I started this book really wanting to like it.. I liked that the setting was in Canada on the East Coast and I liked that the main character was Indian and I was provided with a view into a cultural that is different from mine, but the story just didn't hold my attention. I did finish the book but it took effort and as a reader that isn't something I often experience. It was missing something for me, I just didn't connect to the characters as I usually do. and the ending made me question even what the point of the story was. This is not one I will be recommending.

The most precious substance on earth is a story about Nina a south Asian female growing up in Halifax. Nina’s story begins when she is an awkward 14 year old and continues until she is an English teacher in her mid 30’s. Stages of Nina’s life are discussed as well as the various hurtles and tragedies she suffers. Parts were funny and but some were sad. I have to say I found some of Nina’s traumatic events triggering. For that reason I wouldn’t suggest reading this book if you are feeling down and discouraged. That being said it is well written and has lots of fun references to growing up in the 90’s.

Thank you to NetGalley for my arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is a Netgalley early release copy which I found, once again, to be of poor quality with miniscule font and many blank pages. Normally I would have ditched it but I felt obliged to read on, despite the harm to my eyes, in order to provide the feedback expected from early release offers. About the book - I should point out that it is not horrid as my early comments may imply. Author, Shasti Bhat shows promise of being a successful writer; I was drawn to the book on account of the blurb on the book cover . Here are my thoughts:

The book capitalized on a few age old stereotypes:

The protagonist is of South Asian descent born in the Canadian city of Halifax. Her father has a PhD in Bio Chemistry from an unnamed but supposedly ivy league university in India. Her parents are pious Hindus trying to live in a city where there aren't many people who look like them or who share the same culture. The parents create their own social bubble through the temple where they are active members. One cannot help but love the parents, who despite trying to arrange a marriage for their only daughter - Nina, are very open minded and supportive of her.

Nina, the protagonist is the much loved daughter who is studious and smart and has excellent writing skills. When the book starts, we meet Nina as a young girl with a deep crush on her much older English teacher. Her story, told in the first person, stretches chronologically through time to a grownup Nina in her mid thirties. The book is chockfull of pop culture references, some of which I get while some just flew right over my head.

I enjoyed reading about Nina's friendship with her white friend - Amy and all the stuff young girls of that age get into. Their early fun and innocent shenanigans morphed into drugs, hideously coloured hair to appear cool, some bit of cruelty to others at school, and subsequently to a falling apart of this childhood relationship. Again the stereotypical trauma of a family divorce sends Amy down into a chasm she is unable to extricate herself from. Nina, on the other hand, misses her friend but continues forward despite the deep secret she harbours. The trauma she experiences in high school unconsciously and doggedly follows her.

Nina eventually pursues a creative writing class in Baltimore, Maryland (aka Bodymore, Murderland as described by a mentor); this is in sharp contrast to yet another stereotypical aspiration of her parents that Nina studies to become a medical doctor. She lives away from home for the first time and encounter a city with its "complicated history of segregated housing." She calmly registers but does not dwell on the comment when someone yells to her "will you clean my house" - a definite reference to what someone of her skin colour should do.

Recalling that someone once remarked to her "not to get an MFA" if she has to pay for it or that it's not a job-producing degree plus the fact that being in workshops where her efforts are critiqued and, most importantly, feeling lonely and unmoored, Nina drops out. We see her as a teacher trying to help her students while reflecting on her own student days.

The entire novel is written in short chapters and they do not feel inter-connected. In fact, they read like distinct short stories detailing different experiences by the protagonist - we read about her experiences with Toastmaster, or her attempt at exercise at the Goodlife gym, her father's heart attack, her mother's mentoring of exchange students etc. All of these seems not to steer the reader towards a plot but rather as more character development.

Nothing is wrapped up and connected yet I kept turning the pages to find out more about Nina and where will her experiences lead her. In the end, there is a reference how all our experiences coalesce to determine who we are. A sudden abrupt ending reads like unfinished business but it is very clear that the author is talented.

The Most Precious Substance on Earth is the story of Nina from the time she was a young teen until she is in her mid-30s. Nina relates a series of vignettes or memories that have in some way shaped her life beginning with a traumatic event when she’s a 14 year-old girl in Halifax in the 1990s up until her mid-30s when she has been working as a high school English teacher.

The novel is a bit bleak yet it’s a thought-provoking look at what life can be like for teen girls and women – at school, in their friendships and family relationships, in the workplace and in social settings. It will make you ponder the impact that a traumatic experience as a teen might have on someone’s life. The Most Precious Substance on Earth is very much a character driven story without much plot to speak of so won’t appeal to readers who prefer a more action-packed page-turner.

