Beautiful illustrations weave between color and black and white depending on the realistic storyline of a young Indian-American girl trying to make sense of her heritage amid the bits and pieces of information provided by her mother. A great addition to a diverse graphic novel collection.

It's both a family story and an interesting look at another culture. I really enjoyed reading it and the colors are beautiful. I'd definitely suggest this to younger teens.

Pashmina is such a wonderful, empowering book for young women in the world. The story is about Priyanka, a teenage Indian girl who was born in America and has only ever known that as her home. As she explores her life through her creative projects, she begins to wonder more about her family in India and what happened there to her mother to drive her away from those she loved most and why she would want to start anew without them. She longs to know more about her father and all sorts of other things that a young girl might want to know about.

As her mother puts up walls to try to protect Priyanka, she inadvertently makes Pri even more hellbent on finding the truth. One day, she finds a beautiful pashmina in her mother’s things. The pashmina shows Priyanka beautiful visions of India and drives her need to know more about her past and her family.

Most of the story is told in simple but lovely black and white. When Priyanka puts on the pashmina, however, the world that she sees while wearing it is in full, beautiful colour. The pages are vibrant and enriched, which shows how India calls to Priyanka and how enticing that world is to her. It’s something outside of her every day life and is full of sights, sounds, smells and people that Priyanka hasn’t experienced before.

The story is sweet and teaches women that they can choose their own fate and future. Their happiness is not reliant on someone else and at any point in time, you can adjust your path. The art is fairly simplistic but not in a bad way. It’s along the lines of what you might see in a Raina Telgemeier book, but minus the colour (except with the pashmina sequences).

It’s nice to see a character that embraces their heritage and background and wants to actively find out more about their family and history as opposed to seeing teenagers who are rebelling by not wanting anything to do with it. Priyanka loves drawing and creating stories for her and her friends. She finds inspiration in her personal life and experiences, which I found absolutely charming.

Verdict:
Buy this book! I think it’s an important story that will help young people embrace their backgrounds, especially in a time when politicians and people stuck in the past are making many feel like you can’t be proud of your heritage unless you’re white. Diversity makes us special and Pashmina demonstrates that theme for us over and over again.

Pashmina will be out later this year on October 7, 2017.

I absolutely loved this graphic novel! Priyanka has trouble fitting in at school and has questions about her past. She finds a pashmina in her mother's closet which magically transports her to a world more colorful than any she ever imagined. Will the questions about her past finally be answered? The transitions from black and white to color, really made this story come alive.

The illustrations were beautiful, but I would have liked more development in the story. Some story lines - the bullying, the baby's recovery - were dropped or rushed.

I had high hopes for this book because of the amazing illustrations. I was hoping it would be something I could give kids who love realistic fiction graphic novels. The illustrations drew me in, but the storyline and story development could have been better.

Wow, what a beautiful book. It was a beautiful story and the illustrations were gorgeous. I enjoyed that it was a different take on an Indian girl growing up in the United States with the cultural differences between herself and her family. That piece of the story reminded me specifically of "Born Confused" by Tanuja Desai Hidier. But incorporating Hinduism with prayers to Shakti was a special touch that was important to the story and to Priyanka. And the pashmina being a beautiful symbol of the power of feminism, moving women towards bettering themselves, via the divine feminine was quite lovely. All around, just a touching and beautiful story.

I was interested in this book because graphic novels can often help make an unfamiliar culture or setting more accessible. This story of Priyanka, an Indian girl living in America, is one a lot of second generation kids may relate too. Their parents' lives and motivations are a mystery, especially if they haven't been to their country. So many immigrants come here for a better life, for many different reasons. What's unique about this story is the magical pashmina. Somehow, it connects Priyanka to India in a way she didn't expect. While there were a few parts that were confusing, it came together at the end. And there is a short glossary at the end to explain some of the language. I will definitely add this to the classroom library.

When Priyani puts on the pashmina that she finds in a hallway closet, she is transported to India, and author Nidhi Chanani's black and white artwork is transformed into rich color. Priyani is greeted by new friends Kanta and Mayur (an elephant and a peacock), her tour guides through her mother's home country. She's captivated by the sights, sounds, and tastes, but she's also pursued by a mysterious shadow figure. The pashmina slips off, and Pri is back home again, desperately hoping to talk her mother into letting her travel to India IRL. Her mother relents after receiving a phone call from Pri's aunt, who is pregnant and seeking family to support her. This middle-grade graphic novel charmingly depicts the many ups and downs of a mother-daughter relationship, the pashmina's true purpose, and the importance of connecting with one's familial culture. It's a wonderful choices for readers who find themselves somewhere in between Raina Telgemeier's and Lucy Knisley's books.

Pashmina is the story of Priyanka "Pri" as she tries to uncover her mother's complicated relationship with India and her own relationship with her mother. The story itself is a really great story of identity and family. The artwork of the novel is beautiful. The story switches between black and white and color panels as Pri moves from the real world to the world of the pashmina. It's stunning and effective. Overall, I really enjoyed this graphic novel. It would be a wonderful book for students wanting to learn more about identity or ones that want to explore the world of graphic novels but aren't sure where to start.

Priyanka, a young Indian-American being raised by a single mother, is an aspiring graphic novelist who yearns to learn about her father and her mother's family in India. After winning a comic contest, and a little magic, Priyanka gets to meet her aunt in India and learn about everything she'd been wanting to know. But Priyanka didn't expect the news she would learn.

I love the bright colors used when the Pashmina is working its magic. It allows readers to better experience what the person wearing the pashmina is experiencing. I also like the glossary at the end, to help readers like me who might not have quite figured out the meaning even with the context clues.

Pashmina is a story about Priyanka, an American-Indian teen who wants to know more about her Indian heritage, but when she asks her mother, her mother skirts around the topic and won’t divulge anything about Indian or the family she left behind, including Priyanka’s father. Priyanka finds a magical Pashmina that transports her to a fantasy version of India. This sparks a new desire to visit India and see firsthand the country, heritage, and family she was never able to grow up with.

This story is a great look at family, heritage, and first generation immigrants. The fantasy realism aspects feel whimsical and fun. I actually felt like this book could have been longer and gone more in depth in the relationships among the adults and secondary characters. I felt like I didn’t get to “know” many of the characters in three dimensions.

A little too comic, and not graphic novel for my tastes. But it has a good story to it none the less.

I found this book to be slow getting started, but once Priyanka got to India and started learning about her family history and the background of the pashmina, I was completely engaged. I'm a little confused as to why the visions presented an idealized version of the women's choices rather than a more accurate one, but overall, I really liked the themes of empowerment. I think this book could pair nicely with Jimmy Gownley's The Dumbest Idea Ever or Svetlana Chmakova's Awkward.