The Henna Wars
Ratings43
Average rating3.9
Rlly cute! I loved Nishat and Priti's sibling relationship it was really wholesome!
Nishat is a Bengali teenage girl whose family lives in Dublin, Ireland. Her younger sister Priti knows Nishat is a lesbian, but their parents have no idea. Likewise, none of Nishat's friends and peers at their all-girls Catholic secondary school know. After a family wedding where Nishat runs into an old friend, things get complicated, then convoluted, then ugly. Friendships are challenged, boundaries are toppled, and henna tubes are the weapon of choice.Fundamentally, The Henna Wars is about learning to own aspects of your identity others are quick to judge, and reconciling culture and faith of origin with queerness, embodying both simultaneously with pride and challenging assumptions about their capacity to coexist. Sometimes learning to accept yourself can be enough, even if others don't, and even if you wish they could.Don't let the pretty pink cover fool you, though; this is a pretty painful book. The protagonist deals with rejection from all fronts, but Nishat can be hard to root for at times. Sometimes her anger feels unjustified even though she may be right, and other times I felt she was wrongly blamed for abstract failings. In general, both the pacing and tone felt erratic to me. There's less an enemies to lovers trope and more just a hot and cold dynamic that neither readers nor characters can fully grasp. It's confusing and bad things keep piling up through the very end, which makes certain resolutions feel unconvincing and a bit too convenient. But if you enjoyed [b:The Hate U Give 32075671 The Hate U Give (The Hate U Give, #1) Angie Thomas https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1476284759l/32075671.SY75.jpg 49638190], [b:Here to Stay 38571446 Here to Stay Sara Farizan https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1519835672l/38571446.SY75.jpg 60180442], [b:I Wish You All the Best 41473872 I Wish You All the Best (I Wish You All the Best, #1) Mason Deaver https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1538483349l/41473872.SY75.jpg 61277384], or [b:A Very Large Expanse of Sea 38720939 A Very Large Expanse of Sea Tahereh Mafi https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1558453377l/38720939.SY75.jpg 60301626], and you're prepared to read about a rough coming out experience, try The Henna Wars.
tws: racism, homophobia, intentional outing, bullying, a girl named chyna
oh... i'm a little disappointed. this is not to say that i didn't really enjoy this book but i didn't love it as much as i thought i would. i liked the murky relationship between nishat and flávia, but i felt like there should've been more. and the book gets so close to packing some punches towards racism, homophobia, and using religion as justification for homophobia, but it didn't quite get there either. a lot of issues wrapped up conveniently... but at least we got out HEA
however at the end of the day it's a wonderful story about a very hardheaded MC who just wants to be herself, despite the world telling her not to. fantastic representation and approaches to very real POC experiences. can't wait to see what adiba jaigirdar has in store next!
Was almost a 2 star but ultimately very readable and the end picked up.
A bit younger than the YA I usually read—it's been a WHILE since I've read one where the central issue is over a school project haha. But it had realistic teenage characters so you gotta keep that in mind if you go for this and feel annoyed at some points.
I really appreciated that all of the characters acted like realistic teenagers, and how they all had their own flaws. It was great seeing all of the family aspects and how close Nishat is with her sister. There was also some great character development, not only in Nishat but in her parents as well. It really showed how parents aren't perfect either, and how with more information someone is given on a certain topic, their opinions can change. I absolutely flew through this book, and would definitely recommend to anyone looking for a light read!
* trigger warnings (the author does make a note of them at the beginning of the book)- racism, homophobia, bullying, and a character being outed.*