Priya Dreams of Marigolds & Masala (2024)

Diane Konjura

6 reviews

February 1, 2020

Beautiful, young, Indian American Priya learns who she is, her identity and culture, from her Babi Ba (Grandma). Together they make rotli as Ba shares her love of India through the smells of masala , the sounds of motorbikes, tuk-tuk, and a cow, the colorful rainbow of saris in a shop, and the tradition of garland marigolds in a doorway. Priya shares her Indian culture with her classmates by making a garland of paper marigolds that she gives to her Ba as a reminder of the home she sometimes misses in India.
Warm colors throughout this story reminds me of the flavorful spices in i love in chai tea! The illustrated glossary of terms, the explanation and significance of marigolds, and the author's note connects the author's life to this inspiring story and the cultural traditions of India.
Thank you to Meena Patel and Beaver's Pond Press, Inc for gifting this book for MCBD 2020! #ReadyYourWorld

Carolyn

1,547 reviews93 followers

November 2, 2020

Really sweet story about culture, remembrance, and family relationships. India for Priya's Babi Ba isn't just a geographical location, it's a smell, a sound, a taste, a feeling. I love how Priya shares these stories with her classmates and they help her make memories.

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Sheri Hoyte Books

50 reviews1 follower

January 28, 2020

Like the warm and cozy tone of the pages, “Priya Dreams of Marigolds & Masala” is an inviting, inspirational message to kids of all colors, backgrounds, genders, religious and spiritual beliefs, etc. to embrace all of the things that make us unique, amazing individuals.

Priya rushes home from school every day to help her Babi Ba make roti a flatbread and common staple in her family. Every day Priya asks Babi Ba about India and every day, Babi Ba shares with her granddaughter the history of India by telling hers stories about everything from the special spices used for cooking to the beautiful fabrics of the saris worn by Indian women. When Priya wonders if Babi Ba misses India, her grandmother tells Priya that India is always with her inside. When Priya goes to school the next day, she shares the history of India with her classmates and together they make something special for Babi Ba.

This is such a beautiful book, lovingly produced from the heart of author/illustrator, Meenal Patel. The emphasis on the importance of family, tradition and being proud of your roots shines through the colorful captivating illustrations and storyline. I love, love, love the way Babi Ba shares stories of India with Priya and it reminds me of my own grandmother, who was the marvelous storyteller in my family that kept our history alive. It’s so important that we teach our kids the history and traditions of our families – it’s an essential source of belonging and instills a great sense of belonging.

The illustrations are phenomenal and give the reader a real peek into India with their vibrant colors and the warm, engaging tones add depth to an already stunning storyline.

The back of the book features a two-page reference with a bit of history about India, Marigolds and definitions and pronunciations of some of the Indian words used in the story. This is a helpful addition to the story, really bringing readers into all of the special attributes that make up India.

I loved the Author’s Note in the back of the book. Living a “normal” life in the US, it wasn’t until Meenal was an adult visiting India when the realization hits her that she has many different sides to her identity and all of those sides make up who she is today. It’s an indispensable message she shares through the story of Priya and I highly recommend this beautiful book to adults and kids of all ages!

Lin Lin

416 reviews5 followers

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November 14, 2020

Priya, an Indian-American girl, grows up in a house with a garland of bright orange marigolds hanging in the doorway. Her house always stands out in a small street of a small town in the United States. My children can relate so closely to this book as they live and grow up in a household where we pass around special foods for dinner, greet our elders who stay with us from another country, and visit grocery stores where we can speak our native languages. "Sharing India with others is the very best way to carry it with you." This sentence in the book stuck in my mind now. I am so grateful that I met Meenal Patel, the writer and illustrator, on a zoom-based webinar on November 12, 2020 as she talked about her experience of writing and illustrating her book.

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Taylor

579 reviews7 followers

September 1, 2020

I have a deep appreciation for stories of children and their grandparents - especially when that story involves a sharing of cultural identity. Three things really stood out for me in this book. 1. Quote “Sharing India with others is the very best way to carry it with you.” 2. The explanation of cultural traditions and foreign words in the back. 3. The authors note explaining her motivation for the book based on her personal experiences.

