Summary

“Just below the Surface” by Kate Nivison follows Indrani, a woman who has moved into a nice home in the suburbs with her husband Kumar and her children Hanif and Laila. 

One night, Indrani hears some noises coming from the kitchen and finds a hole in one of the cupboards, which leads her to believe that she has mice. She is ashamed to tell her husband or ask for a neighbor’s help, so she tries to solve the problem on her own by buying mouse-traps and cheese. 

In the first shop that Indrani enters, she feels offended when one woman seems to suggest that she does not keep her house clean. As Indrani buys mouse-traps at another store, the cashier also seems to judge her. 

Indrani places the mouse-traps and some cheese in the cupboard but does not manage to catch any mice. At night, Kumar is woken up by noises, ...