The Marvelous Mirza Girls audiobook

Thank you Harper Collins for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.This book was enjoyable right from the beginning. The writing is great, and it will stick with you. Although the book just has one girl (woman) on the cover, at its core is a mother and daughter story of resilience and strength. I loved Ruby and how cool she is (but omg, I think ALL PARENTS NEED TO BE LIKE RUBY), and I loved how she is a solid rock for Noreen, her daughter. I loved watching them together, even in the awkward parts. IYKYK ;)Sure, the characters may have been slightly childish for me, or acting unrealistic in my POV, but it’s a romance, so this is kind of to be expected. I would not change ANYTHING about this book, and I want more from Sheba Karim * adds backlist books to TBR *

“See how it helps her forget, memory replaced by breath.”The Marvelous Mirza Girls is Sheba Karim’s fourth YA novel and I so appreciate how each of her books successively grows in depth and breadth and lovely language. Not to say that her first, Skunk Girl, is any less important: what I would have given for an early teen Desi girl book in my own early teens, one that would make me laugh while being seen. There is the same sense of humor in this latest book, that pointed knowing that brown teenage girls and women will especially vibrate to (or recoil from): “mustache over braces…a roving band of small but vicious pimples… happiness comes from having kids who grow up to choose their own medical specialty.”The protagonist of The Marvelous Mirza Girls, Noreen, is 18, older than previous narrators of Karim’s books and the psychic territory covered is commensurate with her age and then some. Plus for the first time in Karim’s published oeuvre, we leave the US and travel to India, landing up in Delhi, complete with its choking pollution and historical grandeur and sacred spaces and lechy dudes: “She turned her head as he passed but could feel him leering, his eyes piercing her skin, her chest, her tender chrysalis of a heart.”Noreen loses her beloved aunt just before she’s set to go to college. She decides to defer college and go to India with her cooler-than-cool mother, Ruby, as a kind of gap year, albeit cloaked in grief. Once there, she falls in love with Delhi: “its domes, its dissonance” and also with Kabir who is a veritable thirst trap with his “coral felt pants,” wavy hair, and thoughtful ways: “She liked that when he asked her a question, he always waited for the answer.”As always, Karim tackles serious topics, along with the more usual YA themes of love, sex, personhood, and family dynamics. In addition to processing grief and loss, one plot point involves the Me Too movement and the fallout that always comes with accusations of sexual assault. Noor’s personal arc gets a little subsumed in this section, and I also found her character a bit similar to her mother’s in some places. Then again, that’s what the Gilmore Girls are like, and reading a Desi version was quite so satisfying. “I developed this expression, very hard, very cold, very tough—I call it my resting India face.”I appreciated that the people who toil in middle and upperclass Indian homes and elsewhere are a constant presence, noticed and named throughout: “A servant’s family was sleeping on a roof across the back alley.” And one of my favourite scenes involved Laughter Uncle, who leads a group of enthusiastic aunties through “laughing yoga” poses in the park. There are no easy answers for the marvelous Mirza girls, in America or India, but loving friends and friendly lovers are keys to their lives, along with a healthy dose of pot. Karim has written yet another engaging well-paced funny self-aware narrative, and I can’t wait to read her next.

RTC on my blog.Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my earc.

This book right away caught my eye. The cover is absolutely gorgeous. I really like how the story is separated. I thought it was a unique way to mark chapters. It felt slightly slow for me in the beginning, but I stuck with it and liked it. I loved the setting and different aspects of culture brought into the book. It is quiet long for young readers, but a lovely story if they are patient.Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I really enjoyed Richa Moorjani's narration of this. The accents were lovely to listen to. Ruby and Noreen sounded a little too similar sometimes, but I can accept that. My mom and I can sound very similar, especially on the phone, as well.The first half of the book was definitely a hit for me. I laughed a lot. The relationship between Ruby and Noreen is wonderful. I enjoyed the exploration of Delhi through Noreen's eyes.Then ... I think it was at the point where I recognized that there really needs to be a separation between teen/YA and YA/"new adult," because this book is definitely made for 18+. The Brazilian bikini wax scene was the most explicit part of the book. And I'm not sure I'm old enough to hear about all those details. (J/K, I'm 38. But you know what I mean?)It also quit being a "popcorn" read. It was still a very good book, with Karim's family's problems and how he and Noreen felt about them, and the growth of their relationship, but the tonal shift was not as enjoyable.I would still recommend it, though! It does offer a pretty good look at India through Muslim and foreign eyes. Plus the mother-daughter relationship is just so nice.

