At first glance this seems to be a novel about the life of a displaced Bengali family in America.
And it is on the whole, Ashima and Ashoke marry and move to USA, where he is studying,she falls pregnant, the baby is born, and they wait for the letter from greatgrandmother for the baby's name, as is usual in Bengali families. However, they are not allowed to take the baby home without a name on the birth certificate. They call the baby Gogol, when he starts school his parents try to give him a "good" name, but he will not rerspond to it.
Years later he changes his name to the one his parents chose for him at age 4/5, but all his school friends etc still know him as Gogol.
The novel is as much about a general search for identity, and could be about any displaced national in an alien country.
There is an air of sadness about the closing chapter of the book as Gogol/Nikhail settles down to read the story his father was reading when he almost lost his life, and Gogol is on the verge of a new chapter of his own life.
I don't like spoiling books for people, and hope I ain't given away too much.
Sorry..I have shrunk the cover to very tiny.