Robin

3,992 reviews5 followers

November 2, 2019

Lovely picture book of a young girl listening to her grandmother's memories of India, then sharing them at school so that her classmates join her in making paper flowers to cheer her grandmother. Cultural pride shines in this story.

Jo Oehrlein

6,351 reviews9 followers

January 15, 2020

Love how Priya is inspired to help her grandmother through a cold winter by making paper marigolds and how her whole class joins in.

Kudos to the art teacher who leaves enough time for kids to try things on their own.

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Tasha

4,117 reviews129 followers

October 11, 2019

Priya lives with her family in the United States. Her’s is the only house in her neighborhood where an Indian family lives. Priya loves to help her grandmother make rotli for dinner when she gets home. As they make the flatbread, her Babi Ba tells her about India’s spice markets, the architecture, the noises of the traffic, and the monsoon rains. Their house has marigolds strung over the door just like those in India. Priya longs to see India for herself. When winter comes, Babi Ba doesn’t hang marigolds outside any more. Priya has an idea and soon her entire class is helping her make paper marigolds as she tells them about India.

Patel, who is Indian-American, tells a story that focuses on a family’s continued connection to their heritage while living in the United States. Priya is proud of her Indian heritage, loving to hear stories about India and its sounds and sights. Still, there is a sense of distance between her own heritage and the society around her, one that can be bridged by sharing stories. The art in the book is rich will the colors of spices. Deep greens and warm pinks add to the color palette too.

A celebration of Indian heritage and the strength of family. Appropriate for ages 4-6.

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Marthine

88 reviews16 followers

July 9, 2020

Beautiful book! Glorious illustrations that combine hand drawn and digital really perfectly.

I bought this book recently because even here in Oakland, my son is the only Indian-American on our street (though one of several in his preschool class). Plus, it talks about different cultural traditions, like rolling out chapatis (called rotlis by the Gujarati family in the book),which my son loves doing with his grandmother when she visits. He is 4 and he likes the book quite a bit.

My only quibble is the final page. The author's note explains it as part of her own feeling of recognition when she went to India and saw how common her family's traditions were. While it bookend's the first page's the "only Indian family in town" narrative, it felt odd in this book, because the book's narrative had already concluded with the little girl making paper marigolds to help continue her grandmother's traditions in winter. I think the final page would have made more sense if there was a part 2 to the book, which involved her actually going to India and having chai there, seeing the piles of marigolds in the market, etc -- all the things her grandmother tells her about. But it feels sort of random at the end.

Elizabeth Madarang

45 reviews

January 19, 2020

What a special children's book! This thoughtful story tells about an Indian American girl, Priya, and the loving bond she shares with her grandmother, Babi Ba. Colorful illustrations and descriptive Indian terms bring Babi Ba's India to life as she fondly shares her memories with Priya. Priya recognizes the sacrifice Babi Ba has made to come with her family to the United States and takes it upon herself to bring a little bit of India to Babi Ba. Priya's classmates join in the project.Through learning about and sharing her Indian culture with her friends, Priya feels even closer to India.
The glossary of cultural of terms at the end of the books is especially helpful with pronunciations and rich definitions.
My primary elementary students thoroughly enjoyed listening to this as a read aloud! This book generated alot of conversation as the children shared similarities and differences to their cultures (including differences within India).
#ReadYourWorld

Lisa

804 reviews29 followers

August 14, 2020

A sweet story with such lovely illustrations. This book is definitely focused on what’s picturesque and delicious about India, but I think that only becomes a drawback if complex cultures and experiences become reduced to these elements. That isn’t quite happening here. There are parallel pages at the start and end of the story that show that what makes Priya’s family seem foreign in the US is typical in Gujarat. There’s Babi Ba being sad in the winter and possibly missing India. And the author’s note really spoke to me; the book is totally rooted in the depth of her experience as an Indian American and *that* makes this book so much richer than multicultural books that are not written or illustrated by people who are really rooted in those cultures.

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Jessie

2,060 reviews29 followers

January 14, 2020

The relationship between Priya and her grandmother is really at the center of this story. Priya's grandmother shares things (stories and ideas and traditions and food) about India with Priya, and Priya helps her grandmother feel more at home.

