Disclaimer: I got this in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley!

I loved the comp titles for this which is a Gilmore Girls X New Dehli! Although this was a fun read overall, it tried to tackle too many subjects at once. I would’ve liked to see #themetoo movement discussed a bit more than it was in The Marvelous Miriam girls. One huge pro to this book was seeing the beautiful relationship between Noreen and her mother! I loved their dynamics which reminded me a lot of Lorelai and Rory’s!

I loved the opening of this book, but it somewhat fell apart for me as I kept reading. I am a white lady, so I can't speak to the Muslim and Indian rep, but will say that the depictions of New Delhi seemed like they might verge on the problematic sometimes, particularly with the runner of beginning each chapter with the air quality index. I understand that a nuanced discussion of global urban areas might certainly discuss air pollution, but this book seems to frame the AQI as a metaphor for other experiences the MC has in India... Also, this is definitely a new adult, rather than YA, novel, for a variety of reasons.

First of all, thank you to NetGalley and Quill Tree Books for providing me with an ARC.

This book follows Noreen after she finishes up her senior year of high school. Following the loss of her aunt Sonia, Noreen decides to take a gap year and spend some time in India with her mother. While she's there she meets Kabir, who helps her navigate her way through the trip.

The beginning of the book was promising, but as the book went on I started to lose interest and struggled through the second half.

The writing style was very hard to get into because it was mostly just descriptions of things. There also wasn't a distinctive plot, it was mainly describing her atmosphere and nothing was really happening. Also, by the end of the book it felt like Noreen didn't go through any character development. The only thing that changed was that she fell in love.

I was excited to read this book but it did not live up to my expectations.

I did not like this book at all. I was really excited for another South Asian #ownvoices YA book because I am a South Asian teenager, but this book was just really weird. The first thing that bothered me was the narration. Everyone was referred to by their first names and it was told in third person point of view. Instead of "my mom did this" it was "Ruby did this." This made it really difficult to understand how people were related to the main character Noreen. The second problem I encountered was the description of India and more specifically, Delhi. Sheba Karim includes a lot of stereotypes about India. Instead of focusing on the unknown and offering a new perspective of her home country, Karim focuses on the known (India has a large population, India has a lot of air pollution, India doesn't have the best sewage system). This was especially disappointing and even disgusting because there were moments were Karim described the character's bowel movements in depth. The third problem I encountered was with the labeling of the chapters. Each chapter was the air quality index that day, and there was a dramatic shift in air quality when the main character went from America to India. The air quality was never really a function of the book and there was no commentary about pollution, climate change, or smog, so I don't know why that was relevant other than to point out how "dirty" and "unkempt" Delhi is (again). Another problem with the book is that it is set during the era of #metoo, which happened a few years ago. Sexual assault is viewed as a two sided issue in this book, and that is something I personally do not agree with because I think the victim's voice should be the only one. I think this book had a time and place to be relevant and insightful, but now is neither the time nor the place.

I have so many thoughts about this book so I’m going to make a list.

PROS
- Clear improvement from Mariam Sharma in terms of writing style and plot
- Perfect descriptions of Delhi. It truly felt like I was back there.
- Accurate depiction of social life and the way life works
- Lots of moments that would evoke a “Log kya kahenge?” from the elder generations. It’s nice to see brown girls depicted as normal people and not these pretentious nerdy girls.
- Desi single mother and daughter relationship that isn’t toxic.

CONS
- Why on Earth does Noreen call her elders by their first name most of them time but in actual dialogue refer to them as their proper titles? It’s confusing and weird.
- She’s Desi, from Jersey, is close with her grandparents but still manages to constantly have the shits in India? HUH????
- No character development what so ever. Nothing changed about Noreen except that she fell in love. There was so much potential for this to be a great book if it had gone in the direction of closure after the death of a loved one or even resolvment of her massive daddy issues but nope. None of that happened.
- The plot might have been better than Mariam Sharma but it wasn’t great either. Absolutely no one main focus. There are a million things that seem like will become the focus of the book and then just don’t (grief, daddy issues, long distance ect)
- The MeToo part of the book. Listen if you’re just gonna have the characters take a stance of neutrality and then pass it off as advocacy for survivors, delete those parts. It was an incredibly centrist take.
- Speaking of little to no nuance! The casteism, racism towards Northeasterns, being gay in India, and other social commentary fell so flat because of the lack of nuance. It honestly would’ve been better to just not include it.

This book has so much potential and I was looking forward to seeing Karim’s development as a writer but I have to say as a first gen Indian that I was beyond disappointed.

I felt like this book has potential but I was unable to finish it. It did not seem like the book I thought it was going to be but I fully recognize that that is on me. I will most likely give it another shot in the future

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy. I have read many of Karim's books, and this is similar to the others. This book, set in India, would be a nice read for those wanting to explore India's ruins. The family issues, overcoming grief, and #metoo movement are also good topics for discussion. This books is more of an adult novel, due to the sex, profanity, alcohol, and drugs, so I cannot recommend it for our school library. LGBTQ also comes up, and may be a flag for other readers as well. I can easily see a sequel for this novel in the future, but time will have to tell.

