Artichoke Hearts

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Artichoke Heart tells the story of a time that changes Mira forever as she begins to step out of her childhood shoes and walk other paths. She wasn’t about to let anyone tell her no when she wanted to do something and had such a strong personality. I wasn't sure what to expect when I started Artichoke Hearts because I didn't know if it could quite sum up anything like what it feels like to lose someone in that way.

By providing a more supportive environment one pupil Jide felt able to tell the group about the death of his parents. The relationship between Mira and Nana Josie is touching and realistic, in fact all of the relationships in this book feel that way. I loved how realistic the character's reactions to everything were - there were no huge breakdowns and 'how will I live after this' kind of attitude, it was all reasonable reactions that would happen to everyone. Brahmachari does such a great job of using these lessons to reveal the character of Mira -- both to the reader, and to herself. Juxtaposing ideas from the imaginative creative writing classes Mira takes at school, with the increasingly poignant episodes in her own life, this warm thoughtful novel offsets the pathos of its subject matter with a lively sense of humour and a moving appreciation of close family relationships.I never dreamed when I started writing it in 2006 that this book would not only be published but that it would receive an award presented to me by Children's Laureate Anthony Browne. Author Sita Brahmachari has created an honest portrayal of a family preparing for the death of a loved one. Twelve-year-old Mira comes from a chaotic, artistic and outspoken family where it's not always easy to be heard. So imagine my delight when the two sides of Mira merged into one and she remained humble and still a little shy but capable of standing up for herself and finding her own voice. Winner of the Waterstone's Children's Book Prize, Artichoke Hearts by Sita Brahmachari is an incredibly insightful, honest novel exploring the delicate balance, and often injustice, of life and death – but at its heart is a celebration of friendship, culture, and life.

I was really struggling to find a song for this one… and I’m still not a hundred per cent I’ve made the right choice. The journal turns out to be the perfect place for Mira to work out her feelings about Jidé, Millie, and the impending death of her beloved Nana Josie. I liked to imagine that Jide is the mysterious loner boy in all these YA books only five years earlier. She wanted to understand what was happening to her grandma and she wasn’t afraid to ask questions that didn’t have simple actions. The whole concept of bereavement and loss is handled very sensitively, yes there is sadness but it’s offset by Josie’s positivity the ripples of which affect all her loved ones.Mira’s grandmother is a colourful and well travelled artist, and in preparation for her death is painting her own coffin! She has been an Amnesty International Ambassador and speaks in schools, at festivals and conferences. Brahmachari has been very successful with her portrayal of a twelve year old girl and it was great to read about an Indian/Jewish character, someone with a cultural history, without that being the main subject of the book. For a 12 year old, Mira was extremely articulate and I found her beautifully written voice wonderful to follow.

I was thinking before I got to the sad part (don't want to spoilt it for anyone) that I give this book 2. Artichoke Hearts is a book, written in diary form about a month in a girl's life when just about everything changes: her beloved bohemian grandmother is dying and she's falling in love with a boy in her class for the first time. She is drawn to mysterious Jidé, a boy who is clearly hiding a troubled past and has grown hardened layers - like those of an artichoke - around his heart. A beautifully written coming-of-age story and, if this is the standard that future British debut novels have to live up to, I'd say we're in for a fantastic year.Being brought up in Central London and surrounded by so many different cultures and languages I really connected with this aspect of the book. In real life she was so shy and bumbling and it was so endearing that my heart nearly broke every time she tried to say something in class but couldn’t find the words and/or confidence. We were all very close to her and I felt that the lessons that she taught me and my children about love and living a great life should be passed on to other people.