Home Is In Between

Written by: Mitali Perkins

Illustrated by: Lavanya Naida

Farrar Straus Giroux, 2021. Picture Book.

Shanti and her family live in a small village in India with warm monsoon rains, green palm trees and lots of extended family. But when Shanti and her parents move to the United States, Shanti finds herself in a world of cold rain, yellow and orange leaves, a new language and new holidays. Shanti is caught in between two different worlds where she must move back and forth between cultures. At home her life is Bollywood movies, stories in Bangali, and delicious luchi and her life outside is filled with napkins on laps, no elbows on tables, ballet, and snowball fights. She feels the push and pull of both cultures and worlds until she eventually decides she is tired of navigating this space. Shanti realizes she is good at making anywhere feel like home and she decides that her home can be a place in between her two worlds.

This is a delightful picture books full of vibrant colors and animated illustrations. This is a very relatable story for anyone but it is perfect for any child who is adjusting to immigrating to a new country. The struggle to blend two cultures together is explained well in the story with a warm fun endearing character.

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