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Varsha Seshan

You Bring the Distant Near

September 20, 2025 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

You Bring the Distant Near has been on my TBR for a few years now. Yet, I never got around to reading it because I often don’t enjoy sagas that span generations. The cover says, ‘Five girls. Three generations. One great American love story.’ I wondered if I wanted to read a book spanning generations. […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: books for tweens, Mitali Perkins, reading, review, You Bring the Distant Near, Young Adult

Beverly, Right Here

July 17, 2025 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I never came across Kate DiCamillo’s work as a child. I haven’t read so many of her more famous books—not The Tale of Desperaux or Mercy Watson or any of those. I did read Because of Winn-Dixie with my book club, though, and we loved it! And now, I read Beverly, Right Here, another book […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Beverly Right Here, books for tweens, Kate DiCamillo, Middle Grade, reading, review, Young Adult

The White Lotus

June 15, 2025 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

The White Lotus by Aditi Krishnakumar is a gripping work of historical fiction that, like the best kinds of stories, stays with you and makes you think. Layered and sensitive, it is perfectly paced, immersing you in the life and times of a village in south India in the early 20th century. Fourteen-year-old Arali is […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Aditi Krishnakumar, books for tweens, historical fiction, murder mystery, reading, review, The White Lotus, Young Adult

With the Fire on High

March 27, 2025 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

With the Fire on High is my third book by Elizabeth Acevedo, and the first in prose. I loved it! Just like The Poet X and Clap When You Land, it meets difficult, controversial situations head-on, with courage and optimism. Emoni Santiago’s life is not easy. Her mother died in childbirth, and her father, whom […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Elizabeth Acevedo, reading, review, With the Fire on High, Young Adult

Top 5 Young Adult Books – 2024

January 11, 2025 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I finally read a few more young adult books last year, so I don’t have to combine my late middle-grade and young adult books! I loved all these books, three of which are by writers I’ve read before. I highly recommend these books for ages 13+! Spin I am not usually a fan of mythological […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: books for tweens, reading, review, Spin, The Lucky List, The Poet X, The School for Bad Girls, Where the Heart Should Be, Young Adult

The Lucky List

December 16, 2024 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Are you the kind of person who finishes a book once you’ve begun? Or are you perfectly happy abandoning a book that doesn’t work for you? I’m usually the second, but I’m so glad I stuck with The Lucky List! Two chapters in, and I was not invested in the story. Teenage girl, isolated from […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Rachael Lippincott, reading, review, The Lucky List, Young Adult

The School for Bad Girls

November 29, 2024 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I was reading The School for Bad Girls and I mentioned how much I was enjoying it to an acquaintance. Immediately, she said, “I thought Anandibai Joshi was the first female doctor from India.” We looked it up, and of course, I found myself going down a rabbit hole. When I finished reading the book, […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: historical fiction, Madhurima Vidyarthi, reading, review, The School for Bad Girls, Young Adult

The Poet X

November 9, 2024 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

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 […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Elizabeth Acevedo, reading, review, The Poet X, Young Adult

Spin

August 12, 2024 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

What if the gods didn’t bless Arachne after all? What if, like all mortals, she had to toil, ignored by the gods until she, through her own hard work, achieved a kind of immortality, the only kind that is granted to us? Spin by Rebecca Caprara is the second book I read because it’s on […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: novel in verse, reading, Rebecca Caprara, review, Spin, Young Adult

Where the Heart Should Be

May 10, 2024 by Varsha Seshan 2 Comments

I love historical fiction, and I love novels in verse. And I love Sarah Crossan’s books. When all three come together, the chances of my not liking the book are very low! I’ve read two books (that I remember) about the potato famine in Ireland – Esty’s Gold and Twist of Gold. They were both […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: books for tweens, novel in verse, reading, review, Sarah Crossan, Where the Heart Should Be, Young Adult

