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    Red, White, and Whole: A Newbery Honor Award Winner
    Unavailable
    Red, White, and Whole: A Newbery Honor Award Winner
    Unavailable
    Red, White, and Whole: A Newbery Honor Award Winner
    Audiobook2 hours

    Red, White, and Whole: A Newbery Honor Award Winner

    Written by Rajani LaRocca

    Narrated by Priya Ayyar

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    Newbery Honor Book! A heartbreakingly hopeful novel in verse about an Indian American girl whose life is turned upside down when her mother is diagnosed with leukemia.

    * Walter Award Winner * New England Book Award Winner * An NCTE Notable Verse Novel * Golden Kite Award Winner * Crystal Kite Award Winner * Goodreads Choice Nominee * A Washington Post Best Children's Book of the Year * An SLJ Best Book of the Year * A BookPage Best Book of the Year * An NYPL Best Book of the Year * A Mighty Girl's Best Book of the Year * An ILA Notable Book for a Global Society * A Bank Street Best Book of the Year *Junior Library Guild Selection * A Judy Lopez Memorial Award Honor *

    Reha feels torn between two worlds: school, where she’s the only Indian American student, and home, with her family’s traditions and holidays. But Reha’s parents don’t understand why she’s conflicted—they only notice when Reha doesn’t meet their strict expectations. Reha feels disconnected from her mother, or Amma. Although their names are linked—Reha means “star” and Punam means “moon”—they are a universe apart.

    Then Reha finds out that her Amma is sick. Really sick.

    Reha, who dreams of becoming a doctor even though she can’t stomach the sight of blood, is determined to make her Amma well again. She’ll be the perfect daughter, if it means saving her Amma’s life.

    From Indies Introduce author Rajani LaRocca comes a radiant story about the ties that bind and how to go on in the face of unthinkable loss. This is the perfect next read for fans of Jasmine Warga and Thanhhà Lại.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateFeb 2, 2021
    ISBN9780063047457
    Author

    Rajani LaRocca

    Rajani LaRocca was born in India, raised in Kentucky, and now lives in Massachusetts, where she practices medicine and writes award-winning books for young readers, including the Newbery Honor–winning novel in verse, Red, White, and Whole. She’s always been an omnivorous reader, and now she is an omnivorous writer of novels and picture books, fiction and nonfiction, in prose and poetry. A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Medical School, she lives outside Boston with her family. Visit her at rajanilarocca.com.

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    Reviews for Red, White, and Whole

    4.5/5

    116 ratings7 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Red, White, and Whole is a great novel in verse it made me emotional with the experiences faced by the main character. Also, how she dealt with grief, deciding between two worlds, and learning that pushing friends away isn't the best decision. And while there were many pop culture references that I enjoyed and situations where I connected with the character I believe that others will enjoy this one a lot more than I did. I felt there were many times when I was so invested in the storytelling that it just ended abruptly and was left wanting a bit more.
    • 5/5
      Really wasn't expecting the death of a parent, so I had an extremely emotional response to this book. That said, the writing is excellent, it's based on the author's experiences, and there is a marvelous threading of imagery related to blood through it. Really well done, big impact.
    • 4/5
      Reha is the 8th grade daughter of immigrant parents from India. Born in America Reha feels the tension of not fully belonging in either world. There is the pressure of being the good daughter at home and the social pressure of wanting to be like the kids in school. She's American on the weekdays and Indian on the weekends. When her mother is diagnosed and treated for leukemia, Reha feels even more the pressure of being the dutiful and virtuous daughter. Her life and routines are upended. The prose is gentle and thoughtful, centering the loving cocoon of Reha's immediate universe.
    • 4/5
      Reha feels like she's growing up in two different worlds: the world of middle school in the US in the 80s and the world of her parents and their friends, immigrants from India. But things get put in stark prospective for her when her mother becomes seriously ill, and she sees the value of family and feels the support of her friends.Written in free verse, this is a lovely little story. I feel as if the characters could have been fleshed out a bit more and some of the side stories given more detail, but overall it's a nice read.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book, it is a poignant story of a young Indian American girl straddling the Indian and American cultures. Told in verse, it highlights all the things a young American girl enjoys-pop music, dancing, TV, makeup, friends. It also highlights her Indian culture-The clothing, the food, the traditions.When something happens to upend Reha’s world, she examines what she can do to change things. This is written for a YA audience, but I think it would resonate with anyone. It deserves a wide readership.
    • 4/5
      Reha feels pulled between two worlds a lot in her life - her Indian side and her school/American side. Then there is the divide between when her mom was healthy and sick. Her friends rally around her, but she decides her best strategy must be to focus on being the daughter her girl wants and being on point at school. Her budding friendship and romance with Pete is sweet.
    • 5/5
      Beautifully emotional.A novel in verse about a thirteen year old in 1983, navigating cultural differences as the daughter of Indian immigrants attending a mostly white school in America while at the same time dealing with her mother’s sudden illness. The part music (and some of my favorite songs) play in Reha’s life felt so much like what music meant to me at that age. The relationship with her parents felt so authentic, too, those moments of resenting or being embarrassed by their old school ways such as her mom sewing all her clothes were later followed by poignant moments where Reha comes to appreciate those same things. I also really loved the friendship/developing romance with her classmate Pete, the sweetness of it, the mutual respect, and just how overall heartening it was to see Reha experience some happiness, some distraction, someone caring for her at such a difficult time. This definitely has it’s heartbreaking moments, it’s pretty impossible to believe that any reader will get through this without crying at some point, but the author does leave Reha and therefore the reader in a positive place. I loved this book, the characters, the writing, all of it, just perfection.