PRIYA DREAMS OF MARIGOLDS & MASALA

A girl finds a way to keep her grandmother from missing India in this picture book.

Priya’s house is the only one on her street with an Indian family. After school every day, she helps her grandmother Babi Ba make rotli for dinner. As they work, Priya asks Babi Ba what India is like. Her grandmother responds with highlights of India for each of the senses, describing the smells of the spice market, the sounds of the tuk-tuks and cows in the street, the “swish-swish of a sari,” the taste of hot cha, and the crowd with its mix of beliefs and customs. Babi Ba describes the marigold garlands, just like the one “hanging in the doorway” of Priya’s house. In the winter, Priya notices her grandmother’s sadness and discusses the marigold garland tradition with her school friends. They help Priya make a huge garland of paper marigolds for Babi Ba. Patel (Neela Goes to San Francisco, 2016) is an Indian American author whose “family is from Gujarat, India.” In her tale, Priya’s strong connections to her grandmother and her diverse classmates, who are so open to learning her traditions, offer a wonderfully ideal view of culture sharing. Patel’s drawings, rendered without hard lines but in brilliant colors inspired by her visits to India, capture the theme vividly.

A beautifully rendered, touching celebration of sharing traditions across generations and cultures.