I Am Kavi

by Thushanthi Ponweera

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

With resonant themes and an immersive setting, this novel-in-verse brings South Asian and Buddhist representation front and center. It's a coming-of-age story with a protagonist you'll love to root for.

Caught between two worlds—a poverty-stricken village and a fancy big-city school—a young Sri Lankan girl must decide who she really is and where she really belongs.

1998, Colombo. The Sri Lankan Civil War is raging, but everyday life must go on. At Kavi’s school, her friends talk about the weekly Top 40, the Backstreet Boys, Shahrukh Khan, Leo & Kate… and who died—or didn’t—in the latest bombing. But Kavi is afraid of something even scarier than war. She fears that if her friends discover her secret—that she is not who she is pretending to be—they’ll stop talking to her.

I want to be friends with these / happy, / fearless, / girls / who look like they / belong.
So I could also be / happy, / fearless, / and maybe even / belong.

Kavi’s scholarship to her elite new school was supposed to be everything she ever wanted, but as she tries to find some semblance of normalcy in a country on fire, nothing is going according to plan. In an effort to fit in with her wealthy, glittering, and self-assured new classmates, Kavi begins telling lies, trading her old life—where she’s a poor girl whose mother has chosen a new husband over her daughter—for a new one, where she’s rich, loved, and wanted. But how long can you pretend to be someone else?

This dazzling novel-in-verse comes from an astonishing new talent who lived through the civil war herself. Perfect for fans of Jamine Warga, Supriya Kelkar, and Rajani LaRocca, I Am Kavi centers a powerful South Asian voice, and stars an unforgettable heroine each and every one of us can relate to.

"KAVI'S COURAGE AND VOICE ARE NOT TO BE MISSED."—Reem Faruqi, award-winning author of Call Me Adnan, Unsettled, and Golden Girl

"I LOVED IT!"—Nizrana Farook, award-winning author of The Girl Who Stole an Elephant

"POWERFULLY WRITTEN."—Lyn Miller-Lachmann, author of Los Angeles Times Book Prize Winner Torch

"LUSH AND EVOCATIVE... A STUNNING DEBUT."—Kate Albus, award-winning author of A Place to Hang the Moon

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
An Indies Introduce Selection
An Indies Next Pick
A Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year
A School Library Journal Middle Grade Magic Selection
A Children's Book Council Hot off the Presses Selection

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780823460182
Publisher:	Holiday House
Publication date:	01/14/2025
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.25(h) x (d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Thushanthi Ponweera is an author and poet from Sri Lanka. Before daring to follow her dream of being published, she was a marketing specialist and entreprenuer. Her writing reflects the frustration she feels at the inequality and injustice she sees around her, and also the deep love she feels for her island home. She currently lives in Colombo with her husband and two children.

Editorial Reviews

★ "Superb. . . . A moving coming-of-age story written in verse about understanding and embracing who you truly are."—The Horn Book, starred review
 
"Striking. . . . Skillfully captures the intensity of Kavi’s hope, doubt, shame, and determination as she negotiates her reality and her desires."—The Bulletin for the Center of Children’s Books
 
"A powerful and immensely readable look at a time period and place not often represented in books for children."—Teen Librarian Toolbox

"Riveting. . . . Ponweera employs spare but descriptive verse that perfectly captures the inner turmoil of a young girl wading her way through the complexities of family, friendship, identity, and emotions."—Booklist

"A stirring novel in verse. . . . Amid a historical setting informed by classism, colorism, and colonization, short reflective phrases and vivid cultural details bring out the nuanced story’s emotional depth and show the devastating impact of war on Kavi and her loved ones."—Publishers Weekly

"This book plunged me into the joys and turmoils of 1990s Sri Lanka, bringing with it all the poignancy of that time. A frequently heartrending coming-of-age story about friendship, love, class, and war. I loved it!"—Nizrana Farook, award-winning author of The Girl Who Stole an Elephant

"I Am Kavi is a triumphant tale of a girl overcoming adversity and discovering her potential, while also refinding her roots. Readers of all ages will root for Kavi from page one. I loved it."—Dan Gemeinhart, New York Times bestselling author of The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise and The Midnight Children 

"Powerfully written. . . . Kavi's struggle to fit in at her elite urban private school as a scholarship student from the war-torn countryside will resonate with readers dealing with the social pressures of middle school."—Lyn Miller-Lachman, author of LA Times Book Prize Winner Torch

