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shannonm44's review
5.0
Originally rated it as 4 stars, but after reading it and thinking about it for multiple days and wishing I could find more books like this, I had to rate it 5 stars. I could not tell what was going to happen at the end and my feelings around the characters were never stable as they continuously developed. I enjoyed the book a lot.
candacesiegle_greedyreader's review
4.0
Neil Narayan is growing up in an Atlanta suburb, attending Okefenokee High School, struggling to keep up with his immigrant parents' high expectations. His friends are a bunch of Indian-American kids and some Asians (Indians were not "South Asians" then.) He and his childhood friend Anita may be the only ones who are not completely involved in preparing for Harvard from grade 9. But Anita is changing. Suddenly she is trying out for Miss India Georgia, she's talking about the Ivies and has a kind of glow. Neil feels left out, and the only thing that keeps him from sinking into mediocrity is his terrifying debate partner Wendi Zhao, who attempts to kick him into competence in debate--his only extracurricular activity. Wendi plans on Harvard, and since Neil is her assigned debate partner he HAS to perform. A reconnection with Anita reveals her secret--her mother's gold-based alchemical concoction that allows the drinker to imbibe the traits of the gold's owner.
"Gold Diggers" will follow this group into young adulthood, ending with a convoluted heist to boost their prospects. The result is not what anyone expects.
This is a charming book, very readable, a coming-of-age story about first generation immigrants finding their way amidst impossibly high expectations. Throw in alchemy, and you are glued to the page.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for access to this fine title!
~~Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader
"Gold Diggers" will follow this group into young adulthood, ending with a convoluted heist to boost their prospects. The result is not what anyone expects.
This is a charming book, very readable, a coming-of-age story about first generation immigrants finding their way amidst impossibly high expectations. Throw in alchemy, and you are glued to the page.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for access to this fine title!
~~Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader
specificity's review
4.0
Actual rating: 3.5 stars
The book has an extremely strong first half, after which things sort of go downhill, for the characters and the readers. There's an emotional honesty and specificity in the first half which is sapped by the absolute nothingburger of Neil's adult personality, his continuous and whinging refusal to take responsibility for anything in his life—in a way, the narrative loses its power as the gold wears off. Despite all this, I'd say the second half is worth reading if only for the continued astute cultural observations and to find out more about Anita and Anjali, the real stars of the novel.
The book has an extremely strong first half, after which things sort of go downhill, for the characters and the readers. There's an emotional honesty and specificity in the first half which is sapped by the absolute nothingburger of Neil's adult personality, his continuous and whinging refusal to take responsibility for anything in his life—in a way, the narrative loses its power as the gold wears off. Despite all this, I'd say the second half is worth reading if only for the continued astute cultural observations and to find out more about Anita and Anjali, the real stars of the novel.
hanbart19's review
3.0
Saw another reviewer say they loved the writing, not the story, and I’d have to agree with that. I think the most interesting part of the story—the whole magic gold thing—was sidelined for too long and the middle section dragged as a result. Also, it’s hard to read about characters that don’t know what they want/have no goals. Listening to Neil whine about his lack of ambition/passion for anything got annoying really quickly.
alixv's review
dark
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
shirinidein's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
andreinavhernandez98's review
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book should have worked for me: the history, the specific interest (eating gold as part of Indian tradition), etc, but I just couldn’t connect with the characters. I would say that the reflections in the last chapters redeemed the story for me.
pages_and_papercrafts's review
2.75
A coming of age novel about Neil, an Indian American. I thought it was quite long and lost interest about halfway through.