Under the Bakul Tree

April 9, 2024 by Varsha Seshan 1 Comment

Optimistic, even idealistic, Under the Bakul Tree was a heart-warming read. To be honest, I started reading the book prepared not to like it. It seemed like it would be preachy and unrealistic–and it was! I found myself enjoying it nonetheless. I love the way it embraces the possibility of happiness, of hope, and of […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Mrinal Kalita, Partha Pratim Goswami, reading, review, Under the Bakul Tree, Young Adult

Journey to the River Sea

February 4, 2024 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I read Journey to the River Sea years ago, probably over a decade ago. I loved it so much that it featured on my list of all-time favourite books for a long time. Eventually, I realised that even though I still thought about it as one of my favourites, I didn’t quite remember the story. […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: books for tweens, Eva Ibbotson, Journey to the River Sea, Middle Grade, reading, review, Young Adult

The Henna Start-Up

February 2, 2024 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

A determined protagonist, a family that’s willing to change, and characters that evolve through the story–what’s not to like? Abir Maqsood of The Henna Start-Up by Andaleeb Wajid is an imperfect, gritty character, the kind that never fails to make me smile. She is fuelled by her determination to get justice and to stand up […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Andaleeb Wajid, books for tweens, reading, review, The Henna Start-Up, Young Adult

My Favourite Late Middle-Grade and Young Adult Books from 2023

January 12, 2024 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

As usual, I begin my list of favourite young adult books wishing I had read more YA last year. Yes, I loved these books, but once more, I hope to read more young adult in 2024! Schooled Schooled is such a delightful read, featuring a quirky, fun character. I read many negative reviews about the book, […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: books for tweens, Gordon Korman, Heartstopper, Middle Grade, reading, review, Schooled, The District Cup, Young Adult, Zen

Heartstopper

November 6, 2023 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I rarely write about books that are so popular, but I loved the Heartstopper series and I can’t wait to see what happens next! Unlike most other books I’ve read, I came to the series through Netflix. I watched both seasons and was so drawn to the characters that I had to read the books. […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Alice Oseman, graphic novel, Heartstopper, reading, review, Young Adult

Zen

June 20, 2023 by Varsha Seshan 2 Comments

What a book. I’m not sure I know how to begin reviewing a book as mighty as Shabnam Minwalla’s Zen. It is such a compelling read that even though it’s over 600 pages long, I chose to carry it with me when I travelled, instead of carrying my Kindle the way I usually do. How […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: contemporary fiction, historical fiction, reading, review, Shabnam Minwalla, Young Adult, Zen

Terminal 3

May 6, 2023 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

When I learned that Debasmita Dasgupta had another graphic novel out, I knew I had to read it. Nadya, which I read several months ago, was a stunning read that effortlessly brought together pithy text and bold illustrations. Visually, Terminal 3 was just as compelling. The colour palettes were gorgeous, and I love that the […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Debasmita Dasgupta, reading, review, Terminal 3, Young Adult

My Favourite Late Middle-Grade and Young Adult Books from 2022

January 5, 2023 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I just looked back at the post where I listed my favourite young adult books from 2021. When I wrote that, I resolved to read more YA in 2022. And that didn’t happen. In fact, I read fewer. Just one of the three books on this list is a YA book; the other two would […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Clap When You Land, middle-grade, Rain Must Fall, reading, review, The Best At It, Young Adult

Clap When You Land

July 19, 2022 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

A YA verse novel told from two points of view? Yes, please. And one with a secret at its core? Always. Clap When You Land was a stunning read, one that made my heart ache even as I rejoiced with all the women in the story who emerged triumphant, and stronger than ever. Yahaira, who […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Clap When You Land, Elizabeth Acevedo, reading, review, Young Adult

My Favourite Young Adult Books from 2021

January 12, 2022 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I didn’t read very many young adult books in 2021, and several that I did read proved to be disappointing. With some, I know I was probably being unfair because I have high expectations of authors I’ve read and loved. I left a number of books unfinished; when there are so many books out there […]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Bena's Summer, Loki Takes Guard, Postbox Kashmir, Queen of Fire, reading, review, Strong as Fire Fierce as Flame, Young Adult

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