What are the summary and themes of the novel "Jasmine" by Bharati Mukherjee?

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The novel Jasmine follows the life of the title character from her birth in a rural village in India to her adulthood in the United States.  Jasmine, who changes her name even as she recreates herself time and again, experiences life as an odyssey of sorts, punctuated by changes in setting, relationships, and sense of selfhood.  The course of Jasmine's life unfolds in five vastly different locations across the globe, beginning in the Punjab, continuing across the Atlantic Ocean in Florida, New York, Iowa, and finally on the other side of the continent in California.  Major themes explored in the novel include rebirth, identity, alienation, and free will vs. predestination.

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