Running from the Dreamland
A Story of Struggle, Hardship, Commitment, and American Dream
Running from the Dreamland: Deepak comes to America immediately mesmerized by the immensity of its abundance. After leaving Nepal to earn a graduate degree in the U.S., his plan is to make his fortune in the land of opportunity. He quickly learns America is more than he bargained for, especially his newfound “friends.” He questions whether he can even survive, much less succeed, in this new country. The challenge seems even more insurmountable when he settles into his new residence and job, where situations occur that test his resilience and will. In the midst of his agony, he finds one thing that could possibly make the experience ultimately worthwhile. Will she leave or betray him like everyone else has?
Critical Praise & Endorsements
"This novel sees America through the eyes of a visiting student from Kathmandu as he struggles to make a life in his new land. . . . Importantly, this story gives us insight into the immigrant experience and the difficulties and joys of adjusting to a new culture."
— Anthony Grooms, author of Trouble No More and Bombingham"The story deals with themes such as immigration, cultural differences, identity, and the struggles of navigating a new country. Acharya's writing is engaging and poignant, offering insights into the experiences of immigrants that are often overlooked in mainstream literature."
— Kay Traile, author of "Hearing their Voices."""Reading the novel, it makes us wonder whether foreign land or motherland is the real dreamland. Answers may depend on one's perception, time and contexts. How one goes through differing situations- toils and tribulations, woes and awes- may teach him/her to know the real dreamland.""
— Reviewed by Narayan Ghimire in NepalNews""Deepak's experiences are moving and ring true, echoing and enriching truths that have been explored in the body of South Asian immigrant writing. Acharya's prose tends toward the blunt and declaratory, fitting the drudge work that Deepak, who lacks legal work documents, must take on to achieve his dreams.""
— BookLife, Publishers Weekly"American dream lingered, in spite of innumerable punctures from within. Withstanding blows right from the days of hard realists like Arthur Miller, through a band of Jazz and Blues artists in the middle, way down to the days of naturalist fiction writers like John Steinbeck, American lingered. This is because the world elsewhere could not develop itself as the best location for dreamers, so obviously, America continued to be the promised land. The EDV culture, and magnetic student-attraction strategies from all over the world continued to make America a Venus flytrap, and the same is true to our own days. The Venus flytrap continues to suck life-sap from emigrants, and to throws the chaff of their beings back to their abandoned homelands ultimately."
— Reviewed by Mahesh Paudyal in the Gorkha Times
