Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet [Hardcover]

Kashmira Sheth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2006

Jeetas family is caught up in the whirlwind of arranging marriages for her two older sisters, but the drama and excitement leave Jeeta cold. She knows that tradition demands the parade of suitors, the marriage negotiations, the elaborate displays, the expensive wedding parties but where is the love and romance that the movies promise? She dreads her turn on the matrimonial circuit, especially since Mummy is always complaining about how difficult it will be to find Jeeta a good husband, with her dark skin and sharp tongue. As Jeeta spends more time with her new friend from school, Sarina, and Sarinas educated, liberal parents, she begins to question her tradition-bound familys expectations. And when she falls in love with Sarinas cousin Neel, Jeeta realizes that she must strike a balance between independence and duty and follow her own path. With its gentle humor and a rich sense of place, Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet is an engaging coming-of-age novel set in contemporary Mumbai, India.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up-Warmly descriptive of life in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), this love story has a rich sense of place. Sixteen-year-old Jeeta's mother is consumed with the problems of arranging marriages for her three daughters and is sure that Jeeta's dark skin and smart mouth will turn off prospective grooms. But the teen's new friend, Sarina, opens her eyes to other possibilities. Discovering the pleasures of learning, Jeeta does well in her last year at school and enters college hoping to study law. Then, a handsome boy whom she meets at the swimming pool turns out to be Sarina's cousin. Because her mother forbids her to socialize with boys, she uses visits to Sarina to provide cover for their developing relationship. Readers may feel let down by the inconclusive ending, expecting at least an engagement, but the family's movement toward more modern ways is realistic. The novel reads like a memoir written by someone who wants to hold on to every detail of a remembered life. The tensions of family life in a small apartment are evident and the conflict between old beliefs and customs and the modern world is clear. Like the matrimonial ad her friend quotes, Jeeta is a girl with strong east-west family values, with all the contradictions that that statement suggests. This first-person narrative is a lush and loving exploration of coming of age.-Kathleen Isaacs, Towson University, MD
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 8-11. Most YA novels steeped in South Asian culture, including Sheth's debut, Blue Jasmine (2004), unfold among immigrants in the U.S. or the UK. Not so the author's second book. Sixteen-year-old Jeeta lives in contemporary Mumbai, where her domineering mother is consumed with arranging marriages for Jeeta's elder sisters--and eventually for Jeeta herself. The sharp-tongued teen can't help but challenge traditions that seem sexist ("We have brains up there, not roti dough"), but her protests remain theoretical until a cosmopolitan new friend opens her eyes to alternatives. Jeeta's relationship with a forbidden boyfriend is never wholly convincing, and her sister's domestic-abuse crisis, though dramatic, is too convenient to be entirely credible as the impetus for shaking Mother's hidebound ideals. But like the hot, sweet mango pickles Jeeta savors, her experiences crystallize the combined pain and joy of tradition and family, which Sheth anchors in rich particulars of setting, cuisine, and dialect (a glossary is provided). Many readers will go on to explore Tanuja Desai Hidier's Born Confused (2002) and comparable titles for adults, such as Amulya Maladi's Mango Season (2003). Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion (April 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786838574
• ISBN-13: 978-0786838578
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #849,044 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good read for teens, March 24, 2006

By 

Beth A. Nieman - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet (Hardcover)

Kashmira Sheth has done a masterful job of bringing her readers into the intimacy of the family life of 16-year old Jeeta, a girl from India.

Jeeta often feels like the odd one out, as so many 16-year old girls do. Her mother tells Jeeta her tongue is too sharp, and Jeeta feels unattractive. 21-year old Nimita, Jeeta's oldest sister, marries happily during the course of the story, and soon after another wedding takes place for their middle sister, 19-year old Mohini, whose husband takes her to live in the United States. Jeeta knows she is next in line to marry, but having watched the family go through countless interviews with prospective grooms, doesn't want to have her husband selected for her. There *is* a certain boy who holds her interest, but her friendship with him remains a secret from her family. With the support of her best friend from school, and from her father, Jeeta discovers that there are many more open doors for her than she suspected.

This story is fun to read and the character of Jeeta is well-drawn. I especially enjoyed the many details of Indian life Sheth included in her story--these details of dress, custom, ceremony, and food brought the story to life and gave it authenticity.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars koyal dark, mango sweet, May 10, 2006

By 

Wavedancer (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet (Hardcover)

Jeeta knows she is expected to marry one of the suitors her parents will choose for her, but, watching her sisters marry men they do not love, she is quite sure she does not want to follow this path. After making friends with Sarina, a new girl at school, and witnessing the freedom she recieves from her parents, she desires more than ever to choose her own fate. Caught between her parent's expectations and her own wish for love and freedom, Jeeta must balance the weight of tradition with her own desires.

I really enjoyed this book. It paints a colorful picture of modern India, and while it occasionally lacked detail, overall it truly brought a city to life. Jeeta is a realistic character with both strengths and weaknesses, and you can emphasize with her internal conflicts. It's a relatively quick read but very entertaining.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautifully written young adult novel, March 27, 2007

By 

J. Valdez "Quotidian (http://magis.blogs.com)" (Madison, WI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet (Hardcover)

I really enjoyed this story. Sheth paints a very vivid picture of life in Mumbai, weaving in details about native plants, customs, and family life. The main character, Jeeta, is well-developed as a strong, independent teenager looking to find her own way of reconciling her dreams and the expectations of her family. I highly recommend this book.