"Lyrical. . . . Kavi asks big questions about her changing family, growing up in wartime, and what it means to be true to yourself. A beautiful, universal novel."—Laura Shovan, award-winning author of The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary

"Written in lush and evocative verse, and set during Sri Lanka's civil war, I Am Kavi beautifully explores a much more personal battle: the struggle to know that you are loved, and to love yourself. A stunning debut."—Kate Albus, award-winning author of A Place to Hang the Moon

From the Publisher

07/24/2023

Exploring friendship, family, and grief against the backdrop of the Sri Lankan civil war, Ponweera’s debut, a stirring novel in verse, traces a 10-year-old’s desire to fit in. In May 1997, Kavi lives in a village in Sri Lanka’s Anuradhapura District with her mother, Amma, who works in the paddy fields, and her step-father, Siripala, whom she worries will replace her late father’s role in their family. Kavi tries to be a “good Buddhist girl” and a “good Sinhalese girl,” and dreams of achieving academic success so she and Amma can leave for the city. But when Kavi scores highest in her district, now-pregnant Amma cannot accompany her to Colombo for further schooling. Living with her aunt, who works as a housemaid, Kavi dreams of being like her “happy, fearless, popular” peers, and begins telling elaborate lies to fit in. The lies help her find acceptance from her peers, but they come at a cost—to Kavi’s grades, her values, and her sense of self. Amid a historical setting informed by classism, colorism, and colonization, short reflective phrases and vivid cultural details bring out the nuanced story’s emotional depth and show the devastating impact of war on Kavi and her loved ones. Back matter offers historical context. Ages 8–12. Agent: Jacqui Lipton, Raven Quill Literary. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

09/22/2023

Gr 5 Up—Set in 1998, this novel-in-verse details an eventful year in the life of a 10-year-old Sri Lankan girl. Kavi's father returned from the long-running civil war, maimed and unable to provide for his family. He dies of a sudden heart attack, and Kavi is shocked when her widowed mother (Amma) remarries. Kavi resents her stepfather, Siripala, and feels displaced when she learns that Amma is pregnant. Kavi wins a coveted scholarship to study at a better school in the capital city, Colombo, but her triumph feels bittersweet. In Colombo, Kavi stays with her unmarried aunt, Mala Nanda, who works as a maid for a wealthy family. Kavi grows close to their daughter, Sasha, and chauffeur, Ranjith. At school, she lies about her background to win acceptance with the most popular girls in her class. This backfires when her new friends ask her to help them cheat on an exam, and she risks losing her scholarship. Kavi's perspective is naïve yet thoughtful as she sorts through new situations and challenges. In Colombo, terrorist attacks leave innocent victims dead and wounded; Kavi struggles to understand the senseless random violence. As she adjusts to city life, she misses Amma but finds solace in her core values as a Sinhalese-Buddhist. VERDICT This engaging, character-driven tale will appeal to readers who enjoy novels-in-verse, and fans of Padma Venkatraman, Rajani LaRocca, and Nizrana Farook's books.—Marilyn Taniguchi

School Library Journal

2023-07-13
One Sinhalese girl’s story set during the late 1990s amid the ongoing Sri Lankan civil war.

Ten-year-old Kavi isn’t happy, and she hasn’t been happy for some time. Her father came home from years of fighting but only because he lost his leg. Then, shortly after Thaththa died, her mother remarried. Kavi’s left with no father and a distracted mother who can’t understand that no one can replace Thaththa. Her one solace is school; in fact, Kavi does so well academically that she wins a scholarship to attend school in the big city of Colombo. She isn’t sure she wants to go live with her maternal aunt who works as a maid in a rich family’s house, but it might be better than staying at home. The city is completely different from Kavi’s village, and even as she struggles to fit in, she finds unexpected friendships and explores new experiences. But ultimately, Kavi’s future will depend on the consequences of one mistake and whether she can remain true to herself. Told in accessible, economical verse, this novel explores Kavi’s day-to-day struggles against a backdrop of civil war and social inequality. Though her problems at times seem insurmountable, this is ultimately a reassuring story of friendship, family, and finding solutions.

A serious and relatable tale of everyday life intersecting with and diverging from the realities of war. (historical notes, glossary) (Verse historical fiction. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews