This past week has brought so much sad news to us from India, the second most populous country in the world, but a country of which we hear comparatively little news.
In recent years, there have been many books for young readers set in India or the Indian diaspora. Most notably is this year’s Climbing the Stairs. Set during World War II amid the burgeoning Indian independence movement, this book offers a lot of detail about Indian history, while also telling the story of our heroine Vidya, who wants only to further her education, not to be married off.
A similar character is found in Kashmira Sheth’s Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet, although this time the book is set in contemporary Mumbai. Jeeta also wants an education, rather than marriage, and it doesn’t help that her dark skin makes her difficult to marry her off. This is a good immersion into contemporary Indian culture.
There are also several good books about the Indian diaspora. In the United States, 2.6 million people are of Indian descent. Born Confused is a wonderful portrayal of ethnicity and assimilation, set in suburban New York. Dimple just wants to be like the others in her suburban school,but when her blond best friend becomes infatuated with an Indian boy, Dimple discovers that being “cool” and being Indian aren’t mutually exclusive.
There is a wonderful series of light books for girls set in England, starting with Bindi Babes. These books for middle-grade readers involve three Indian sisters who live with their father after the death of their mother, and their attempts to engineer the events in the adults of their lives.
Finally, an even lesser known story of India is that of the Indian population in East Africa, featured in Child of Dandelions. Here, Indians living in Uganda, even those who were Ugandan citizens are being asked to leave the country within 90 days. While hopelessly violent and sad, this book again features a strong heroine trying to keep her family together in frightening times.