This book was so fun! It's kind of a Gilmore Girls meets Bollywood Realism meets YA coming-of-age book. The Marvelous Mirza Girls is told from the perspective of Noreen, an 18 year old who takes a gap year between high school and college in order to travel to India with her mom. Her mom is a single Indian Muslim woman who has raised Noreen with no support from her biological father, and the growth of their relationship with each other is one of the big themes in this book. The book also explores the relationship Noreen has with her culture, the men she dates and those that they mother dates, the friendships they cultivate, and the identities they hold. Noreen spends most of the book also overcoming her grief about the loss of her maternal aunt. There is a lot that happens in this story, but Sheba Karim writes in a way that it all flows together, and you aren't left confused about the plot lines. As an immigrant from India myself, the depiction of India felt very honest and appropriate - the book really does transport you to Delhi. I loved it and would definitely read more by this author!

A vibrant and engaging YA. Readers will be immersed in the New Delhi setting and will enjoy the descriptions of food and dances. The Gilmore Girls-style banter between the characters is amusing as is the soap opera-esque plot twists.

Thank you for the ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

This book was okay. It didn't really feel like YA even though it was advertised as such. And it wasn't a Muslim rep I expected it to be, but I think that was my own misguided expectations.
I liked the writing and it gripped me right from the first page. The first half of the book was very atmospheric, the writing made it easy to imagine all the scenery being described, and bring New Delhi alive for the audience. The second half was less gripping. The characters in the book, especially main ones, felt unrealistic and I didn't find any of them particularly likable to care a lot about them. I liked some other small things, like the little scripts Noreen wrote which were parallels of her own life.

Pros
Gilmore Girls Vibes: Quick, sharp, and whip-like in delivery, this book reads exactly as you'd expect the script of The Gilmore Girls to read. Mother-and-daughter banter abounds, but the similarity doesn't end just with witty dialogue. The worldbuilding and writing style match pace-for-pace. While this type of writing is bound to be an acquired taste, it is also a nostalgic taste. Adding Noreen's attempts at script-writing only enhances this page-to-screen feel.
Positive Muslim Representation: From devout Sonia Khala to dabbling Noreen and Ruby, the Muslim representation in this book is wholly positive. This is not a book about being Muslim. It is not a book about facing persecution due to religious identity--though such persecution does get discussed. The Mirza girls are simply Muslim, to various degrees, and that affects their lives but doesn't dictate their story. Refreshing and well-rounded, this is the type of representation we need more of in YA and in general.
New Delhi Love: It is clear that, for all the drawbacks, author Sheba Karim loves Delhi. Her descriptions are vibrant and, at the same time, grounded in reality. Including the AQI at the start of each chapter characterizes the city as much as the ancient ruins, elephants, and congested traffic. This book balances well a love for what India is and has been and a nostalgia--if that word is right--for what India was and could be, the current state of affairs in mind. This book doesn't ignore terrible pollution and religious hate, but it doesn't let these characteristics overwhelm the color, the incense, the sizzling street foods. All these contradictory characteristics are included this book, creating a unique backdrop for this contemporary YA piece.
Cons
Too Many Names: Though this is mostly a problem at the beginning, it did make for a rocky start. The narrative is fast-moving and doesn't rely on long-winded explanations for anything. While this is in some ways good, it also has its drawbacks. The opening pages were a little like getting introduced to the entire cast of Star Hollow without the accompanying episodes to flesh out the characters and make them real. A volley of names, faces, and vague descriptions akin to "nosy neighbor" and "best friend" makes for a rough introduction to the world. While I found it worthwhile to push through, others may not be so persistent.
Extreme Negativity: Noreen is obviously grieving. The plot in many ways revolves around her grief and her ability to find a new mode of existing--that is, coexisting with her loss while moving toward her future. Though grief plays a major and important part in Noreen's life and the plot, the descriptions of Noreen's grief sometimes feel hyperbolic. Though death and grief are extreme, the descriptions exceed realism at times.
No Context Clues: It makes sense that this book features languages other than English. Hindi and Urdu make appearances regularly in the text, but they are often included without the requisite context clues to help uninitiated readers understand. When including necessary dialogue in a language other than the rest of the text, it may be helpful to give some indication in the writing as to the precise meaning. I applaud the inclusion of these other languages, but I wish I hadn't needed to pull out my translator so often! It ultimately took me out of the story.
Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5/10

Fans of mid-2000s stories of love, friendship, and sororal support such as Ann Brashares Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants are likely to enjoy this contemporary coming-of-age book. Anyone who enjoyed the intermingled travel and romance of Abigail Hing Wen's Loveboat, Taipei should check out this new story of self-discovery.