![]() Jaigirdar describes her book as essentially being about “growing into who you are and being comfortable with who you are.” She wrote it, she says, “because of family, community, culture-it was a way to express all of these things that are all so important to me.” Jaigirdar, 26, attended an all-girls’ Catholic school after her family arrived in Ireland from Bangladesh when she was 10. Their connection is founded on a powerful sympathy as queer girls of color in a mostly white Catholic school, yet an entrepreneurial project strikes at the heart of thorny questions of appreciation versus appropriation. Jaigirdar focuses on Nishat, a Bangladeshi Irish teen who comes out as lesbian to her parents, and Flávia, the biracial (black Brazilian/white Irish) girl Nishat is in love-and conflict-with, in a friends-to-enemies-to-lovers storyline. Even stories centering characters from marginalized groups frequently focus on their struggles in relation to the dominant culture-as if stories can’t exist without a normative reference point. ![]() In too many teen novels, queer characters and characters of color-and we still rarely meet queer characters of color-appear in the role of best friend to the straight, white protagonist. ![]() Kirkus’ review describes Adiba Jaigirdar’s debut, The Henna Wars (Page Street, May 12), as “impossible to put down” and with good reason: It’s simultaneously a charming rom-com, a thoughtful work of social commentary, a testament to strong female relationships, and a fresh addition to YA literature. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |