96 Words for Love

On her deathbed, Raya’s grandmother, Daadee, tells her that she’s left things that Raya and her cousin Anandi should have at a remote ashram in India, which Daadee visited in her own youth. Worried about her future and confused by her anxiety about being accepted to UCLA, Raya travels to the ashram with Anandi, hoping to find personal clarity and locate whatever Daadee left behind. At the ashram, direction comes when Raya finds two of Daadee’s adolescent journals and falls in love with Kiran, a budding filmmaker from Delhi. Loosely retelling the Indian story of Shakuntala, both Daadee, through journal entries, and Raya, through her first-person narration, draw parallels to their own lives, struggling to find balance between their goals and the sacrifices that their newfound romantic entanglements would require. Well-known designer Roy and daughter Dash write in a pop culture–laden conversational tone to convey Raya’s concerns—stress about going to college and declaring a major, curiosity about sex and a future with Kiran. Though her feelings are portrayed as valid and relevant, the book’s too-quick pace leaves them underexplored and too quickly resolved, making the overall message about trusting one’s individual journey unsatisfying. Ages 13–up. [em](Jan.) [/em]