Easily my favorite MG novel in verse I’ve read this year. Beautifully written, moving, and inspiring, I loved everything about this book. LaRocca has done a phenomenal job taking several sensitive topics (cancer, family issues, first love) and making them easily accessible to young readers. Highly recommended.

Red, White, and Whole written by Rajani LaRocca is the best book I have read in 2020. A lyrical novel told in verse about an Indian-American girl named Reha and her quest to become whole after her mother is sick. This #OwnVoices book is absolutely breathtakingly beautiful and heartbreakingly sad. A family's journey about identity, grief, and the quest to wholeness after illness.

Sometime there are books that use fewer words and yet convey more.

The prose in this book is beautifully written and full of emotion and meaning. Understanding cultural differences, navigating pre-teen/teen years, family dynamics and struggles, happen in short bursts of emotional clarity. This is exactly how this book is written. Although the details can differ, the experience of adolescents is common on many fronts and Rajani LaRocca has created a protagonist that is relatable and endearing to readers of all race and background.

This is a wonderful story of family love and sacrifice. There is so much dynamic action. The pace, and structure is sure to keep readers engaged and turning pages. This is a lovely book indeed!

"It feels like we've already entered the future, while they only live in the past."

In general, I tend to really enjoy books written in verse. This book was no exception, and is actually one of my favorites. I loved that it was set in 1983, as most of the own voices novels I've read have been set in present day. I think that even though this book is middle grade, the time period and references to pop culture in this book make it easier for a wide variety of readers to enjoy.

I loved the descriptions of Indian culture. The way family is valued, the food, and the description of the clothing was all amazing. However, to counter that, the blatant racism was heartbreaking. I won't give examples to avoid spoilers.

I loved the relationship Reha has with her parents. I think it's amazing that they were pretty open with each other, and I loved seeing the level of care they showed towards each other. This book will leave you shattered, but glue your pieces back together at the same time. I highly recommend this book to anyone.

This is a beautiful and important story representing the indigenous experience. I'm so excited to put it in the hands of young readers. The text is written in verse and is perfect for lovers of poetry.

I found the first half of this book to be quite a bit boring. That may just be because I don't fall in the target age range. However, I found myself crying, laughing, and then sobbing in the second half. I closed the book feeling like I had a very eye opening and moving experience, and I do recommend the book!

Well, that's it, I'll be crying and hugging my mother for the next four days. A beautiful middle grade verse story. Bring tissues.

Wow! This book was so captivating. Reha’s character is relatable to anyone who has felt torn in two by culture or life circumstances. This book is easy to read (written in verse) but carries great depth. Reha is a middle schooler which I think makes this a perfect read for that age. Many of the common struggles of that age are addressed in this book. Loved this book and would highly recommend it!

I sit here in tears as I finished this beautiful story. At the beginning, Reha is your typical, average teenage girl navigating life in middle school - only twist is that she is both Indian and American. As she tries to understand her Indian community and how it plays a part in her life as a born Indian-American, she doesn’t even begin to realize how upside down her world is about to turn. Reha’s mother, Amma, is very particular in how Reha spends her time as a young girl and Reha begins to feel this sort of animosity towards her mother for keeping her on such a tight leash. Until the day came where her Amma had grown very ill, and the comfort the Reha once knew as her provider, her nurturer, her mother - was no more.
A beautifully written story in verse of acceptance, grief, and family.

This book was fantastic. It was written in beautifully descriptive yet concise verse. It is a quick read with lots of substance. It is perfect for middle grades or upper elementary graders reluctant readers or readers who are intimidated by longer books. It would also be a fantastic read aloud. This book is set in 1983 and that setting brings in the pop culture from that time and would appeal to kids who now find the 1980s trendy and their parents who grew up during that time period.
This story is about Reha, an 8th grade Indian girl growing up in America. She is exploring her Indian and American culture and trying to figure out who she is and where she fits in. She wants the cool clothes, she has a crush on a boy but she also wants to make her parents proud. Her entire life changes when her mother gets cancer. This story explores acceptance, identity, culture, community, death, grieving and provides an authentic story of what it might be like to grow up in Reha's situation.

Spoiler warning, please don't read the last part of the review if you don't want to know certain plot points


It's 1983, the days of early MTV, cassette tapes, and big hair. Reha tries to follow trends and blend in as hard as she can at school, but at home, with her traditional Indian parents, she worries that she'll always be seen as different from everyone else. So she tries to keep those lives separate, even having a different best friend on each side (Sunny and Rachel.) She is excited when her parents allow her to attend her first school dance, and while she's there, she realizes that she might have a crush on her classmate, Pete, after he asks her to dance. But when the dance ends, she discovers that her mother, who works in a hematology lab, is sick. And it may be cancer.

*Spoilers start here. Again, please be careful.*
Turns out, Amma does have cancer- Acute Myeloid Leukemia, to be exact. I looked it up, and this type of cancer has an average of 27% survival rate NOW, so I'm sure it was much lower in 1983. I know that cancer used to be basically a death sentence, until chemo and radiation and bone marrow transplants were invented.
When Amma needs a bone marrow transplant, her sister, Prema, immediately jumps to offer hers. But when she is tested, she finds that she is not a match- but she IS pregnant, after being infertile for years. With no more obvious choices, Reha calls on all her family members to get tested. When no one else is a match, Reha, who is terrified of blood, volunteers.
Turns out she is only half a match, and there's nothing else to do to save Amma.
A few months later, Prema has a baby girl and names her based on Amma's name, which meant "moon" while Reha's meant "star."
I'll admit, I was kind of pissed that I read the whole book only for Amma to die. I mean, there was some obvious foreshadowing, but I was still hoping for the best. But in most cancer books, it's the obvious choice to have the affected die. It didn't devastate me as much as Fear of Missing Out did, but it was close.


