Quote 10
He knows now the guilt that his parents carried inside, at being able to do nothing when their parents had died in India, of arriving weeks, sometimes months later, when there was nothing left to do […] Years later Gogol had learned the significance, that it was a Bengali son's duty to shave his head in the wake of his parent's death. (7.70)
As Gogol grows up, his attitude toward his family changes, and he realizes how much he loves them – but only after his father has died. It's too late to reconnect with his dad, but it might not be too late for him to learn about his Bengali roots.
Quote 11
For reasons he cannot explain or necessarily understand, these ancient Puritan spirits, these very first immigrants to America, these bearers of unthinkable, obsolete names, have spoken to him, so much so that in spite of his mother's disgust he refuses to throw the rubbings away.
The young Gogol finds comfort in the odd names he finds in the Puritan graveyard. Maybe they help him feel a little less foreign. Or maybe they help him realize that just about everyone is foreign in America.
Quote 12
Within minutes, before their eyes Ashoke and Ashima slip into bolder, less complicated versions of themselves, their voices louder, their smiles wider, revealing a confidence Gogol and Sonia never see on Pemberton Road. (4.31)
In a reversal, when they are in India, it is Gogol and Sonia who feel foreign and different, while Ashoke and Ashima are totally at home (and yet a bit foreign to their children, who are surprised to see their change). But do Gogol and Sonia feel completely at home anywhere, even in the United States? It's possible that their situation is even tougher than that of their parents, because they don't belong in America <em>or</em> in India.