Noreen has just graduated from school and is hoping to start college soon. When her mother, Ruby is asked to relocated to India as part of her job for a few months Noreen decides to defer her college placement to go with her and fulfil her late aunt’s dream to visit India. India is definitely a different world than Noreen is use to but she quickly settles in. Then she meets Kabir, someone she likes more than a friend. So starts Noreen and Ruby’s new adventure which includes love, laughter, scandal and more.I really enjoyed the storyline. The book is described as Gilmore Girls meets New Delhi and this is the perfect description of this book. Ruby and Noreen are definitely the desi version of Lorelai and Rory. The characters were likeable and written well. I found the relationship between Ruby and Noreen very sweet and it is clear that they are very close and have a mutual understanding of each other. Although they may be mother and daughter they are also good friends, which adds more depth to their relationship. Noreen is someone who is eager to learn more and explore her surroundings. One of my favourite parts of the books was following Noreen when she explored different monuments and historical places in New Delhi with Kabir. I liked the flashbacks to times and conversations involving Noreen’s aunt, Sonia. Although we never meet Sonia the more your learn about her the more you realise how much of an impact she had in Noreen and Ruby’s life and left behind a hole in their lives that can never be filled.A YA coming of age book based in New Delhi!

Such a charming novel. I really enjoyed it; normally I would complain that there wasn't a whole lot of plot, but I think that's one of the things that I actually liked about it. It's rare.I only gave it four stars (4.25/5) because for a book that focuses on women's issues, I feel like a lot of the other female characters are not presented as friends for Noreen. She kind of looks at them as competition and it would have been nice for her to not only to fall in love in India, but to have a really solid female friendship.But yeah, I recommend this for sure. It's wonderful! It kind of reminds me of Gilmore Girls, but in Delhi.

3.5 stars.This book started off so strong and then lost focus in the second half. Slightly disappointing. The second half is consumed with the romance element and everything else was left to the side.

The Marvelous Mirza Girls is a beautiful mix of grief, love, family, and healing. After her aunt’s death, Noreen Mirza uses her mother’s upcoming long-term work trip to New Delhi as a way of coping. Following her roots back to India proves to be harder than expected until she meets the dashing Kabir

I’m not going to do anything but rave about this book which has come and firmly planted itself as one of my favourites this year! After the devastating loss of her beloved aunt, Noreen decides to take some time out from her education and to head to Delhi with her mother Ruby, hoping that the experience will help her heal and get back to writing. What she doesn’t expect is to fall in love with the handsome young man showing her all that Delhi has to offer, but can their relationship withstand the drama that’s unfolding around them? I cannot tell you how much I LOVED this book. There was just something about the warmth and the tone of it which instantly sucked me in, and the brilliant characters and humour kept me invested. Despite the topics of grief and the Me Too movement which feature quite heavily in the book, it is still just so funny and uplifting. My favourite part of the novel is the relationship between Noreen and her mum - it’s that kind of easy, uncomplicated relationship which most of us can only dream of, and the author was clearly aware of the Gilmore Girls references that would come up as she mentions it herself in the novel. It’s so refreshing to see this kind of ease in a mother/daughter relationship when so many novels play on the darker and more complex side of it. And then there’s Delhi itself, as much of a character in the novel as Noreen herself! The pollution, the ruins, the folklore, the colours - it’s just intoxicating and utterly fascinating. But the author doesn’t shy away from the devastating risks which young women and even just girls face in the country, touching on the horrific attacks and murders which we only see a portion of in the news. I think this is what impressed me so much - the author is taking all of these incredibly hard hitting topics and issues, and yet there’s just this endless feeling of lightness and joy to the novel. Almost like magic…

