Reviews by Tag: multicultural

After Mahavir Singh Phogat’s failure at winning a gold medal for the country, he vows to fulfill his dreams by training his daughters for the Commonwealth Games despite pressures from those trying to stop them due to their situation (status) and gender. The girls fight and give their all to fulfill their new dream given by their father. We are able to see the sacrifices of the girls, family, and those around them to succeed.

After the wedding ceremony of Surinder Sahni and Taani, Surinder discovers that his new wife does not love him the way he loves her, as she is not able to digest her past. She has lost her lover and her father wishes for her to marry him before his death. She decides to enter a dance competition, Surinder puts on a disguise and joins the class and tries to become friends with her. She falls in love with her husband in the disguise of her dance partner, Raj, unaware that he is her husband. He wishes to understand if she will truly love him for what he is and if she can prove to be loyal.

A bomb disposal expert (Samar - Shahrukh Khan) has a bitter and lonely life and is not able to fall in love until he accepts his past with Meera (Katrina Kaif). He reunites with his love through those around him opening his eyes (Akira - Anushka Sharma). The songs truly express his pain and progression of the plot of him opening up viewpoints through his new friend, Akira, who accompanies him on his dangerous missions. As they get closer, he gets closer to his love he left in the past. He must learn to distinguish between friendship and his lost true love.

The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson is a gripping and thought-provoking novel that delves into the complex issues of family, race, and identity. The story revolves around two sisters, one light-skinned and one dark-skinned, who confront the legacy of their family's secrets and racial identity in a small Southern town. As they navigate a world filled with prejudice and discrimination, the novel explores the enduring impact of their ancestors' choices  and the weight of blood ties that bind them.

Born a Crime is the story of comedian Trevor Noah who portrays his upbringing in apartheid-era South Africa, where his existence was illegal due to the government ban on interracial relationships. The book consists of a collection of stories from Noah's childhood and early adulthood. It explores his family's experiences under apartheid, his mother's determination to provide a better life, and his own journey of self-discovery.

Wow. Just… wow. We Deserve Monuments is a debut novel. But you wouldn’t be able to tell. It’s just that well written. A beautiful, heart-wrenching coming of age story, Jas Hammonds wove a tale of generational trauma, love, racism, homophobia, and what really matters. This was recommended to me by Goodreads because I read Pet (by Akwaeke Emezi), and I at first marked it as TBR because of the cover. Then, I read the premise. It was at this moment that it became an instant read for me. I was not disappointed.

The protagonist of Concrete Rose is 17 year old Maverick (Mav) Carter, who is the son of a gang leader. His father being in prison, Mav wishes to fill his father’s shoes, as he desperately needs to provide for his family. Mav feels that the way he must do this is by dealing drugs, as that's exactly how his father had provided for their family. However, everything is quickly complicated when Mav finds out he’s a father. Mav struggles to tell his girlfriend Lisa, as the mother of the newborn is another girl.

The Sun and the Star, by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro, is an installment in the Percy Jackson franchise focusing on Nico di Angelo and Will Solace. 

These Infinite Threads by Taherah Mafi is a YA fantasy novel and is the second book in the series after This Woven Kingdom. I rated it four stars. The book follows Alizeh, who is the heir to the fallen Jinn kingdom. Jinn are mistreated in the kingdom where Alizeh lived in the first book, Ardunia, as a common servant who always wears a covering, or “nosta” over her special Jinn princess eyes.

Deka is a village girl in Irfut who just wants to live a normal life and be proven as pure and belonging in her village. She wants to be able to get married and live a happy life. However, on the day of the Ritual of Purity, it is discovered that she is impure and has the cursed blood of demons inside her. As she underwent the Death Mandate but yet didn’t die, she is taken from Irfut to the Warthu Beru to train in an army of girls like her, an alaki army.