Brief overview:
Twelve-year-old Aru Shah wants nothing more than to fit in at school, but sometimes she lets her imagination take things too far. When some peers show up and confront Aru's lie, she lights a lamp she wasn't supposed to and now she must save the world before time ends.Recommended age range: 11 + (with adult or intentional conversations)
Strengths:
- A likeable, flawed main character with a character arc fitting for a 12-year-old
- Similar to the stories Rick Riordan writes, unpacking mythology through storytelling
- Explores the world of Hindu mythology in an adventurous way
- Sprinkles in humor
- This story is told from a Hindu worldview. Young readers will hear about reincarnation. In this story, Aru and her sister are reincarnations of past warriors. This can be a springboard to unpack what Hindus believe about life after death and how this differs from what the Bible teaches.
- Demons are a part of this story, but depicted according to a Hindu perspective. The bad guy, the Sleeper, is a demon, but he didn't used to be. This can be used as a touchpoint for unpacking what the Bible teaches on demons.
- Aru lies to try to fit in and thinks that's all she can do well. But as the story unfolds, Aru realizes she has a good imagination and that's the real gift. This could be a useful conversation about why honesty matters.
- Lots of gods and goddesses referenced in this book.
- Aru and her sister battle some scary people along the way who want to hurt or kill them.
- Aru starts at not thinking all the myths are true but through her journey realizes they are, thus affirming the validity of the Hindu worldview.
- pg. 86 - "Who should I cut first?"
- pg. 155 - reference to Mini's brother being gay, but hiding it
- pg. 165 - "a very good daydream" with winky face beside it
- pg. 301 - "A dozen or so demons with blood-spattered jaws"
- pg. 305 - "someone's head (literally) flew past her"
- pg. 308 - "Blood and spit flew over the walls."
Final Thoughts
This book provided insight into the world of Hinduism through storytelling. The Hindu religion can be difficult to track with from a Western point of view. This story places readers into a fictionalized understanding of Hindu mythology and pulls the curtain open to better understanding this worldview. Unlike Rick Riordan's writings, this book highlights religion more strongly (in this series that's Hinduism) than perhaps other books pulling from mythology.