Thank you to NetGalley and Quill Tree Books for the digital ARC of this book.This book is from the perspective of Noreen Mirza, an 18 year old Desi (the term used in the book) girl living in America. While it is classified as YA, this book is more appropriate for older teens and adults. While this book is a traditional love story, two young people meet and fall in love, it is also a love story on many other levels. It is a love story between a single mother and her adult daughter. It is a love story between a family and a lost loved one. It is a love story between an Indian American and India. To complement these various themes of love, the author places the reader into the heart of upper-middle-class Indian culture and introduces us to different Delhi-based historical sites. Being able to look up these sites, most originating in the 14th century, as I read the book added to the rich experience of reading. This book also notes the issues of living in a city of over 31 million. It touches on poverty and the hazards of living a daily life with poor air quality. The themes of the #MeToo movement in India play a peripheral role in the story, though they are not central and could have been left out entirely. The highlight is the scenes that take place at the heritage sites. This was a sweet read and I truly enjoyed it.

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!

This is the story of American Desi teen Noreen's gap year trip to New Delhi with her mother. There, Noreen meets handsome Kabir, who acts as sort of a travel guide.. They soon become lovers, and he helps her connect with parts of herself that she lost in her grief over her aunt's death. This book is best approached as a travel adventure and spiritual journey. It doesn't have a structured plot. It's not for everyone, and it's definitely not for anyone under 17. It deals with serious issues in a cursory way, and as a woman, it felt like one microaggression after another. (Which I think is the point.) I think it would be a lot for sensitive teen female readers. Yet there's also a lot of beauty in this book, in the search for joy and meaning. The author does a wonderful job of immersing readers in the richly detailed setting. Noreen is both an outsider and an insider, and her unique perspective informs the story. Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.I really enjoyed this mother/daughter story that featured locations in New Delhi and a great relationship between them. I loved the travel aspect and the descriptions of different locations as well as the touches of culture that were included. The writing style was easy to read and flowed well, though I did find that there were some things that were maybe left as loose ends or mentioned and then not returned too. The story did involve a lot of current topics and the situations associated to those felt very real and well written, which I appreciated. I could see some people wanting more depth to the story, or wanting some refinement but I found it to be a really enjoyable and fun read.

Marvellous Mirza Girls I have never been to Delhi. But I am getting a glimpse and feeling how Delhi is like. (Naive me did not realise the pollution level in Delhi but became interested in the many cities and ruins of Delhi - Wiki became a helpful guide)I am not from South Asia but being an Asian there are similar traits we share. The generational gap. How the grandparents are in their upbringing of their children and grandchildren. And always, the high expectations and bragging rights.I even got me thinking that whether I have a more open relationship with my own daughter like Ruby and Noreen, and not more stoic relationship as Azra and Ruby, like with my own mother.Anyway, I enjoyed and liked the premise of the book. Noreen getting to go and see India, and discover Delhi as described by her naani. Along the way, she found her way to handle and move on from her grief from the loss of her aunt in the spiritual ruins in Delhi. She found love in a young man with a good heart who is dealing and struggling with his own daddy issues.And in the discussion of the MeToo movement, being an Asian in Asia, I acknowledge the generation gap in what makes, constitutes and defines a harassment or just flirting and whether such action merits a charge. What was perceived and understood to be accepted right then by that generation may be considered unacceptable in a different new generation. Thanks, Ms Karim for bringing the street of Delhi alive for me. And including the Holi festivities allowing me to visualise the colourful atmosphere. As much as I would have wish for a “Happily ever after..” Disney-ending, but it is about reality. Quoting Adi uncle: “Remember the past, look to the future, but live in the moment.”

I really enjoyed it. This is my first book that really introduced me to desi culture, as is the term in the book. It was a very nice read and would definitely recommend to YA audiences. The blurb mentions a scandal but the book isn't scandalous, it is more about reflection and journey.My favorite line though was this: "If we stay half a world apart, eventually you'll meet someone else, You should meet someone else. But even the thought if it sends a pain shooting through my heart." Just because I know all about that and never really knew how to put the feeling into words.

This YA novel is so beautifully written. At times I was laughing and others felt emotional but for me that’s what kept me engaged and turning pages! I loved the mother-daughter duo. I was immersed in the setting, New Delhi. I love when an author can make me feel like I am there, experiencing the sights, sounds, and cuisine of the area. This book is a coming of age, love story, with strong women facing loss and family secrets. Doesn't this sound good?? Grab your copy ASAP!! Thank you @booksparks and @shebakarim for my beautiful copy of the book to review!