth

The book Unaccustomed Earth is a book primarily about family conflict. Throughout the several short stories the main similarity is they all feature Indian families who have immigrated to the United States or are the children of immigrants. More specifically, it deals with maintaining or breaking Indian traditions depending on generation. Each family also has more personal issues, two characters have dead or dying mothers, one an alcoholic brother, and another a cheating boyfriend. When put together, there is a wide spectrum of both family conflict and support. One of the main purposes of the book is to show the many difficulties an Indian family has when immigrating, but it accomplishes more than that. It also shows some of the issues that any family may find themselves facing, and how different personalities may react to these situations.