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savvyrosereads's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Out today (May 10, 2022)! [Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!]
Rating: 4/5 stars
Such Big Dreams is the story of a young Indian woman who has found her way off the streets after a difficult childhood—but risks her life being derailed once again when she makes an unusual arrangement with a Canadian graduate student interning at the human rights law office where she works.
This book is a bit outside my usual kind of read, but I’m glad I took a step outside my comfort zone for it! This is a story that is part coming-of-age novel and Patel handled those aspects perfectly, crafting an absolutely wonderful and lovable main character. Although I found the first several chapters long and a bit slow, the story and characters dragged me in, and the last few chapters had me on the edge of my seat (I was up until 2am reading because I just had to know what happened!)
One of the primary themes of Such Big Dreams is autonomy—over oneself and one’s life, even when faced with outside forces who claim to know better and to “only want to help”—and how that can sometimes be in tension with the paternalism of charity organizations or the “experts” who try to “fix” developing countries. As a former political science/global politics student, it was fascinating to see these themes explored in fiction, and I’d definitely love to see more reads like this in the future—and will be checking out whatever Patel does next!
Recommended to anyone, but especially if you like: stories set in non-Western countries/cultures; mixed character-and-plot driven narratives; feminism through a non-white/non-Western lens.
CW: Death of a parent; child abuse/exploitation; sexual assault/rape; fire/fire injury; government corruption/abuse.
Rating: 4/5 stars
Such Big Dreams is the story of a young Indian woman who has found her way off the streets after a difficult childhood—but risks her life being derailed once again when she makes an unusual arrangement with a Canadian graduate student interning at the human rights law office where she works.
This book is a bit outside my usual kind of read, but I’m glad I took a step outside my comfort zone for it! This is a story that is part coming-of-age novel and Patel handled those aspects perfectly, crafting an absolutely wonderful and lovable main character. Although I found the first several chapters long and a bit slow, the story and characters dragged me in, and the last few chapters had me on the edge of my seat (I was up until 2am reading because I just had to know what happened!)
One of the primary themes of Such Big Dreams is autonomy—over oneself and one’s life, even when faced with outside forces who claim to know better and to “only want to help”—and how that can sometimes be in tension with the paternalism of charity organizations or the “experts” who try to “fix” developing countries. As a former political science/global politics student, it was fascinating to see these themes explored in fiction, and I’d definitely love to see more reads like this in the future—and will be checking out whatever Patel does next!
Recommended to anyone, but especially if you like: stories set in non-Western countries/cultures; mixed character-and-plot driven narratives; feminism through a non-white/non-Western lens.
CW: Death of a parent; child abuse/exploitation; sexual assault/rape; fire/fire injury; government corruption/abuse.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Death, and Abandonment
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Forced institutionalization, Confinement, and Classism
amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Confinement, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Trafficking and Colonisation
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