This is also about identity. Priya has never been to India and always asks her grandmother about it. The things she does with her grandmother are a connection to India; getting help from others at school in making a paper marigold chain to hang during winter is also a connection to India.

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Molly Pontius

24 reviews

October 30, 2021

"Priya Dreams of Marigolds and Masala", written by Meenal Patel, is the 2020 recipient of the South Asian Book Award. This book details a young girl, Priya, as she tries to bring India back to her beloved Babi Ba. This is a great way to introduce Indian culture to young students. With this book teachers will have a number of lessons that they can build off of the book, a lesson on the history or even a lesson on the culture. By having this book, teachers can expand the world of their students one page at a time.

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Lauren

1,334 reviews

March 25, 2021

A sweet story about taking pride in the ways your family might be different from others and exploring your cultural heritage. End notes at the back give a pronunciation guide and a description of the meanings behind some of the items mentioned in the story. This book will make you want to go eat some yummy Indian food, plant marigolds, and drink cha!

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Erin

4,216 reviews54 followers

November 29, 2021

A lovely book about sharing your culture not only between old and young members of a family, but with the wider community as well. I love Priya's relationship with her Babi Ba, and more importantly, that Priya takes her cultural touchpoints with her to school and her classmates are both interested and supportive.

Just a nice book all around, and it would be fun to do with a marigold garland.

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June

5,685 reviews81 followers

March 3, 2020

After school Priya helps her grandmother from India make rotli while her Babi Ba tells her stories of India. When winter comes and her grandmother no longer goes outside to make garlands of marigolds Priya's friends help her make a garland of paper marigolds in art class

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Neha Thakkar

435 reviews11 followers

December 4, 2021

As a Gujarati Indian American, this was very personal and lovely. Seeing my own words and experiences and the author’s note on how she often denied her identity, as a child, were powerful to me. I look forward to sharing it with more kids that can share and revel in their identities!

Woodrós

518 reviews8 followers

July 8, 2022

Beautiful picture book in imagery, words, and ideas.

Would be interesting to pair with the graphic novel Pashmina or with a writing unit on sensory details and/or memories, elders, place... Lots of sweetness.

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Dolly

Author1 book665 followers

June 11, 2024

This is a sweet story that speaks of nostalgia for the traditions and cuisine of India and the culture that is shared with a new generation.

The story is very appropriate for reading with young, elementary school-age children.

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Anjali

198 reviews22 followers

August 17, 2019

Such a gorgeous, gentle book. It feels like a masala scented hug for this first generation kid.

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KC

2,535 reviews

September 12, 2019

A young Indian-American girl discovers and explores her Indian roots.

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Tracie

1,957 reviews

October 4, 2019

A young child discovers the connections between their family's roots in India and their life in the US. Based on the author's childhood.

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Anjanette

320 reviews1 follower

October 30, 2019

Great book explaining India.
Words shared with meanings in the back
written for multiple levels

Miss Sarah

10.6k reviews26 followers

November 6, 2019

A preschool and up book about an American girl whose grandmothers descriptions of India make the country part of her everyday life.

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Rachelle

1,351 reviews6 followers

December 25, 2019

Lovely story and pictures. Great way to learn about the foods from around the world.

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Amanda Geske

342 reviews4 followers

February 1, 2020

"It's the rainbow of saris stacked to the ceiling in a shop and the quiet swish-swish of a sari with every step."

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Jillian Heise

2,357 reviews536 followers

June 23, 2020

This is a fabulous and heart-warming story of family traditions and immigrant families keeping memories alive and pride in one's culture and heritage.

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Andi

397 reviews18 followers

June 30, 2020

Excellent story and gorgeous illustrations!

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Nancy Eyre

22 reviews1 follower

Read

November 19, 2020

I love all the sensory language in this book as Priya makes roti with her grandmother who tells stories of India.

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Julie

1,411 reviews

December 7, 2020

Great selection to add diversity to elementary library and help children learn about other cultures.

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Priya Dreams of Marigolds & Masala (2024)
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