Rgz Salon: Jazz in Love by Neesha Meminger, Reviewed by Lyn Miller-Lachmann

Rgz SALON member Lyn Miller-Lachmann has been the Editor-in-Chief of MultiCultural Review; the author of the award-winning multicultural bibliography Our Family, Our Friends, Our World; the editor of Once Upon a Cuento, a collection of short stories by Latino authors; and most recently, the author of Gringolandia, a young adult novel about a refugee family living with the aftermath of the Pinochet dictatorship in Chile. The book is in its second print run and is available for order. (Don't forget to read the fascinating Cover Story for Gringolandia.)

We're honored to have Lyn here as part of the rgz SALON, a feature where four of the top kidlit experts clue us in to the best YA novels they've read recently. Today, she reviews Jazz in Love by Neesha Meminger (Ignite Books, NY, 2011).

"Like the music and film industries before it, the publishing industry is changing quickly. Consolidation of publishers and imprints has led to bigger books and fewer choices in terms of genre and subject matter, at least from traditional channels. However, it’s become cheaper and less risky for smaller presses and writers themselves to publish, leading to a large, chaotic, and diverse universe of independently published books.

"Big Six publisher Simon & Schuster brought out Neesha Meminger’s debut YA novel, Shine, Coconut Moon, which I reviewed for Readergirlz Salon in November 2009. For her second novel, Meminger has chosen to join the growing indie publishing movement, and the impressive quality of writing and design that characterizes Jazz in Love bodes well for authors with unique stories who choose to go with small presses or strike out on their own.

"Seventeen-year-old Jasbir Dhatt, a top student with strict immigrant parents from India, juggles three boys, her parents’ ambitions for her, and her quest to reunite a family friend with her first love in this humorous, fast-paced novel. When her parents catch her hugging classmate and friend-since-kindergarten Jeevan 'Jeeves' Sahota, they are so outraged that they begin a Guided Dating Plan to find a more appropriate match. Even though Jeeves, like Jazz, is in the FSL (Future Stars and Leaders) program at their suburban high school and his family is wealthier than hers, he is of a lower caste and thus unsuitable. (Although the families are Sikh rather than Hindu, caste is still important to Jazz’s traditional parents.) The arranged suitor, Gurmit, turns out to be far nicer and more interesting than Jazz expected, but he’s also gay, a fact both he and she must keep secret. Meanwhile, Jazz finds herself attracted to 'bad boy' Tyler R., a transfer student whose family, though of Indian heritage, hails from Trinidad—a place of origin considered inferior by 'Indian Indians' of all backgrounds. When all the plans unravel and the secrets come out, Jazz discovers that she is far more resilient—and has far more options—than she first believed.

"For most readers, Meminger offers a fascinating window into Punjabi-American lives that also weaves in cultural information seamlessly and offers opportunities to compare and contrast one’s own cultural limits and expectations. Readers who share the cultural background of the characters will recognize the generational divide between traditional parents and children who have adopted the ways of the new country, as well as the diverse experiences of an Indian diaspora that includes England and the Caribbean. Meminger has a pitch perfect ear for dialogue. Her teenage characters talk like teenagers; her adult characters sound like adults; and she captures the vocabulary and inflections of immigrants from India and visitors from England and Canada. While the book begins as a romance, it takes some unexpected turns that lead readers to examine the difference between love and lust.

"Ignite Books, NY plans to publish more fiction for teens that reflect our nation’s diversity as well as a commitment to gender equality and social justice. The high production quality of Jazz in Love bodes well for future titles. Those looking for a fun, smart read will be well served by this novel and, hopefully, more from Meminger and her new publisher." -Lyn Miller-Lachmann

Cover Stories: Shine Coconut Moon by Neesha Meminger

Neesha Meminger's Shine Coconut Moon is high on my to-read list (also: The Gossip Girls are reading it!). I heard an excerpt from it last year, and I just know I'll love it! Read the very cool Lyn Miller-Lachmann's review.

