Monika Schröder,
Saraswati’s Way
Francis Foster Books, 2010.

Ages 10-14

What do you do when you have a dream that seems impossible? Twelve-year-old Akash loves numbers. He loves the way they fit together, form patterns, and make order in a world so often full of incomprehensible unfairness. After his Bapu, his father, passes away, Akash’s dreams of winning a scholarship to study math seem further away than ever. His family’s fields lie parched and barren. They cannot pay their rent. When Akash’s grandmother gives him to the man who owns their land, forcing him to leave school to chip rocks in the quarry, Akash decides to take fate into his own hands.

Praying to Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, Akash runs away to Delhi, empty-handed but full of determination. In this raw, unsentimental, yet wholly empathetic novel, Akash faces harsh realities of poverty and street life in India, while negotiating universal struggles of temptation. Will he choose the faster, dishonorable route to his goal? Or the slower but honest option? Like all who encounter roadblocks, Akash struggles with challenges and temptations. But armed with a steady head and a true heart, he learns to trust that honest paths and loyal friends ultimately prove wiser ways to achieving one’s dreams.

Monica Schröder, a German native who has lived and taught in New Delhi since 2002, weaves a layered, nuanced story of longing, loss and coming-of-age in a country struggling with poverty, as told through one boy’s fierce determination to overcome its challenges. Her graceful, mellifluous writing seamlessly interweaves details of Indian life and Hindu religion into Akash’s story, making it a gripping, inspiring tale of perseverance, integrity and urban survival set in a landscape rich with details of Indian culture, cuisine and religion. A brief afterword and glossary give background on Vedic math, Hindu gods, street children in India, and words used in the book.

Schröder’s gentle tone makes this a stylistically light read for a teenager, but the complexity of the problems Akash faces – including drugs, child labor, and family death – may be heavy for some pre-teens. A wonderful choice for parents to put under the noses of reluctant teen readers, ready for mature plot lines narrated in accessible language, Sarawati’s Way also dialogues well with recent offerings about India and Indian Americans, including works by Mitali Perkins, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni and Uma Krishnaswami.

Sara Hudson
May 2011