The writing in this book is both stunning and heartbreaking. I’m still thinking about this book days after I read it.

Beautifully written as a novel in verse, this book captures the essence of being a young Indian-American, straddling two worlds and trying to find your place.

Character and issue driven novel in verse set in the 80's about Reha, an Indian American girl seeking to find her whole identity while straddling two cultures--American and Indian. Excellent portrayal of the Indian couple who arrive in the States during the '70s. They strive to preserve their Indian culture but do incorporate some American trends, especially a love for pop music. However, their daughter, who was born in the states, is conflicted about how much the Indian culture should influence her life. Add mom's cancer diagnosis, and Reha does have a lot on her emotional plate. Definitely an important book to be discussed in the middle grades. Thank you HarperCollins Children's and Netgalley.

Reha is torn between 2 worlds - America where she was born, and India where her parents emigrated from. She wants to be a typical 8th grade girl - wearing the latest fashions, going to dances, and feeling "American" but her parents hold her back at times. As she tries to figure herself out tragedy strikes. She tries to come to terms with this and her hopes and dream on top of having to say good-bye to someone she loves.
A novel-in-verse and #ownvoices - a must read for MG readers!

Wow. Read in one day with tears streaming down my face. This is one of those books where the author tears up your heart so unexpectedly but then at the ends puts it back together in a whole new way. This book spoke to the 10 year old in me that lost her dad to cancer. It also spoke to the adult that is forever changed from that experience.
The fact that this book is written in verse does nothing but add to the effectiveness of this book.

READ THIS. You won't regret it or forget it.

It’s 1983. Reha is thirteen and wants nothing more than to dance, sing, and have fun with her American friends. She loves MTV music videos, tight jeans, and chewing gum, but Amma says, “We are different from Americans. We work hard, we dress modestly, we focus on what is important to succeed...”

Reha is an Indian-American who does work hard — she wants to be a doctor someday, even though she gets queasy at the sight of blood. Her Amma and Daddy want nothing more than to give Reha the life they have dreamed for her. Reha, torn between two lives...

Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca is a throwback to the 80s teen life, as well as a story of close-knit families and good friends. I love Reha and her friends, especially Pete and Rachel, her BFF. This book is more than that, too. It’s a story of loving a sick relative, learning about science and medicine, and wondering about your place in the world.

This lovely novel-in-verse is recommended for ages 10 and up. Students will relate to the teen characters and their parents. Adults will re-live those childhood moments of fun, but also fretting. Families can read this book together and enjoy a story of heart-warming generational magic.

My Rating: ****

Reha is Indian-American living the in the Midwest of the U.S. She is often torn between her parents' cultural expectations and the culture of the U.S. Reha is 13 and the story is set in the 1980s when her mother is diagnosed with Leukemia. Reha has made it her mission to be dutiful, virtuous, and excel in school--anything to prevent her mother from getting sicker.
This is a novel written in verse and was a complete gut-punch. The writing was emotive, clear, and Rajani LaRocca does an excellent job in placing the reader in the time and space of Reha's life. Wonderfully done!

Rajani LaRocca's Red, White and Whole is the business!

LaRocca's tells us Reha's story in Red, White and Whole. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Reha just wants to fit in with her American friends. She wants to go to the school dance. She wants clothes bought from a store, not made by her mother.

The author does has such incredible voice as Reha. You remember what it's like to be in middle school and want so desperately to fit in. I loved reading about her Indian culture and her description of their rich foods and traditions. And I truly liked how the red, white, and whole them kept coming up in the story with Amma's job, and the color of the traditional clothing, etc...

I can't say enough good things about this book. My students watched me read this throughout the day, saw me wipe away a tear and asked when they would be able to hear "the story Ms. T can't put down".

Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca was a beautiful middle grade novel written in verse that would help any student find their way as a teen and deal with the illness and death of a parent. I will make sure of my teachers have a copy of Red, White, and Whole in their classrooms.

Loved this story. Purchased this YA/middle grade novel for my middle school library. Superb character development, elegant world building, and compelling plotting.

Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca, 2021
Recommended for grades 4-8; novel in verse

Brief Review:

It’s 1983 and Reha is a thirteen-year-old Indian American girl living in a predominantly white midwestern town. Initially, she struggles with the hardships of living a mutli-cultural lifestyle, but these problems all become insignificant when her mother is diagnosed with leukemia. When the chemotherapy and extended hospital stay fail to cure the disease, Reha hopes that she will be able to save her mother’s life with a bone marrow transplant. The novel-in-verse format works well for this emotional, introspective book that focuses just as much on its themes of self-identity and family as on its plot points. The title has a clever double meaning; it refers to the fact that literal blood is made up of both red and white cells, but it also refers to Reha’s two cultural backgrounds. In Indian culture, red is a lucky color, and in American culture, white is the color of purity and heroism. At one point, while speculating on the nature of heroism, Reha decides that red instead of white should be the color of virtue. White is a “pale, all-reflecting non-hue”, she says, but red is “the color of the life within us.” Still, both concepts are a part of Reha’s perspective and heritage. The book concludes with a heartwarming letter from Reha’s mother encouraging her to embrace both cultures and expressing pride in Reha’s courage.

Long Review:

It’s 1983 and Reha is a thirteen-year-old Indian American girl living in a predominantly white midwestern town. She feels like she’s living two lives. In one life, she’s Indian with her parents, she eats Indian food, and she has a best friend named Sunita, or Sunny for short. In the other life, she goes to school, listens to American pop music, and has other friends named Rachel and Pete. In both those lives, Reha aspires to be a doctor even though she’s not sure how she’ll ever learn to handle the sight of blood. Her mother Amma is a hospital lab technician whose job is to run Complete Blood Count tests. She separates red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, and plasma in order to count the individual cells. Together, these different types of blood cells and the plasma make whole blood, hence the title of the book.

The title also refers to the contrast between Indian culture and American culture. In Indian culture, as Amma explains to Reha, brides wear red because it’s a lucky color; white is a color of mourning, rather than a color symbolizing purity. Later in the book, while speculating on the nature of heroism, Reha decides that red instead of white should be the color of virtue. White is a “pale, all-reflecting non-hue”, but red is “the color of the life within us.”

Reha’s life as an Indian American isn’t always easy. She has a hard time talking her parents into letting her go to the school dance, and her parents initially want her to wear a dress sewn by her mother instead of going to the mall and picking out something she wants. But these hardships suddenly don’t seem so bad when Amma gets sick. Ironically, her disease is exactly the kind of thing she’s spent years looking for in other people’s blood. She has too many white blood cells, and some of them are abnormal. It’s leukemia, and in order to treat it, they need to give her chemotherapy and keep her in the hospital.

In fact, Amma’s blood doesn’t respond as well to the chemotherapy as the doctors had hoped. They need to look into the possibility of doing a bone marrow transplant. Amma’s only sibling, Prema Auntie, isn’t a match. Normally, children aren’t considered eligible for giving bone marrow, but since Reha is almost fourteen, she is able to persuade her parents and the doctor to test her blood to see if she’s a match. But unfortunately, she isn’t, either. Although Reha’s mother goes into remission for a little while, (spoiler alert!) she doesn’t survive. The book ends with a touching message that Amma left for Reha which offers some resolution to the double life that has been a theme throughout the book.

The novel-in-verse format is perfect for this emotional, introspective book that spends just as much space articulating its themes as disclosing its plot points. This isn’t just a book about a girl going through a tough time because her mother is sick; it’s about self-identity and family values and courage and heroism. And it describes the experience of belonging to two different cultures. This point is frequently reiterated with references to ‘80s American pop culture (mostly music) and Indian folklore interspersed throughout the book. To put it more simply, this book is about blood in both the literal and the metaphoric sense of the word.

This was a very powerful read. It is written in verse and really explores the idea of trying to fit into two different worlds. I loved the feel of the book and that it takes place in the 80's and we get a good glimpse of that decade. This is a great book for middle school or high school students.

In 2020, I had a really hard time getting into books. It is not as easy as it used to be. I don’t think it is the books, but the situation we are in because I have heard a lot of adults say the same thing. So I am little behind in reading books and getting reviews out. But this book, I would have read in one sitting if I hadn’t had to go to bed! WOW!

First, I love verse style books. I just love poetry and I think it is really interesting when middle grade books are written in verse. It can’t be easy to read so smoothly.