Plus: The Cover. I had to find out the back story. Here's Neesha:

"Thank goodness no one asked me for my thoughts on what should go on the cover! As I was writing the book, the only thing I could think of was a giant coconut in the shadow of a waning moon. Ugh.

"The only thing I said to my publisher was, 'I'm fine with

anything except a headless woman.' Obviously, you know just how far that input got me {grin}.

"Okay, truly? When I first saw my cover, I was disappointed with the headless model. I really had a hard time moving through that. For South Asian women, it's a bit of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, we're absolutely thrilled that there is SOME representation--especially if that representation is not of the usual, passive, submissive, sari-clad, new-immigrant variety we're used to seeing on television and in movies. On the other hand, yes, it absolutely objectifies young women as does all of the mainstream media we see every single day.

Read the full post on melissacwalker.com.

Rgz Salon: Neesha Meminger's Shine Coconut Moon, Reviewed by Lyn Miller-Lachmann

Rgz SALON member Lyn Miller-Lachmann is the Editor-in-Chief of MultiCultural Review; the author of the award-winning multicultural bibliography Our Family, Our Friends, Our World; the editor of Once Upon a Cuento, a collection of short stories by Latino authors; and most recently, the author of Gringolandia, a young adult novel about a refugee family living with the aftermath of the Pinochet dictatorship in Chile. (Read the fascinating Cover Story for Gringolandia.)

We're honored to have her here as part of the rgz SALON, a feature where four of the top kidlit experts clue us in to the best YA novels they've read recently. Today, Lyn reviews Shine Coconut Moon by Neesha Meminger (Simon & Schuster/McElderry Books, 2009).

"During the holiday season we observe our own religious traditions and learn about the traditions of our neighbors. Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa receive attention in schools and from publishers releasing holiday books. As the Muslim population in the United States and Canada has grown and become more visible, readers learn about the major Muslim holidays (which follow the lunar calendar and do not necessarily fall in December).

"Although Sikhism is centuries-old religion with more than 23 million followers, and Sikhs have lived in the United States for at least 130 years, few people know about this faith tradition and its followers, now numbering over 650,000 in the United States. Because observant Sikh men wear turbans, many were targeted by vigilantes after September 11, 2001.

"In Shine Coconut Moon, Meminger does an admirable job of weaving information about Sikh Americans into a fast-paced story featuring characters whose struggles will engage teenage girls regardless of their heritage. Seventeen-year-old Samar (Sam) Ahluwahlia lives with her single mother and hasn't seen her grandparents or the rest of her Sikh-American family since she was three years old, even though they live an hour and a half away in suburban New Jersey. Like her mother, Sam has vigorously sought to assimilate into mainstream U.S. culture, prompting a classmate to call her 'coconut'--brown on the outside and white on the inside. Shortly after the 2001 terrorist attacks, Sam's Uncle Sandeep, her mother's younger brother, shows up at her house, seeking to reconnect with her and her mother. Sam, who has always longed for the large, close family that her best friend Molly enjoys (even though Molly has warned Sam that her large family sometimes drives her crazy), grows close to Uncle Sandeep despite the objections of her mother.

"Sandeep, who wears a turban, becomes the object of suspicion because of his appearance and dress. At Molly's house, he attracts stares, which drives a wedge between Sam and her best friend. Even worse, Sam's white boyfriend, Mike, looks at Sandeep and sees 'Muslim terrorist,' and some of Mike's friends pelt Uncle Sandeep's car with soda cans while Sam is inside it.

"Sam's journey toward her Sikh heritage comes at a price--of familial conflict and ultimately violence, when the local gurdwara (Sikh temple) is firebombed and Sandeep is assaulted. After the firebombing, Sam and another Sikh girl, Balvir, come to learn an important lesson when Balvir shouts, 'What is wrong with people?...Sikhs are not Muslims!' and a Muslim classmate responds, 'Balvir, you want to distinguish between Sikhs and Muslims because of . . . what? Do you think the violence will be less if you do?'

"Lively writing, pitch-perfect slang and cultural references, and a realistic depiction of the ups and downs of friendships and romantic relationships make this novel a great choice for the holidays-and for the rest of the year too."

Thanks, Lyn!