About this item
Discover stories of fear, triumph, and spectacular celebration in this warm-hearted novel of interconnected stories that celebrates the diversity of South Asian American experiences in a local community center.. Discover stories of fear, triumph, and spectacular celebration in the fictional town of Maple Grove, New Jersey, where the local kids gather at the community center to discover new crushes, fight against ignorance, and even save a life. Cheer for Chaya as she wins chess tournaments (unlike Andrew, she knows stupid sugary soda won't make you better at chess) , and follow as Jeevan learns how to cook traditional food (it turns out he can cook sabji-- he just can't eat it) .. These stories, edited by bestselling and award-winning Pakistani-American author Hena Khan, are filled with humor, warmth, and possibility.
About the Author
Veera Hiranandani is the author of THE NIGHT DIARY (Kokila) , which received the 2019 Newbery Honor Award, the 2019 Walter Dean Myers Honor Award and the 2018 Malka Penn Award for Human Rights in Children's Literature. The Night Diary has been featured on NPR's Weekend Edition, is a New York Times Editor's Choice Pick, and was chosen as a 2018 Best Children's Book of the Year by The New York Times, The Washington Post, NPR, Amazon, School Library Journal, and Kirkus Rewiews, among others. She is also the author of THE WHOLE STORY OF HALF A GIRL (Yearling) , which was named a Sydney Taylor Notable Book and a South Asian Book Award Finalist, and the chapter book series, PHOEBE G. GREEN (Grosset & Dunlap) . She earned her MFA in fiction writing at Sarah Lawrence College. A former book editor at Simon & Schuster, she now teaches creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College's Writing Institute and is working on her next novel. Find out more at www.veerahiranandani.com and follow Veera on Twitter @veerhira or Instagram @veerawrites!
