Senzai,
N.H. Ticket to India, 288 pgs. Simon
& Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books, 2015. $16.99. Language:
PG (1 swear); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG
Maya
and her family have traveled to Pakistan for the funeral of her grandfather. This
visit quickly changes from a family gathering to honor her grandfather to Maya,
her sister, and grandmother sneaking away to India to retrieve long lost
treasure. Twelve-year-old Maya always believed that her family was from
Pakistan, but she is finally learning the truth of her grandmother’s past in India.
What was supposed to be a brief trip to retrieve a hidden treasure from her
grandmother’s childhood home changes dramatically and dangerously as Maya finds
herself separated from her family and makes the decision to seek out the
treasure on her own.
It is
evident throughout this book what the author is trying to accomplish. Educating
young children as to the history of Pakistan and India’s partition is a noble
one, but is an overall failure. The insertion of historical fact is clumsy and
awkward and the main plot is implausible. The main characters are charming and
the reader will want only the best for them, but the plot devices used to move
the story forward and lend a constant feel of peril are tedious. Young readers
may find themselves with an increased interest in the history of the region and will learn
about the formation of Pakistan and the affect it had on the Muslim population,
which does give some merit to the effort.
EL,
MS—OPTIONAL AEB
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