"Nobody chooses to be a refugee." That is the last line of the afterword of Mariko Nagai's verse novel, Under the Broken Sky. In a few quick paragraphs, Nagai reminds us that although her story is set in the 1940s, the story of war and the destruction it brings are forever around us. Vietnamese refugees, Syrians, Rohingyas, Rwandans ... these are just some of the displaced groups she mentions at the end of her heart-wrenching tale.Natsu lives with her father, whom she calls Tochan, and her sister Asa in Manchuria. When her father is conscripted by the Japanese army, Auntie next door comes and takes control of her life. At first, I thought that this would be a predictable story about a wicked woman pushing children to work for her, but it turned out to be quite the opposite. As circumstances move from bad to worse, Auntie does everything for the two children, determined to keep them … [Read more...]
The Secret Sunshine Project
The Secret Sunshine Project by Benjamin Dean is a sweet, feel-good story about family and love. I enjoyed it, and I felt my eyes prick more than once as I turned the pages, revelling in warm, fuzzy emotions of acceptance and belonging.When Riley comes out to her family, the London Pride becomes one of the most magical experiences of her life. Bea, her younger sister, tells us the story--of how glittery and wonderful Pride is. But things change overnight when their father falls ill, rapidly declines, and then dies. Their mother struggles to hold things together, but ultimately, they move to their Gran's place for the summer, far away from the only home they know, and more importantly, far away from London Pride.Bea sees Riley's light fading, and she wants to bring the sunshine back to Riley's clouds. With her new friends in St. Regent's Vale, she's determined to make it … [Read more...]
Something Like Home
What a beautiful book Something Like Home by Andrea Beatriz Arango is! Told in free verse, it is a moving middle-grade story about friendship, family and courage.Laura is sure she made the wrong decision when she called 911. But what was she to do? Her parents weren't moving. Once social services came in, however, everything changed. Laura's parents were sent to rehab, and she was whisked away to live with her aunt. An aunt who, Laura believed, never reached out when she was younger, and never cared when her mother needed help. Laura now has one plan--she must get back home to her parents.Something Like Home wrung my heart. No child should have to deal with absent parents, and in Laura's case, her love for her parents made me seethe at the unfairness of it all. She knows what family is, and even if hers is dysfunctional, it's hers.With empathy and sensitivity, Arango … [Read more...]
Nikhil Out Loud
I read The Best At It a few years ago, and I loved it. Nikhil Out Loud has been on my TBR since then, and it didn't disappoint! Optimistic, warm and funny, it paints a vivid picture of adolescence and all the drama that comes with it.Thirteen-year-old Nikhil Shah is the voice of Raj Reddy, a beloved cartoon character. He loves working in the studio, and with his best friend Anton, life couldn't get better.Unfortunately, he learns that he is to move to Ohio because his mother feels the need to spend time with her parents ... and everything slides downhill from there. His voice begins to break, his new friend circle seems awkward, and he cannot seem to build a relationship with his ailing grandfather. How will he continue to play Raj Reddy when his voice is cracking? Why was he cast as the Narrator of the school musical when he can't sing? And how will that affect his … [Read more...]
No Talking
No Talking is such a fun book! I'm often wary of 'Boys vs. Girls' stories because I don't like books that reinforce stereotypes. No Talking does the opposite; in fact, rather too explicitly so, for me. Despite that, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I loved how a contest between the boys and the girls in a class slowly morphs into a team game, where the students overcome their differences and come together. What emerges is a school story that is utterly believable and good fun! Three Words at a Time I've lost count of the number of times I've played the one-word story and the one-phrase story. In No Talking, Mr Burton introduces the three-word story, and I love it! It's perfect for my book club too. Can we create a story together, three words at a time? I'm sure we can! Three Word Debate Mr Burton takes the three-word challenge … [Read more...]
