Diwali in My New Home - Shachi Kaushik - ★★★★

AUTHOR: Shachi Kaushik

ILLUSTRATOR: Aishwarya Tandon

GENRE: Children's Picture Book

PUBLICATION DATE: September 27, 2022

RATING: 4 stars.

In a Nutshell: A sweet little picture book about celebrating Diwali away from home. Loved the story, the emotions, and the details of the festival. An informative OwnVoices book for those wanting to know more about this delightful Hindu festival of lights.

Plot Preview:

Young Priya has always loved celebrating Diwali with her family and loads of decorations and fireworks. However, this year, Diwali seems very dull and quiet. At her new home, there’s no sign anywhere of the upcoming festival. Even school is going on as usual. But when Priya comes home from school and begins assisting her parents in getting everything ready before the evening puja, their new neighbours become curious and want to know more about the occasion. Finally, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas Diwali!

Through a simple yet effective plotline, this book succeeds in conveying all the essential components of Diwali – the sweets, the lights, the new clothes, the Rangoli, the fireworks (good old sparklers – how I loved them in my childhood!), and of course, the puja. The significance of each element comes out organically through conversations between Priya and her neighbours. Thus, through easy-to-understand one-liners, readers get an idea not just of what happens during Diwali but also of why it happens.

While I enjoyed reading all of these, seeing the details of the puja made me really happy. Most picture books on Diwali (or on any other festival) focus more on the commercial/material prep but ignore the religious essentials. But religious festivals spring from religious beliefs, so including such details is vital, especially when introducing the festival to a new segment of readers. I love how Priya is an active participant in the puja, and how the fun part of the celebrations such as sharing sweets with neighbours and enjoying the sparklers rightly begins only after the puja.

The timeline in the story is quite crunched. I can’t even fathom the entire process of preparation for Diwali, including cooking and cleaning and decoration and prayers, taking place on a single day! (I’d go nuts if I had to do everything on one day for Christmas! 😄) But given that it’s a picture book, we can certainly allow some flexibility in this regard.

A parting note provides more details on the meaning of Diwali and how it is celebrated. This is a very simplified version. For instance, it says “Diwali is celebrated on the third day of the five-day festival”, but doesn’t elaborate on the remaining four days. Actually, the whole festival is Diwali and not just the third day, which is the day of ‘Lakshmi Puja’. But I suppose the note can serve as a good introductory point for those who know nothing about the occasion. It also elaborates on the variations in Diwali celebrations between North & South India. There is a detailed glossary at the end for all the Hindi terms.

The illustrations are inclusive, with Priya’s neighbours coming from various faiths and racial backgrounds. I appreciate the accuracy of the main family’s portrayal, including mom’s mangalsutra and gold jewellery, and dad’s jootis. The puja scene is also beautifully soothing.

All in all, this is a lovely OwnVoices book that would serve wonderfully to those wishing to learn more about Diwali. It will also work well as a multicultural addition to classrooms and libraries. The writing approach makes it a good option for kids aged 4-8 years.

My thanks to author Shachi Kaushik for providing me with a complimentary copy of “Diwali in my New Home”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.