This American Woman by Zarna Garg ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

Award-winning comedian Zarna Garg turns her astonishing life story into an entertaining memoir, spilling all the chai on her wild ride from escaping an arranged marriage and homelessness in India to carving her own path in America and launching a dazzling second act in midlife.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

April 2025; Ballantine Books; 978-0593975022
audio, ebook, print (320 pages); memoir

I don't usually read celebrity memoirs (the exception has been Henry Winkler's because he's The Fonz), but since I don't know who Zarna Garg is, I felt that it wasn't really reading a celebrity memoir. It fits in well with my goal to read more books either by authors from or about non-Western European and U.S. places.

I liked that Garg is only a few years older than me, so we grew up in about the same time period. This made it possible to compare what I experienced with her experiences in India. 

Given that she is a stand-up comedian, there are some amusing moments in the book but there are also poignant, heartbreaking moments. When she details the death of her mother, I teared up a bit. It would have been easy for her to have just made everything a joke, but I appreciated the balance of emotions. 

I found it interesting that she kept referring to running away from home. But by the way she tells it, I would say she was kicked out of her home. As a 14-year-old, being told to get married or leave her father's house, doing the latter does not mean she ran away. She had no choice to remain in the home at that time - he was kicking her out one way or another. Perhaps it was easier for her to think she ran away.

I didn't think it was ever really clear why she didn't return to practicing law when she and her husband returned to New York. It confused me since she was looking for other ways to make money, mostly through failed business start-ups. 

Another interesting, and kind of different, aspect of the memoir was the essays written by her children and husband. Usually, we only hear from the person writing the book, but we get insights into her life from members of her family.

I'll be honest, I wasn't really interested in reviewing a memoir, but it kept popping up everywhere, and I was drawn to the cover and title. I'm intrigued by the immigrant experience. I have to say I'm glad that I read it. 

If you are looking for nonfiction to read for Nonfiction November but aren't really into nonfiction, memoirs are a great place to start. This American Woman is entertaining, emotional, and inspiring.

It took me so long to get to it that my digital library got a copy of the audiobook. I highly recommend listening to it. It is read by Zarna Garg (with the essays read by the respective writer), and she reads it with real emotion. Emotion that I don't think would translate quite as well from just words on the page. I've listened to a few memoirs, but I've never heard a narrator on the verge of tears as I did when Garg talks about her mother's death or the estrangement from her oldest brother. It really took the book to the next level.

Buy This American Woman at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

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