I quite enjoyed that it was set in Halifax, Nova Scotia as I have visited the city several times and recognized many of the places mentioned. There are also quite a few fun pop culture references particularly from the ‘90s and ‘00s sprinkled throughout the book.

Content Warning – rape, substance abuse, eating disorders.

3.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

I was sucked into Nina’s life from the very start of The Most Precious Substance on Earth. Midway through the book, I felt like I was reading a memoir more than I was reading a novel. I’m not sure if it was the intention of the author, but I felt less of a connection with Nina as she grew older. An easy, engaging read for a weekend.

This book wasn't for me. While I was able to fly through the book very quickly I wouldn't say that I got much from it. It has very heavy topics so I expected it so have some heavy emotions inside it and I just didn't get that.

I think it would make a good conversation starter. The book talks about statutory rape and the effects it has on the main character. It's an important topic that needs to be talked about.

Nina is a fourteen year old student, who lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia in the late '90s. She has an on-line "boyfriend" in his forties and loses her virginity to her English teacher...or did she? She is also Indian, plays in the school band and very intelligent. I really liked that Nina was smart, funny and had strength throughout the story.

This book was very well written and I loved reading about the younger Nina, after that it began to be a little too slow moving for my liking. I felt the chapters were a little disconnected and didn't know where one ended and another began...they may be because I was reading a .pdf of the book. I did enjoy reading about all the '90s fads as my boys were growing up then. I also loved reading about all the different literary moments. All in all a fairly decent read about coming of age, growing up and moving on.

Bhat is a Canadian author and currently teaches creative writing at Douglas College in BC. This, her second novel, is set in Halifax and introduces us to the character of Nina. When we first meet her she is 14 years old and dealing with the expectations of her Indian parents and school. We learn of her intense crush on her English teacher and its consequences, then follow her through other significant moments in her life. The story is hard to categorize, but Bhat herself describes it as " not a book about a woman finding herself or getting justice or closure, but rather the opposite—a woman losing herself, as a result of an accumulation of unfair, gender-specific experiences." The author also explains the title in the following quote "The title refers to a scene where the narrator is in her high school concert band, which the teacher names the Platinum Band, claiming it’s the most precious substance on earth. It turns out this isn’t true. More obliquely, I intended it as a metaphor for what is lost when a girl comes of age—a combination of naivety and bravado and hope; the beliefs that we hold in girlhood." This thought provoking novel is a great recommendation for readers interested in more complex stories and would also a be great choice for book clubs. It releases in trade paperback and has a Goodreads rating of 3.66/5 from 29 readers.

A very character-driven, introspective story which explores issues such as friendship. teacher-student relationships, family dynamics, finding one’s way, etc. It was well-written but the plot unfolded very slowly. I am certain that those who enjoy character-driven stories will enjoy this one. For me, it did not touch me and neither did the character engage me but that could very well be due to my current mood.

Wow. A truly chaotic look into a young, awkward girl growing up in Halifax. So much trauma yet so relatable ably I the narrative. Loved the Canadian setting and the humour throughout. I feel like so much hurt was never addressed as a young girl grows into a woman but I also think that’s a lot of people’s reality too. Just trying to find your purpose while burying the hurt and never speaking of it. For this reason, I loved this read even tho it could be triggering.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc

I got an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) of this book from NetGalley and was immediately excited to read it but it’s description on GoodReads as a “humorous coming-of-age novel” is way off base.

I did not really enjoy reading this book, found it difficult to follow and really did not want to follow Nina, our protagonist (if we can call her that!), through one more faulty, half-hearted adventure. I think I picked up two other books for a change of pace before pushing through to the end of it.


The novel follows Nina from the age of 14 to her mid to late thirties. She’s a young woman who is struggling to find her space in the world. Again, if you read the GoodReads description you’ll know there is something that happens in high school that follows Nina throughout the rest of her life, and thus the book.

Upon reflection, I have to wonder if the writing style is meant to reflect the tumultuous and indirect path of Nina’s life. I felt like I waited a long time for the story to get going, kept expecting seemingly huge life events to have a greater impact on the story, but it never happened. And then there was a non-existent conclusion. Perhaps like Nina’s life? So many starts and stops and those impacts on her life trajectory are reflected in the novel itself.

And what about the title? The Most Precious Substance on Earth? Life itself perhaps? Otherwise I’m really not sure. Maybe it’s perseverance? I know there’s talk of platinum and other “substances” in the novel but I don’t feel it was prominent enough to be title-worthy.

I don’t even know how much more I can say about this novel - it hasn’t left me inspired and I wouldn’t recommend it.

The Most Precious Substance on Earth is so many things: it can be funny, it can be sad and powerful all at the same time.

