An easy enough plot to follow with entirely internal tension. It's interesting to explore proper hospitality, who deserves the most deference and weighing opinions and desires. The writing is a bit stiff though.

Book: Nina Soni, Perfect Hostess
Author: Kashmira Sheth
Genre: Children's Middle Grade
Format: E-book
Pages: 192

Nina is living happily with her family- Father, Mother, and Kavita, her younger sister in America when she got to know that her Dadi (grandmother) and Montu, her cousin are coming from India to visit them. And she is excited to finally be with her Dadi in person rather than the video calls and interference of any time difference and be a perfect hostess. But it looks like it is not going to be as easy as it sounds because of Montu and his annoying behaviour. Would Nina be able to be the perfect hostess? Can she manage everything? Would she be able to handle Montu? To know the answers to these questions, read the book.

It was an enjoyable read. Getting to see the world again from a child's perspective is always interesting. Nina's character at a point reminded me of that silent small kid from Kuch Kuch Hota Hai movie whom we always see as one counting the stars on his fingers, much like how Nina used to make to-do lists for almost everything either in her head or in Sakhi, her notebook.

The feelings and emotions that children go through are represented quite well in the book. The curiosity and excitement, the friendship, insecurities, need for perfection, dilemma, and confusion of shared love, all these emotions are shown in the story.

The book is written in easy language and is for the targeted audience of 7-10 years, introducing some new words in between and giving their meaning as well, making the learning process more fun and inclusive. Although I felt it was a little stretched in between, overall it was an engaging and enjoyable book.

If you are looking forward to finding a perfect book for children of the age mentioned above or for yourself to read a light, fun, and easy book, go for it. I’ll give it 4/5 stars.

Nina Soni, Perfect Hostess is a beautiful work for children that illustrates childhood and experiences for children to learn about and relate to. Kashmira Sheth writes wonderfully, and I would recommend this book for school libraries and classrooms.

This was a cute read! I have read a lot more kids books lately, and I love ones that highlight diversity and different cultures!
Nina’s cousin and grandmother are visiting from India, and she wants to be the perfect hostess. But being the perfect hostess is harder than she thought. Does being a perfect hostess mean doing whatever your guests want or always knowing the right thing to say? Or should she really be trying to be a perfect anything?
This was a really cute read! Nina is trying so hard to do things right, and I love how hard she worked. She was also really relatable as she learned how to prefer others even when it’s hard. Hosting is definitely a lot of work! I loved her relationship with her parents, grandparents, and sisters though! I think often even elementary school books can have very negative family relationships, so I appreciated how sweet Nina’s relationships were!
I loved how Nina’s Indian culture was sprinkled throughout the book. It was done in a lovely way too because she’s an American Indian, so she learned how that’s different from her cousin and grandmother who are both living in India. But I also appreciated how the book wasn’t about her being an Indian. She’s an Indian American girl learning how to be a good hostess and that’s what the book’s about.
This was a cute read! It’s a bit slow in some places, but it’s perfect for elementary age readers! I think they’ll love Nina and relate to her struggles.


I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher through Netgalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion, a positive review was not required.

Nina's story and experience about being a perfect hostess to her family visiting from India to the US was very interesting. The book throws light on the feeling and apprehensions that children may have when someone is visiting them for a prolonged duration.

A few things stood out for me in the book. First, I liked how meanings of certain difficult words were made a part of the narrative. It makes the children learn the words in a better way. Secondly, Nina making lists for the different tasks is yet another interesting thing to incorporate. Thirdly, the way Nina pens down her feelings of ambiguity and gets a wholesome perspective about it by writing and analysing it.

I enjoyed reading the book and would certainly recommend it for children and am sure they can resonate with it.

I grabbed this instantly seeing that the author as well as MC were Indians. Loved the flow of the story as suits a middle grade fiction story. The cultural references were fun to read. There are little boxes with definitions that I believe would be great to develop vocabulary. I loved the idea of Sakhi (meaning a friend in Hindi), Nina's diary. The illustrations from time to time are gorgeous and I'd love to see them in color.

Nina Soni Perfect Hostess is the first book I read in the series. The relaxed pace of the story in the book made me feel like I was watching a sitcom. Every chapter has the correct number of words, characters, and situations for young readers to grasp the story.

The book's theme is about being a perfect hostess when Nina’s grandmother and cousin visit from India. I found explanations of the meaning of difficult words and the notes of Nina in Sakhi about important issues creative.

I also liked the math calculations by Nina. The rhymes made-up by Nina’s sister add character to the story. The Grandma’s idioms were interesting. It is also a great observation that even little things are different in India and the United States, such as nodding the head and the sweetness of pizza.

My only suggestion is to add ‘consistency (comes while mixing roti dough)’ to the list of words explained. Nina is sure to gather many young Indian admirers with every released book. It is an excellent multi-cultural and STEM read.

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A celebration of identity, culture, family, and acceptance, Nina Soni, Perfect Hostess delights and informs young readers. Perfect for classroom libraries Grades 1-3 and as a Classroom read aloud.

Thank you NetGalley and Holiday House/Peach Tree for an ARC.