The Marvelous Mirza Girls

Gilmore Girls meets
vibrant New Delhi in this thoughtful and hilarious new novel about a teen
facing family expectations, relationship complications, and hidden secrets in a
new country—sprinkled with Sheba Karim’s signature wit and steamy romance, and
perfect for readers who loved Mary H. K. Choi’s Emergency
Contact and Adib Khorram’s Darius
the Great Is Not Okay.

To cure her post-senior year
slump, made worse by the loss of her aunt Sonia, Noreen decides to follow her
mom on a gap year trip to New Delhi, hoping India can lessen her grief and
bring her voice back.

In the world’s most polluted
city, Noreen soon meets kind, handsome Kabir, who introduces her to the wonders
of this magical, complicated place. With the help of Kabir—plus Bollywood
celebrities, fourteenth-century ruins, karaoke parties, and Sufi saints—Noreen discovers
new meanings for home.

But when a family scandal erupts,
Noreen and Kabir must face complex questions in their own relationship: What
does it mean to truly stand by someone—and what are the boundaries of love?

witty, sensitive, topical, insightful and entertaining

I enjoyed the characters and the way they dealt with challenges--personal, interpersonal, and political--as well as the landscapes and communities they navigate through.

Good but didn’t blow me away

I really enjoyed this book because of the mother-daughter dynamic, descriptions of India both historically and presently, political commentary, and learning about the minority experience both in the US and in India. It was, however, still a YA romance, and didn’t leave me saying “wow” or anything at the end. I am glad I read it, but I can’t rate it as highly as some of my other reads.