This the story of a middle grade girl who is trying to figure out where she fit. She is the first of her Indian family to be born in America. Her birth was really hard on her mom and so she is an only child. Her mom is very strict and she feels like she can’t do things like her friends. It is tough when the rules are different for you than your friends.

This book also has a sad part. I really appreciated that there wasn’t a miraculous happy ending to everything. Unfortunately, that isn’t how life is. It is unfair for kids to always read happy ending stories. The sad parts of life are just as important as the happy parts. In a time like now, kids need a book like this to help process the sad moments of life.

Overall, WOW, this book was really good. I could see this book being used in a class and creating a lot of discussion.

A beautiful telling (in verse) of Reha's story as she navigates two very different worlds: the one she lives in with her Indian immigrant parents, celebrating the holidays and traditions of India; and the one she lives in with her friends from school, enjoying the music and fashion of America. This novel is both heartbreaking and heartwarming.

Let me tell you what I did not anticipate…laying in my bed last night at 9PM bawling at this book. This YA book, told in prose, was touching, thoughtful, and just so beautifully done.

RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE by Rajani LaRocca tells the story of Reha, an Indian American middle-schooler. First, it deals with her feeling a battle between being an American citizen, leaving in the States, with her Indian culture and ancestry. Second, it really focuses on her experience after her mother is diagnosed with leukemia - and the touching moments around that story were incredibly moving.

I hoping to pick up something lighter next, but this was a beautiful #OwnVoices novel that may be a quick read, but is deeply emotional.

CW // cancer; death of a parent; racism

Rajani LaRocca's latest novel is her first in verse. The eloquent language helped ease the heartache of this thoughtful book.

Reha is a 13 year old Indian-American girl who feels like she has one foot in one world, and one in another.

One foot with her Indian Heritage. One with her American.
One with her school friends. One with her Indian friends.

She's angry with her parents for their strict, old-school ways. She wants to go to school dances, wear fun mall clothes and dance to 80's music. Caught up in fitting in with her peers, she doesn't see the small changes in her mom, doesn't realize until her mother becomes very sick.

Reha's journey is as heartbreaking as it is heartwarming. You will find yourself laughing and crying. Enjoy the ride.

Reha is feeling torn between the American world of school and her Indian culture at home. Why can't her mother understand that she is growing up: “A mother gives you life, nourishes you, protects you, helps you when you’re hurt. But sometimes it feels like too much.” Then her mother becomes ill, and just like that, all Reha wants is for her mother to get well.

While the title alludes to the colors of the American flag, it also refers to blood cells, first because Reha's mother works in a laboratory, and then because she has leukemia.

The novel is written in first person present tense, which make the reader feel like that they are right there with Reha as she struggles with the ways in which her mother’s hospitalization is changing everything she has come to depend on. You can see Reha maturing over the course of the book as she realizes what is really important.

The short chapters and economy of words in this novel in verse cut to the heart of Reha's thoughts and feelings: her yearning for her mother to get well, trying to be the perfect daughter, straddling between two worlds. LaRocca’s portrayal of Reha’s pain and guilt, along with the details from the 1980’s, lend a very personal feel to the story.

I am so glad I read this book it is beautifully written the story weaves together in such and easy way and you just become lost in it. The story of a young girl trying to figure out how she fits in between her parents culture and American. While she is trying to figure that all out her mom becomes ill. I was sucked in right away with her way of writing and I could not put this book down. The best book I have read so far this year hands down, across all genres. A true work of art.

Thank you to Net Galley and Quill Tree Books for this digital ARC.

I absolutely loved this middle grade novel in verse. Told from the perspective of 14 year old Reha, this novel gives readers an idea of what it is like to live between two cultures. While navigating normal middle school challenges, Reha must also contend with cultural expectations from her mother and Indian American community. When her mother falls ill, Reha feels even more divided. Is she a normal 14 year old? Is she an Indian American teen? Is she the daughter of an ill mother? Told with heart and compassion, this story puts the reader right inside of Reha's thoughts and leaves us rooting for her to find her own path.

Thank you Harper Collins and NetGalley for sharing this book with me in exchange for an honest review. 80s. Poetry. Music. Culture. Family. Future. Self. Grief. Friendship. This book had it all and it was beautiful and memorable.