Shine, Coconut Moon

It's great!

This book captures all that people from the middle east were dealing with around 9/11

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Shine On Sam

Neesha Memingers' Shine Coconut moon is about a 15 year-old Punjabi American girl named Samara, or Sam. Sam's mom, a clinical psychologist, has been estranged from her family for almost all of Sam's life. She's raised Sam with no sense of cultural identity.

Shine Cocount Moon opens the week of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Sam's uncle, her mother's brother, shows up and turns Sam's comfortable middle-class suburban life upside down.

Sam discovers she's got a family tree with deep roots. She questions her identity as a girl of Southeast Asian descent who never hangs with kids of her ethnicity at school and knows none of her family or culural history. Worst yet, she's never even met her grandparents, who live a short drive away. And her mother wants to keep it that way.

Tension mounts as Sam, influenced by her loving uncle, struggles to find herself outside of the confines of her mother's issues with Sam's grandparents and the Indian culture as a whole.

I loved reading this novel about a character who, through a tight storyline and a host of relatable and compelling characters, opened my eyes to issues I probably would not have considered with as much thought as I do now.

M. LaVora Perry, Author
www.mlavoraperry.com

Awesome chick lit/young adult book from a new perspective

I love coming of age books for all their awkwardness, self-consciousness, friendships, family relationships, and ultimately new self-awareness. What sets Shine, Coconut Moon apart from any others I have ever read (and I have read a LOT!) is that this one is from the perspective of a Sikh living in the NYC area, post-9/11. It was refreshing to read a book that touched on more than the "typical" anxieties of youth and instead also looked at racism.

I could picture this book being made into a movie. It was very current and thoughtful and the momentum grew as the story went on. I won't recount the plot, but I will say that the ending was very satisfying and realistic and yes, I cried.

Well done Neesha Memminger. I look forward to your next book!

Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

The cover of SHINE, COCONUT MOON should be enough to draw readers to the contents of Ms. Meminger's story. But if the cover doesn't pull you in, then the story should capture your attention.

Samar has always considered herself American. She had a few incidents when she was younger of being treated as an outsider, but when Molly befriended her, Sam was accepted without any problems.

It isn't until after September 11, 2001, that life changes for Sam. A strange man in a turban shows up at her door claiming to be her long lost uncle - Uncle Sandeep. Her mom had severed all ties to her family, so the man on their porch is a stranger to Sam. Sam's curiosity is piqued and she wants Sandeep to be a part of her life.

But in the days post-9/11, anyone that even remotely looks like a terrorist is instantly regarded with suspicion, and Uncle Sandeep in his turban stands out in town. By association, people start looking at Sam differently. Sam knows nothing of her Indian heritage, and seeks out other girls like her at school for guidance.

Sam begs her uncle to take her to her maternal grandparents. But when her grandparents realize that Sam's mother knows nothing of the trip, they cut the visit short. They insist they want to get to know Sam, but will only do so with Sharan's blessing.

The novel shares the struggles of Samar coming to terms with who she is in a new post-9/11 society. Having been denied her heritage, she's hungry for knowledge of who she is and what her mother is running away from. Samar wants to fit in without controversy, but she also wants to be true to herself.

SHINE, COCONUT MOON will make you angry with the way innocent people were put under scrutiny in the days following September 11, 2001, but it will also make you think about the way you consider those who are different from you.

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