The State League
I don't play football; I don't even watch football. Despite that, I was sucked into yet another brilliant book by Mallika Ravikumar - The State League. To be fair, considering how much I have enjoyed nearly everything she's written, I expected to enjoy this one too. What I didn't bargain for was how unputdownable the book would be, drawing me into its drama, emotion and layering.Prithvi from The District Cup is back. He's now being trained at Elite Sports F.C. in football-crazy Goa. He's talented, ambitious and hardworking--all characteristics that ought to stand him in good stead as the world of football rolls open before him.But bring in age-cheating and match fixing, and the picture grows ugly. First with bewilderment and then with utter shock, Prithvi discovers how murky the world of betting is, and how far-reaching. Match fixing isn't restricted to huge matches with big … [Read more...]
Off with Their Heads
Dystopia and murder. Both genres I typically avoid. Yet, the moment I started reading Off with Their Heads, I was hooked. Chapter after pacy chapter drew me into a world where a group of rebellious youngsters must make a big decision. Do they dare go against their school's decision to upgrade their ThoughtWeavers--the AI device every student uses? And what would the cost of going against their school be?Neil, Sameer, Pariza and Elle are all free thinkers in their own way, though they don't necessarily know it yet. While Sameer manages to cheat the system to get parathas instead of gloop, Neil's trigger is his crush on Elle. Their motivations might be different, but with an AI upgrade just around the corner, they must step back and think, moving beyond the "critical thinking" jargon their school throws at them.At their school, Anadi Academy, AI decides how much each student … [Read more...]
A Revolution in the Valley
Protest. Isn't that what is on everyone's mind now? How does one protest? How does one agitate, educate and organise? Where do we find the courage to stand up for what we know is right?The Chronicles of Courage series reminds us that it's been done in the past and that we can do it again. And Bijal Vachharajani's epistolary novel, A Revolution in the Valley, is a moving, hopeful, triumphant part of the series.A Revolution in the Valley is told primarily through letters exchanged by Jenny, who lives in Kerala, and Teesta, who lives in Bombay. There's a lot happening in the country at this time: 1973-1984. The Emergency. The proposed Silent Valley Hydroelectric Project. And of course, the cricket World Cup. In the midst of all this, Jenny must write to a pen-pal because her handwriting is 'untidy'.It's with her pen-pal Teesta that Jenny's world begins to widen. Through … [Read more...]
Bud, Not Buddy
I said, "No, sir. I don't know why, but my eyes don't cry no more." Steady Eddie said, "I like that, 'my eyes don't cry no more.' You mind if I borrow that? That sounds like a great name for a song." I said, "No, sir, I don't mind at all."I'm not sure why this section made left a strong impression on me. Perhaps it's because of how simple it is and how much it reveals through its simplicity. A ten-year-old boy says his eyes don't cry anymore. It's heartbreaking and poetic--and this little exchange makes us notice both.Bud, Not Buddy is a precious book, bursting with the kind of innocence that makes my heart ache, much like The Mighty Miss Malone, which I read and loved several years ago.Armed with a set of rules to have a funner life and be a better liar, Bud sets out to look for his father. All he has to help him is a suitcase full of his treasures. Some of his … [Read more...]
The Vaidyar’s School of Medicine and Magic
Recently, I was asked to conduct a workshop on exploring new perspectives in fantasy writing. As usual, I started by asking students what they'd read. All the usual names cropped up - Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, Dog Man ...We went on to discuss Indian fantasy, and the fact that publishers so often tell us that Indian fantasy doesn't sell. What a blanket term that is - Indian fantasy! What is "Indian fantasy"? Can stories inspired by Hindu mythology be compared with those inspired by Greek or Roman mythology?These conversations lead to other important ones - about all the crossovers between myth and fantasy, science fiction and fantasy ... and, in the context of The Vaidyar's School of Medicine and Magic, history and fantasy.Kathir, the narrator and protagonist, believes that the Siddhars belong to folklore--until he is apprenticed to the Hill Vaidyar. What follows is an … [Read more...]