Abraham Verghese, the acclaimed physician-writer whose sweeping novels Cutting for Stone and The Covenant of Water have captivated readers worldwide, turns his masterful prose to the intimate canvas of a short story in Abscond. This brief but profound work demonstrates that Verghese’s ability to weave medical expertise with deeply human storytelling translates beautifully to shorter fiction, delivering a concentrated dose of emotional resonance that lingers long after the final page.
The Anatomy of a Perfect Summer’s End
Set against the backdrop of a sweltering New Jersey summer in 1967, Abscond by Abraham Verghese follows thirteen-year-old Ravi Ramanathan, a tennis prodigy on the cusp of greatness. The story opens with the gentle rhythms of family life—his mother Rekha’s predawn kitchen symphony, his father’s operating day rituals, and the comfortable predictability of their immigrant household on Maple Street. Verghese’s opening scenes pulse with authentic detail, from the “muffled and distant metallic clinks” of breakfast preparation to the way Ravi unconsciously practices his backhand stroke even while lying in bed.
The author’s medical background infuses the narrative with precise observations about the human condition. When Ravi describes his mother as “part hummingbird” who “moved twice as fast as anyone else,” we feel both affection and the slight embarrassment of adolescence toward parental quirks. These early moments establish a world that feels both specific to the Indian-American experience and universally recognizable to anyone who has chafed against family expectations while secretly cherishing their security.
The Unexpected Rupture
The story’s central tragedy—Dr. Ramanathan’s sudden death from a heart attack during his routine post-surgery nap—arrives with the same cruel swiftness as life’s most devastating moments. Verghese handles this pivotal scene with remarkable restraint, allowing the horror to emerge gradually through Ravi’s confused perspective and the gathering of family friends. The author’s medical knowledge lends authenticity to these moments without overwhelming the emotional core of the narrative.
What follows is perhaps the most compelling aspect of Abscond:Â Abraham Verghese’s unflinching portrayal of grief’s many faces. Rekha’s violent self-flagellation and public breakdown contrasts sharply with Ravi’s more contained but equally profound sorrow. The author captures the way tragedy can simultaneously unite and isolate family members, showing how Ravi feels robbed of his own mourning process by his mother’s dramatic displays of grief.
Cultural Authenticity and Universal Themes
Verghese excels at depicting the particular challenges of being Indian-American in 1967 suburban New Jersey. Ravi’s experience of having a “secret self”—the internal division between his authentic desires and his parents’ expectations—resonates powerfully. The author deftly shows how immigrant children navigate multiple identities, from Ravi’s embarrassment at being called “kanna” in front of friends to his complicated feelings about his tennis ambitions versus the predetermined path toward medicine.
The cremation ceremony serves as a masterful centerpiece, with Verghese drawing on his deep understanding of Hindu traditions while making them accessible to all readers. The scene in the funeral home, with six men in white dhotis preparing for the ancient ritual in distinctly American surroundings, captures the beautiful complexity of maintaining cultural identity in a new world.
The Craft of Compression
In this short story format, Verghese demonstrates remarkable economy of language while maintaining the rich, layered prose style that defines his longer works. Every detail serves multiple purposes—the Ken Rosewall poster that seems to watch Ravi, the oak tree outside his window that represents permanence in a suddenly unstable world, the ritual of his father’s Irish whiskey that McGilicutty finally opens for a proper wake.
The neighbor McGilicutty emerges as a particularly well-drawn character who serves multiple narrative functions. His Irish Catholic perspective on faith and doubt provides counterpoint to the Hindu traditions, while his practical wisdom about grief offers Ravi a different model of masculinity than his grieving mother can provide. The scene where McGilicutty sees “God” in the tree canopy feels organic rather than heavy-handed, suggesting the ways beauty and transcendence can coexist with tragedy.
Moments of Grace and Growth
The story’s most powerful passages come in its final third, as Ravi begins to process his loss and find his footing as “the man of the house.” His decision to shave his head for the cremation ceremony, against his uncle’s advice, represents a crucial moment of agency. Similarly, his confrontation with his mother during her midnight screaming episode shows a young man learning to set boundaries even in the midst of shared grief.
The closing scene, where mother and son share breakfast and stories about his father, provides genuine catharsis without feeling forced or overly sentimental. Rekha’s story about her childhood dog Bala, and how it relates to her husband’s ritual lunch visits, offers a tender meditation on the repetitive nature of love and how ordinary moments become precious in retrospect.
Areas for Reflection
While Abscond by Abraham Verghese succeeds admirably in its goals, some readers might wish for slightly more development of certain relationships, particularly between Ravi and his tennis partner Billy. Their friendship, described as being like twins, feels somewhat underexplored given its apparent importance to Ravi’s life. Additionally, while the story’s compressed timeline creates urgency and emotional intensity, a slightly longer treatment might have allowed for more nuanced exploration of the cultural tensions Ravi experiences.
The story’s ending, while satisfying, might feel a bit too neatly resolved for some readers. The rapid shift from Rekha’s breakdown to her composed sharing of memories could benefit from a more gradual transition, though this may be a limitation of the short story format rather than a flaw in execution.
Literary Context and Connections
Abscond by Abraham Verghese joins a distinguished tradition of coming-of-age stories that use family tragedy as a catalyst for growth. Readers familiar with works like Tobias Wolff’s “This Boy’s Life” or Sandra Cisneros’s “The House on Mango Street” will appreciate Verghese’s contribution to this genre, particularly his focus on the immigrant experience.
The story also resonates with other works exploring the tension between cultural preservation and American assimilation, such as Jhumpa Lahiri’s “Interpreter of Maladies” or Bharati Mukherjee’s “The Middleman and Other Stories.” Verghese’s medical background adds a unique perspective to these themes, particularly in his handling of death and the body’s frailty.
Recommended Reading
Readers who appreciate Abscond by Abraham Verghese should explore:
- “Interpreter of Maladies” by Jhumpa Lahiri – For similar explorations of Indian-American identity
- “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao” by Junot DÃaz – For immigrant family dynamics and coming-of-age themes
- “Everything I Never Told You” by Celeste Ng – For family tragedy and its aftermath
- “The Namesake” by Jhumpa Lahiri – For generational conflicts in immigrant families
- “Cutting for Stone” by Abraham Verghese – For the author’s full-length novel exploring similar themes
Final Verdict
Abscond stands as a remarkable achievement in short fiction, proving that Abraham Verghese’s talents extend far beyond the epic scope of his novels. In fewer than 40 pages, he creates a complete emotional journey that honors both the particular experience of Indian-American immigrants and the universal human experiences of loss, growth, and family love.
The story succeeds because Verghese never forgets that behind every cultural detail and medical insight lies a beating human heart. Ravi’s journey from tennis-obsessed teenager to reluctant family patriarch feels both inevitable and surprising, handled with the gentle wisdom of an author who understands that growing up often happens not gradually, but in sudden, irrevocable moments.
For readers seeking literary fiction that combines cultural authenticity with universal themes, Abscond offers a perfect entry point into Verghese’s world—a concentrated dose of the compassion, insight, and exquisite prose that have made him one of contemporary literature’s most treasured voices.