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A review by mrskatiefitz
The Whole Story of Half a Girl by Veera Hiranandani
3.0
At Community, her private school, Sonia Nadhamuni, who is both half Indian and half Jewish, feels accepted by her peers, and never questions her identity. When her dad loses his job, however, Sonia must leave the safety of her beloved school and enroll at the public school, where suddenly everything is unfamiliar and no one understands her cultural identity. As she struggles to find her place among popular girls and cheerleaders, she must also face her father’s fragility as he falls into a deep depression and goes missing.
Though the writing in this book is very good, stylistically speaking, the story’s main message contradicts itself in one very significant way. In its attempts to dispel certain stereotypes about race and religion, it actually perpetuates other misconceptions, mainly about public schools and the ability of kids to accept their peers’ cultural beliefs and practices. The story comes down very heavily on public schools, and portrays Sonia’s particular school as a place filled with self-centered, racist, spoiled brats who don’t know the difference between American Indians and Indians, and who can’t be bothered to learn how to pronounce her last name. In the public school, only cheerleaders can be popular, and to fit in, girls are expected to play spin the bottle and kiss boys, whether they want to or not. By contrast, Sonia’s old school is presented as a utopian bubble. Everyone at Community knows how to say Sonia’s name, and no one has ever questioned her about her skin tone, religious practices, or any other aspect of her identity. Neither school comes across as authentic, and I think most kids, regardless of which type of school they attend, would recognize that fact and maybe even find it offensive.
Sonia is a believable character, however. Her struggle to accept her parents’ differing backgrounds and her own assimilation of their two cultures is interesting and relevant. Her challenges in dealing with her dad’s depression are also handled nicely, and in a way that explores the issue without sounding like an after school special. I did wonder how the two main storylines - Sonia’s acceptance of her identity, and her dad’s depression - were meant to fit together, but even without figuring out the connection, I was still invested in both.
This book is a welcome addition to the growing list of middle grade realistic fiction novels about girls of color, but it could have done a better job addressing the issues of race and culture without completely vilifying Sonia’s peers, or relying on tired, predictable stereotypes about middle school life.
Other books with similar themes include: Schooled by Gordon Korman, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, and The Great Wall of Lucy Wu by Wendy Wan-Long Chang. For a more lighthearted celebration of Indian culture, also check out The Grand Plan to Fix Everything by Uma Krishnaswami.
Though the writing in this book is very good, stylistically speaking, the story’s main message contradicts itself in one very significant way. In its attempts to dispel certain stereotypes about race and religion, it actually perpetuates other misconceptions, mainly about public schools and the ability of kids to accept their peers’ cultural beliefs and practices. The story comes down very heavily on public schools, and portrays Sonia’s particular school as a place filled with self-centered, racist, spoiled brats who don’t know the difference between American Indians and Indians, and who can’t be bothered to learn how to pronounce her last name. In the public school, only cheerleaders can be popular, and to fit in, girls are expected to play spin the bottle and kiss boys, whether they want to or not. By contrast, Sonia’s old school is presented as a utopian bubble. Everyone at Community knows how to say Sonia’s name, and no one has ever questioned her about her skin tone, religious practices, or any other aspect of her identity. Neither school comes across as authentic, and I think most kids, regardless of which type of school they attend, would recognize that fact and maybe even find it offensive.
Sonia is a believable character, however. Her struggle to accept her parents’ differing backgrounds and her own assimilation of their two cultures is interesting and relevant. Her challenges in dealing with her dad’s depression are also handled nicely, and in a way that explores the issue without sounding like an after school special. I did wonder how the two main storylines - Sonia’s acceptance of her identity, and her dad’s depression - were meant to fit together, but even without figuring out the connection, I was still invested in both.
This book is a welcome addition to the growing list of middle grade realistic fiction novels about girls of color, but it could have done a better job addressing the issues of race and culture without completely vilifying Sonia’s peers, or relying on tired, predictable stereotypes about middle school life.
Other books with similar themes include: Schooled by Gordon Korman, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, and The Great Wall of Lucy Wu by Wendy Wan-Long Chang. For a more lighthearted celebration of Indian culture, also check out The Grand Plan to Fix Everything by Uma Krishnaswami.