I've been reading about Melissa and Rick on so many book lists that I've had Alex Gino's books on my (endless) TBR forever. I finally read Rick, and I realise why it pops up so often. It's such an important middle-grade book, one that I would have loved to read when I was twelve or thirteen. Everyone around Rick seems to be talking about crushes. His parents, being broad-minded, make it a point to ask whether there's a girl or a boy whom he likes. But Rick has never felt the way his classmates say they feel. He doesn't know what it means to have a crush, and he has no idea why. It doesn't help that his best friend is a homophobe, one who is always up for mischief if he isn't going to get caught. All at once, Rick feels like he is navigating too many new things - new experiences, an uncomfortable friend, and the big question of who he is. Sensitively told, Rick is a relatable … [Read more...]
When You Trap a Tiger
What an unexpected book! Often, I don't know much about books before I read them. Some books keep showing up on my social media. Others are recommended to me multiple times by children I teach. Usually, it takes me a while to get around to reading them, and based on who recommends a book to me, I sometimes have preconceived notions about what a book will be about. For instance, despite its name, I expected When You Trap a Tiger to be realistic fiction, with no fantasy or fable thrown in. I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong! Lily and her family move into her grandmother's house to take care of her. When the girl realises how sick her grandmother is, she knows that there's only one way to save her. The tiger from all her Halmoni's stories needs to be placated. She must do what it takes, and she must act on her own. The traditional Korean stories her grandmother has shared … [Read more...]
The Poet X
I've been meaning to read Elizabeth Acevedo's The Poet X ever since I read Clap When You Land and discovered that she had another, more famous verse novel. I borrowed this one from Kahaani Box (may libraries prosper forever!), and I loved it. A powerful, moving story told from a young Hispanic girl's point of view, The Poet X is about rebellion, love, and making your voice heard. Xiomara, the protagonist of the story, keeps her poetry to herself. Only her twin Xavier, whom she calls Twin, has listened to her work. But that is until she meets Aman, who, it seems, wants to hear her voice, wants to hear her poetry. Slowly, she begins to unfurl. But coming out of her cocoon may require more than she bargained for. Unlike her best friend Caridad, she questions the faith she is expected to follow blindly. She cannot find it in herself to listen to her mother and be a model … [Read more...]
Amil and the After
Five years ago, I read The Night Diary. It's a story that brings alive the bewilderment of children forced to move out of their homes during the Partition. But just like the "happily ever after" at the end of fairytales glosses over the beginning of a new, complicated phase of life, safely reaching a new home after the Partition cannot be the end of a story. And with Amil and the After, we see that it isn't. The struggles and questions Nisha and Amil face don't end with the end of their journey across an arbitrary border. Now, through Amil's eyes, we follow another kind of journey. A journey that involves settling in, finding friends, and building a new home. The emotions of the two adolescents in the story come alive to us. Most importantly, we understand their guilt. What right do they have to be safe when so many others didn't make it? How is it fair that they have a roof … [Read more...]
Paati vs UNCLE
We're rereading Paati vs UNCLE by Meera Ganapathi at my book club! It is a delightful combination of funny and serious, action-driven and character-driven, making it a perfect book club read.Inju is all set for a quiet, boring holiday with his Paati. That's just the way he likes it. Unfortunately, from the moment he gets to Parijat Retirement Colony where his grandmother lives, he realises that it's going to be an exciting, adventurous holiday, not a quiet, boring one. It isn't what he wanted, but when his Paati is upset and angry, what can he do except take charge? Making Posters Inju makes a poster inviting people to join PAATI - People's Association Against Thieves International. Someone else puts up a poster about a missing parrot, Gangaram.Posters are always fun to make! What if you want to get people to adopt kittens in your society? And … [Read more...]
Leonora Bolt: Secret Inventor
I borrowed Leonora Bolt: The Great Gadget Games from a library recently, and my first thought was that the series would be perfect for my book club!A science-loving protagonist with imaginative, innovative ideas, a secret inventor, an unusual set of friends ... it's full of possibilities! And that's why we're going to be reading the first book from the series, Leonora Bolt: Secret Inventor at my book club next month. Friendship Leonora Bolt's friends include an otter, a cook, a sea captain and a boy who washes up on the island. This will be our prompt to write about an unusual friendship we'd love to have. If you could befriend anyone, whom would you befriend and why? How do you think you could help each other? Inventions If you are on an island in the middle of nowhere, but you were the smartest person in the world, what would … [Read more...]
Birds on the Brain
Uma Krishnaswami's Birds on the Brain is such a lovely book! I've read Book Uncle and Me with my book club, and I just revisited the post I wrote about it. Three years ago, I wrote about having discovered verse novels "quite recently" and now I have two verse novels of my own!In Birds on the Brain, we meet lots of familiar characters, and although I love verse novels, I enjoyed this book more than the first. The characters, particularly the protagonist Reeni, are wonderfully relatable. Reeni, for instance, is a balance of self-centred and selfless. She has birds on her brain and it takes her a while to notice that not everyone is motivated by the same things. Yet, she makes an effort. She doesn't want to lose her friend Anil and she does want to help the istri lady. But how?This endearing story shows us just how she can catch two birds with one phone, to use her words, much kinder than … [Read more...]
Where Does It Hurt?
Where does it hurt? It's such a simple question. If I read it aloud, I find my voice getting softer, kinder, more patient. And that's what this Hook Book by Samina Mishra and Allen Shaw is about - softness, kindness and patience. Sometimes, pain is easy to explain, like when you eat something that makes your tummy hurt.Sometimes, it's in more than one place, like if you hit your mouth on the handlebar of a cycle. Yes, your mouth hurts, but more, you want to be comforted. And sometimes, pain is much more complicated, like when your head hurts with numbers or your heart aches with sadness. Where Does It Hurt? looks at all these kinds of pain. It encourages us to ask where it hurts and extend a tiny little bit of help. It makes us take the first step towards easing pain. As I read it, my heart skipped at the idea of a child's pain being caused by a mother-shaped hole. Would I … [Read more...]
The Wishkeeper’s Apprentice
What a charming book! Hopeful, whimsical and ever so sweet, The Wishkeeper's Apprentice is a book I loved as an adult and would have enjoyed as a child. Rupus Beewinkle is an overworked wishkeeper. He needs an apprentice because there are so many wish snags, and he simply isn't able to keep up. Unfortunately, the council refuses his request, and Rupus Beewinkle needs to take things into his own hands. Enter Felix, who is increasingly upset because his sister Rebecca is now too busy to spend time with him. If only Rebecca would love him the way she used to ... What better way to unite a wishkeeper and a wish-maker than a wish? Felix becomes Rupus's apprentice, and when he unwittingly reveals Rupus's address to the wishsnatcher, he must act before it is too late. The Wishkeeper's Apprentice is a magical story about family and love, with eccentric characters and an unusual … [Read more...]
You Go First
I've been wanting to read Erin Entrada Kelly's books for a while. As a writer of middle-grade, hers is a name that keeps popping up. I finally read You Go First, and what an unusual, charming book it is! You Go First tells two stories, stories that barely meet. One is the story of Charlotte Lockard, who wishes she had a friend who would call her Lottie, or Charlie, or anything that made her feel closer, made her an intimate friend. But Charlotte she is, and Charlotte she remains, except online, where her name is Lottie Lock. And it's online that she meets Ben Boxer, who has his own set of problems. A strange sort of friendship emerges between Lottie and Ben. For Ben, Lottie is the one he would call if he won the lottery. For Lottie, online Scrabble with Ben feels like the one place where she's in control. And their friendship becomes something that matters, even as other … [Read more...]
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