The Pink Dress

MY THOUGHTS

The Pink Dress by Shabnam Minwalla is about an eight-year-old girl, Kanmani, who wants a frilly, lacy, pink dress for her birthday. Now, if you thought the plot of the book was so simple, you haven’t read very many Shabnam Minwalla books!

Yes, Kanmani wants a pink dress for her birthday, but how she plans to get it reveals a lot about her living situation and her family life. Early in the book, we read that Kanmani has more clothes than everyone in Ekta Nagar. We assume they are well off. But a few pages later, we read the circuitous route Kanmani must take to meet Diya. We then realise that Diya lives in Cuffe Parade and Kanmani’s mother works as Diya’s nanny and comes back home to Kanmani only on the weekends. Every once in a while, she brings back huge bags of Diya’s hand-me-downs for Kanmani. So now, Kanmani realises the only way she will get a pink dress is by going straight to the source, against her mom’s advice.

This is such a layered book, and I enjoyed reading it for so many reasons. Not once does Shabnam Minwalla use adjectives like rich or poor, nor does she allow the reader to assume that Kanmani is unhappy living in a chawl or learning lessons by rote in her school. All we see is a girl determined to wear a pink dress on her birthday and finding the best way to ensure she has the dress. The older characters in the book are hardworking, trying to make ends meet, but that is never told to us overtly. She allows the reader to peel back information and understand things as they read through the book. Even though we may be quick to assume a ‘pink-dress-for-girls’ stereotype, she balances it out with the character of Diya, who is a t-shirt and jeans girl.

Her supporting characters, scowling principal Dolly Divecha, her friends – spelling champ Prabha and hopping champ Irfaan, and older brothers Vijay and Hamza all play key roles in Kanmani’s masterplan. Dolly Divecha’s questions, the scamster in a pink dress, and the lessons learnt by heart from school – all make this book a hilarious read-aloud! The book also ends not with one happy ending, but four happy endings! Tanvi Bhat’s illustrations take us on a whirlwind ride of Kanmani’s expressions. I love how she gives both Kanmani and Diya distinct identities. Once I knew more about the characters, I enjoyed going back to look for the little hints Tanvi gives us about Kanmani’s neighbourhood through the illustrations. The centre spread with the kids under a banyan tree is truly breathtaking.

Hole Books is a great set of chapter books for emerging readers because of their engaging and contemporary stories, mix of illustrations with text, and endearing, relatable characters. The Pink Dress, too, is perfect for children 7+. Add this Hole Book to your child’s collection today!