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The brilliant interweaving of the three stories (Bridge’s, Sherm’s, and the person’s we know as “You”) the choices the characters make the person Bridge is becoming the slow unfolding of her friendship with Sherm - I appreciate all of it.Īs with THE HIRED GIRL, I think this is the work of a great writer, and I would find nothing amiss if it won. On a larger scale, I definitely think this is one of the strongest novels I’ve read all year. In the “Moon Hunting” chapter, Tab thinks Karva Chauth is sexist Celeste thinks it’s romantic then Bridge witnesses Tab’s mother breaking her fast, being fed food and water by Tab’s father - and she decides for herself what she thinks of that moment and how it speaks to the Patel parents’ relationship. Rebecca Stead shows us all sorts of friendships: healthy and unhealthy platonic and romantic with people you’ve known all your life, with people you’ve just met even friendship with one’s sibling. Figuring out what kind of person you want to be and what kind of relationships you want to be in. I think it’s there to illuminate one more relationship - which is what this book is about. Since Tab’s mother’s maiden name is likely not Patel (so who knows what part of India her family is originally from?), I really think all the hoops you’ve jumped through here are unnecessary.Īlso, I don’t think the chapter is there to inform readers about the Patels’ family culture. In fact, when my colleague brought this issue up to me, I didn’t recall that chapter at all and thought “Who were the Patels in the story”? I think this is interesting, though I don’t think it ultimately detracts. All this did make realize how little of Tab and Celeste Patel’s family culture comes through in the rest of the book. The question remains whether this would be typical of a New York Gujarti-American family (which, presumably, might have immigrated to the US earlier than the recent shift in Gujarat), but I feel there’s enough to go here to suggest that Stead’s Patels could conceivably observe this festival. The other thought it might be a newer thing because of Bollywood and more travel between the states. Through friends I asked a couple Gujarti-Americans one’s parents do practice it, but are from South Africa. However, a quick search online suggests that the festival is gaining some popularity in Gujarat in recent years. A colleague wrote me with concerns about the “Moon Hunting” chapter that begins on p.99, because the Patel family practices Karva Chauth, a festival traditionally celebrated by Hindu women in several states of North India, but not Gujarat.