Star Rating: 3CAWPILE Score: 6.43
In this book, Maera and her mother are still struggling to adjust to the mysterious disappearance of her brother ten years earlier. Then, a day after her grandfather passes, his greenhouse appears in Maera's backyard. The book jumps back and forth between Maera in present day and her grandfather's childhood. With the help of her cousin and friends, she must figure out what has caused the greenhouse to appear.
I was not prepared for how dark this book would be. It covers an era of Indian/Pakistani history that often goes untaught in schools. As such, the horrors that characters experienced were new to me. The chapters which centered around Maera's grandfather were more interesting and engaging to me. The imagery painted a creepy picture that had goosebumps trailing up my arms at times.
Unfortunately, Maera did not feel like a very dynamic character and she made some decisions that didn't quite make sense. The ending felt rushed. I would have liked to have another fifty or one hundred pages to get to know Maera and her family better. That might have made her actions make more sense.
Though this book was not what I expected, I believe that it is valuable for young people to read because it provides a picture of an unspoken history. I would like to include it in my library because it provides a different perspective than many history textbooks do. Leila Siddiqui wrote in her author's note about how many children of immigrants, her included, are missing much of their family history. This would be a great book for parents and their children to discuss and open a dialogue about their own family history.
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