{"product_id":"american-betiya-9781984897183","title":"American Betiya","description":"\u003cb\u003eA luminous story of a young artist grappling with first love, family boundaries and the complications of a cross-cultural relationship. Perfect for fans of Sandhya Menon, Erika Sanchez and Jandy Nelson.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eAmerican Betiya\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Bank Street College of Education Best Book of 2022\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA YALSA Best Best Fiction for Young Adults\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eCosmopolitan\u003c\/i\u003e Best 100 Books of All Time\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Book Riot best YA Book of 2021\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA South Asia Book Award 2022 honoree\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Children's Cooperative 2022 Best Book of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA 2022 Nerdy Book Club Best Novel Award Winner\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eRani Kelkar has never lied to her parents, until she meets Oliver. The same qualities that draw her in--his tattoos, his charisma, his passion for art--make him her mother's worst nightmare. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThey begin dating in secret, but when Oliver's troubled home life unravels, he starts to ask more of Rani than she knows how to give, desperately trying to fit into her world, no matter how high the cost. When a twist of fate leads Rani from Evanston, Illinois to Pune, India for a summer, she has a reckoning with herself--and what's really brewing beneath the surface of her first love. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWinner of SCBWI's Emerging Voices award, Anuradha D. Rajurkar takes an honest look at the ways cultures can clash in an interracial relationship. Braiding together themes of sexuality, artistic expression, and appropriation, she gives voice to a girl claiming ownership of her identity, one shattered stereotype at a time. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eA brave, beautiful exploration of identity\u003c\/b\u003e--those thrust upon us, and those we forge for ourselves.\" --Elana K. Arnold, award-winning author of \u003ci\u003eWhat Girls Are Made Of\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eCaptures the heartbreaking impetuousness of that all-consuming first love, \u003c\/b\u003ethe tightrope we walk as we seek to navigate cultural tensions . . .\" --Gae Polisner, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Memory of Things\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eA bold coming-of-age piece\u003c\/b\u003e.\" -Buzzfeed \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eANURADHA D. RAJURKAR\u003c\/b\u003e is a teacher by day and a YA writer by night, who holds two degrees from Northwestern University. She lives in Evanston with her husband and two sons. \u003ci\u003eAmerican Betiya\u003c\/i\u003e is her first novel. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eVisit her at anuradharajurkar.com\u003cbr\u003eFollow her on Twitter @adrajurkar1\u003cbr\u003eFollow her on Instagram @anuradhadrajurkar\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Ember","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50724928913682,"sku":"9781984897183","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_c3c63658-5a55-453f-90f9-ec39dd333afa.jpg?v=1748707858","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/american-betiya-9781984897183","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}