*spoilers are over. Safe.*

I feel like anyone who was a kid in the 1980s (obviously not me, my dad is the same age Reha would be today) will appreciate the nostalgia, from the fashion, the TV shows, and especially the music. Several chapters in this book are actually named after songs from the time period (Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Every Breath You Take, Always Something There to Remind me, Time After Time, Total Eclipse of the Heart.) There's also the fact that Reha communicates with her relatives in India through aerogrammes instead of e-mail or phone calling.
I don't know for sure what Reha would be like in 2020, but I'd hope she would share the stories of her mother the way Amma did with her.

This is a quick, enjoyable read. I think a lot of kids will really connect to different aspects of this book: rebelling against parents while still loving them, feeling like they're part of two different worlds, having a sick parent, and so it.

It really depends on the reader being emotionally connected to it, and for some reason I wasn't quite there. I'm usually the first to cry when something sad happens, but this story didn't quite get me there. I was a little distracted by the choice to write this book in verse. It felt a lot like prose with line breaks, and those line breaks didn't always feel purposeful. I'm sure they were very intentional, but I couldn't get swept up in the poetry of it. I also just felt, perhaps due to the brief writing style, that I didn't get to know Reha enough during the course of this story.

The idea for this book is great and the story is cohesive and, at times, moving. I just wish there were a little more substance.

In Rajani LaRocca's newest MG novel, she brilliantly tackles issues like identity and acceptance from the perspective of thirteen year old Reha who is caught between two lives. One with her Indian community and the other with new friends, pop music, and MTV. More than anything Reha craves acceptance from her mother and from her her friends, but that comes at a price as she finds herself forced to pick between who she is and who she feels she must be inorder to fit in and be accepted.

Red, White, and Whole captures your heart from the first verse and doesn't let go until well after the last page. This story of the refugee and immigrant experience is a must read. I will be purchasing a copy for my classroom!
Thank you Quill Tree Books and Net Galley for the e-ARC.

Lovely middle grade novel in verse perfect for middle schoolers and any readers torn between two cultures trying to assimilate. Great references to eighties music. Tearjerker and beautiful language!

Breathtakingly beautiful- this novel in verse had me on the edge of my seat and begging for more! 80s music and retro styles, a glimpse into the life of a young Indian American girl who feels caught between two worlds and the love of family ❤️ I really enjoyed learning more about her Indian culture and loved how she tore down the stereotypes Reha faced. Red, White, and Whole is a must read!

I absolutely loved this book! I read it in two days! I would recommend for middle school kids. Excellent choice for kids who are of Indian descent so they have a book they can relate to as well as immigrants and refugees. Kids need to see people like them in books and this is a great example. Kids who have a parent who is ill could relate to the characters in this book as well. The descriptive words and the style of free verse writing are captivating and breath taking. High school students and even adults will enjoy this book as well. Keep on writing Rajani, you are very talented and our youth need more books like yours!

I knew this story would be one that would touch my heart as soon as I read the author's letter and it did just that. The book does a beautiful job of telling Reha's story so descriptively, I felt like I was alongside her. I really enjoyed getting to experience this emotional yet heartwarming story. It's a marvelous novel of family, culture, and personal journey. This would be the perfect book for 4th-6th graders!

Red, White and Whole is beautifully written and descriptive. The rich details about the 80's pop music, fashion and styles will introduce young readers to a decade long before they were born, and fill older readers (like me!) with nostalgia for our teen years. Just as she did with Midsummer's Mayhem, Rajani LaRocca brings food to life in ways that engage the senses and makes your mouth water. I'm definitely craving curry, samosas, and paneer as I'm writing this review!
More than anything, this book is about family. Reha loves her family, and they love her. Her parents, like many who relocate to another country, surround themselves with a support network of other people who share their culture and traditions. In addition to this, she has extended family in India. But, Reha also has her school friends and she wants to fit in with them. I found myself identifying with Reha's struggle to fit in between two worlds. The beautiful truth about the story is how universally relatable Reha's journey is. We've all walked that tightrope of our own hopes and dreams vs. our parents' expectations for us. In Reha's case, this is compounded by the fact she's an only child and her parents have sacrificed so much to give her opportunities.
The novel's format suited this poignant story beautifully, as the author skillfully used verse to heighten the emotional impact of some of the most touching scenes. I'd be lying if I didn't admit to crying in a few places. This would be a great novel for 4th and 5th grade classrooms, Especially in rural areas like the area I currently live, the kids would enjoy the exposure to the different foods, celebrations and attire of Indian culture most of them have never experienced personally. I highly recommend this upcoming novel.

This book was so sweet and I really enjoyed reading it. I love how descriptive and emotional it is. It is so sad, but heartwarming and I love how beautifully the author describes everything. I feel like I am there with her. I really enjoyed reading this book and give it a 5/5. This book is perfect for readers ages 10-13.

Some stories speak straight to your heart. This is one of those. Have your tissues close while your share Reha’s story of becoming whole.