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Monday, August 28, 2023

MMGM: American as Paneer Pie by Supriya Kelkar

 

Lekha Divekar is the only Indian American in her small town. She was born in America, but she thinks other people see her as an outsider. Lekha feels like she is two people; the girl who does her best to blend in and be invisible at school, and the girl at home who is happy eating Indian food and watching old Bollywood movies. Trying to balance it all is hard. But Lekha can't stand being called names because of her culture and having kids make fun of her because they say she smells funny. Her best friend and neighbor, Noah, is the only one who knows both sides of her. Neither of them feels strong enough to stand up to the kids who are being mean. When a new Desi girls moves in, Lekha thinks all her prayers have been answered. Now she will have a friend who understands all her struggles. But when she meets Avantika she realizes that the new girl has moved to the small town straight from India and doesn't feel the same way as Lekha. Now that there are two Desi girls in school will Lekha be able to blend in? Will there be a time when Lekha will use her voice? You'll have to read this enlightening book to find out!


American as Paneer Pie by Supriya Kelkar is up for the Intermediate Nutmeg Award and I can see why! The characters tugged at my heart, and I also loved learning about Indian culture. Middle school is hard, so I can imagine that a lot of kids try to blend in, but for Lekha it's an even bigger deal. I felt bad for her thinking about how hard it was for her to live two lives. She kept finding herself in tough spots where she was going to disappoint her family, her swim team, or herself. When she has a decision to make during Diwali, the most important holiday of the year for her family, my heart broke for her. The kids in her town don't celebrate Diwali and to them it is just another day. It made me think about important holidays in other cultures and religions. It must be hard if you celebrate a holiday and no one else in your town does, so people expect you to do regular every day things. I like how the book helped me learn about Indian foods and traditions. I would recommend this book to people in 4th grade and up who like realistic fiction and stories about standing up for ourselves and what we believe. I can't wait to read another book by this author.   


Has anyone else read American as Paneer Pie? Or have you read another book by Supriya Kelkar? We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Happy Reading!
~L

For other MMGM posts, please visit Greg Pattridge's blog.

23 comments:

  1. I haven't read it and it sounds like a real gem. Thank you for telling us about it.

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  2. I have also not read this one but have heard about it. Your review did a great job on filling me in on why I need to put this one on my future read list. Thanks and Happy MMGM!

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    1. Greg- I hope you enjoy this one as much as I did when you get to it. :)

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  3. This sounds a really good premise for a story, we all have to choose between going with the flow or standing up for ourselves so it's good for kids to think about this. Very excited to hear about book 3 - I've just finished book 1 & book 2 is on my TBR. My dog has a request that Auntie Em plays a much more active role in book 3... :)

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    1. Hi Valinora- You are so right- we do all have to think about that! We are so happy you finished The Secret Files of Fairday Morrow. We hope you enjoy book 2. We can't wait to share book . Hopefully your dog will be happy with Auntie Em's role in book 3. :)

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  4. This sounds like a very good book and the cover is great! Carol Baldwin

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    1. Carol- It really is a story that stays with you! :) ~L

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  5. Parece un libro divertido. Tomó nota. Te mando un beso.

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  6. Hi DMS - it sounds an important read ... which I'd like to - I've made a note and perhaps will get it from the library at some stage - thanks ... an informative read - cheers Hilary

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    1. Hilary- If you get a chance to read it- I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. The audio version of the book is excellent as well. :)

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  7. I read this and loved it as well. It's nice to see the word being spread. Thanks for the post.

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    1. Rosi- So glad to hear you read and loved this book too. I hope more people read it! :)

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  8. As someone who never quite fit in though for very different reasons I think I'd relate well to Lekha. This sounds like a wonderful story in which to learn about Indian culture

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    1. Felicity- I think a lot of people will be able to relate to Lehka. Definitely a great book to learn about Indian culture. :) ~L

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    1. The Armchair Squid- You are welcome! :) ~L

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  10. Certainly sounds a good book, many thanks for highlighting it.

    Wishing you a happy month of September, the year is flying by!

    All the best Jan

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    1. Jan- You are welcome. It is a great book! I am shocked at how fast the year is flying by! :) ~L

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  11. Not sure if my comment came through?
    Sounds a good book.

    All the best Jan
    https://thelowcarbdiabetic.blogspot.com/

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  12. I haven't heard of this book, but I think it's cool that there's one featuring Indian culture.

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Thank you for stopping by and commenting. We love to hear your thoughts! We had to turn on comment moderation due to a high volume of spam. Fairday's Blog is no longer accepting awards. We appreciate all the nominations that we have received and are honored to have been mentioned! Happy Reading!