Artichoke Hearts

Product Information

Mira Levenson starts a journal after signing up for a writing class with the appropriately named Miss Print.

This was such a warm and lovable story about a young girl beginning to figure out her place in the world and the kind of person she wants to be. He has experienced loss too as he was orphaned in the Rwandan Civil War and eventually opens up to Mira about his feelings about the past, his identity and anxieties about the future.This is a really fresh current look at a child from a diverse background, dealing with the death of a loved one, being a girl and, of course, young love. I read it in a day, it is a very sweet and gentle book, giving an insight and helping hand to those going through the same things Mira is. Before starting to read this one, I was a little unsure about what I was going to think seeing as the main character is younger than most of the characters that I prefer to read about. The debut novel of Sita Brahmachari, narrated by young Mira Levenson, is one of those quietly stunning books that sidles into your heart and won't leave easily.

Because the reader is made aware early on that Nana Josie is dying and will die by the end of the book, her death is less traumatic.Winner of the Waterstone's Children's Book Prize, Artichoke Hearts by Sita Brahmachari is an incredibly insightful, honest novel exploring the delicate balance, and often injustice, of life and death – but at its heart is a celebration of friendship, culture, and life. I would recommend this book especially to anyone who has lost a relative to a terminal illness as there is something unique about it which makes this representation of loss and bereavement and of growing up, really beautiful. I particularly liked the Grandmother who has cancer and is dying as I liked her enthusiasms for life. a beautiful silver charm made to the exact description in my book and presented to me by Leo, my husband. Meera is losing her beloved grandmother; she's also falling in love for the first time, with a boy who has his own wounds and courage and heart.

I can't wait to read the next book about Meera - and any other books that Sita Brahmachari has written. I felt that the author introduced many issues (see above) and in doing this did not develop the story. She wanted to understand what was happening to her grandma and she wasn’t afraid to ask questions that didn’t have simple actions. However it was a brave attempt to deal with many sensitive issues and I think many teenagers will enjoy the book.There were some very good things about it - the cover, for instance is literally stunning and there were parts of the story that I loved, like the subtle symbolisms - Pat Print as a guardian angel - and the impressive insight featured in the book. I wasn't expecting this to be such a coming of age novel, but I'm so glad that it was - I was very impressed and will certainly be reading more by the very talented Brahmachari in the future. Foi muito gostoso acompanhar as visões de uma garota de 12 anos sobre mudanças, amores e perdas ocorrendo ao seu redor por causa da pureza de Mira e da escrita, a união da família dela, a gentileza dos pais dela com os filhos e a ligação de Mira com a avó.

In a way this book is about death but I think it would be more accurate to say that it is about life. It was also good to be able to see how she acted around other people, especially family members who knew how ill she was.

But I didn't and it wasn't, although I would strongly recommend it for girls Mira’s age – 10-13 year olds – as they will be going through the same experiences of starting secondary school, having their first period, experiencing their first love (though I really feel she was a bit too young to have a boyfriend and felt uncomfortable reading about snogging between two twelve year olds, even if they acted much older and you often forget that they are only in Year 7). This book is diverse with many of its characters from Mira and her family who are Indian-Jewish and range from Mira's dark skin and brown hair to Krish's blonde hair and blue eyes.