TEARS IN THE FLAG

In Bindra’s debut novel, a young Sikh immigrant from India comes of age at the height of the Great Recession and grapples with the obstacles that lie between him and the American dream.

Nine-year-old Arjun finds his world upended when his family moves to America in 1998. A scheme to fast-track their green cards results in heightened attention from immigration authorities, so Arjun’s panic-stricken mother flees back to India, leaving him, his younger sister, and their bitter father as undocumented immigrants in America. This separation continues for 13 years, and without emotional or financial support, Arjun must adapt to a post-9/11 culture that’s openly hostile to people who look like him, as well as plan for a future without citizenship. He undergoes multiple moves, physical ailments, and heartaches, desperately trying to remain strong while secretly craving the love and compassion of his absent mother. In the process, Arjun becomes aware of the systemic disadvantages faced by immigrants and low-income people, the disastrous global consequences of colonialism, and the ways in which a better world might be possible. The author brings a sense of specificity to Arjun’s story that paints a painful picture of his arduous circumstances. The prose style, however, is largely dry and meandering, and the pacing sometimes lacks finesse. Much of Arjun’s narration is expository and seems preoccupied with referencing pop culture to describe his experiences, as when he says that a “scenario played out like the movie The Proposal with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds” or when he compares a school crush to “Emma Watson’s character from the movie The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” At another point, he quotes dialogue at length from the 2002 film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Despite such distractions, this story remains a timely one that explores pressing and challenging questions.

A sometimes-moving but unpolished character study of a millennial undocumented immigrant.