I love the fact its in Halifax, Nova Scotia(being Canadian) and I absolutely love Nina's parents.

The relationships Nina has throughout the book are very realistic

I liked Nina, good or bad decisions, and felt I knew her by the end of the book

I know my daughter will love this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin House Canada, McClelland and Stewart for an enjoyable read.

I love reading books set in Canada, it's rare! I found this one to be very sad; it deals with hard hitting topics. I would suggest to not read it when you're in a bad mood or in a bad place mentally.

Other than that, I'm not sure how I feel about the story yet. It was interesting to follow the main character as she grows up and to see her relationship with her family change.

This book deals with a disturbing topic and may trigger some people.

It is upsetting at times, hilarious at others and it will make you think deeply about life as a woman. The main character has a lot going on in her mind and her mind never stops but she is a person of few words. Most of the book seems to take place in her thoughts. I liked Nina's character and her parents added humour and love to the story. I loved the setting in Halifax as I am from there and it was great to read the author's descriptions, knowing exactly where she meant. Her descriptions were perfect.

Each aspect of her life is described in short bursts but it ends bluntly before moving on to the next period in her life, causing me to flip back several times to see if I had missed something. There wasn't a smooth flow which left me wanting more. I don't want to call this book boring but the manner in which it was written did not make me want to read on. It was easy to stop reading and then pick it up again the next day.

It is a good book and it covers many important topics but it just didn't grip me or pull me in. I thank McLelland and Stewart and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I received a gifted e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was really excited to read this one as it is by an author I haven’t read, and I was looking to try something different. I try to give at least 100pgs but made it to pg27. I have no interest in pedophilia or 14yr olds who lose their virginity to their high school teacher. I tried to keep going, but those things did me in. Definitely not for me.

An interesting story with lots of sadness but you can't stop reading. I appreciate the story telling style and felt it was a great means to portray the content. I felt so sad for Nina that she never had any happiness in any of her life.

Thank you to netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

While this book was a slow burn for me I really liked it by the end.

The story line follows the life of a girl starting at age 14 all the way through adulthood. Each chapter outlines a major event in her life that has impacted her.

It was really interesting to see how traumatic events as a child affected everything about her as an adult. It was actually really eerie how many similarities to my own life were in these pages. At times, because of this, I had to put the book down and come back to it.

I did love that it was set in Halifax and had so many accurate depictions, I especially loved the comments about pizza corner and the wave.

This isn't a book I would typically recommend to someone but it was a really great story!

The format made this easy to read, the content made it difficult.
For anyone who keeps an eye on young girls to make sure they get home safe, anyone feeling the weight of making sure others don't go through what you went through, anyone who keeps keys between their fingers... You'll find many moments of this story dangerously relatable.

Format: The chapters are relatively short and each break down a moment in Nina's life - chronologically from 14 years old to about mid-30's - which made the book easy to pick up for quick bursts of reading. But it also made the story feel disjointed - at the start of many chapters the reader is left piecing together what happened in the interim.

Content: I struggle with the label 'coming-of-age' - it felt like Nina never changed, never aged. Stagnation makes sense as a device for the story, but it felt flat after reading the synopsis. The first chapters also feel written by an adult, they didn't come across to me as a teenager's point-of-view at all, so she didn't appear to have aged later on.
The most interesting part of this book is definitely the variety of relationships through Nina's life - friendship, family, and romantic ups and downs. Though not always easy or safe relationships, definitely very real.

A note to those readers that enjoy more action, plot, or page-turners: there is little urgency in this book, the ending has no catharsis but it didn't really matter because the book hadn't been building to any. Which is not a bad thing but is worth knowing before picking it up (personally I enjoy an ambiguous ending!).

Thanks to NetGalley & the publisher for access to the eBook ARC.

Nina's voice hooked me early on and kept me reading. This has a dark underlying event early on. I think sometimes we think girls or women will automatically speak out when such events occur, but Shashi so accurately portrays how culture or a natural bent towards keeping the peace can hinder a person from saying anything.

I felt that Nina's life after that event was an accurate portrayal of how that kind of suppression can affect us. For some, that might come out as anger or bitterness. For Nina it became a life of avoidance--avoidance of the truth of what occurred, avoidance of meaningful relationships.

Although this was told almost like a series of short stories, it held together quite well as one complete narrative.

I was really pulled in by Nina's voice. She has such spunk that was infectious and I enjoyed the feeling that she and I were having a conversation the whole time. The story was dark, however, and I wasn't expecting it to go into the places that it did. I had to take several breaks from reading it so it took me longer to read than usual. I think this was the impact that the author wanted because I was left thinking about it for a while after I'd put it down.