“Priyanka!”

From Nidhi Chanani’s Pashmina.

Teenager Priyanka often finds herself struggling to find her fitting between the traditions of her Indian mother and the culture she’s surrounded by in America. While Priyanka’s life is filled with good things like friends, family, and drawing, she is constantly left wondering about her mother’s past in India. Despite Priyanka’s repeated requests for information about her unknown father and the reason her mother refuses to return to India, Priyanka’s mother never answers the question. After making a selfish prayer to the goddess Shakti, Priyanka is racked with guilt until she finds a gorgeous pashmina in her mother’s old suitcase, because as soon as she wraps the shawl around her shoulders, she experiences a vision of India. Unsure of what is happening, but captivated by the beauty she sees, Priyanka repeatedly wears the pashmina and explores India, though a strange shadow begins to follow her through her visions. Unable to ignore the desire to see India anymore, Priyanka convinced her mother to let her visit her aunt. However, once she arrives, Priyanka discovers that finding the truth about the pashmina will change the lives of all her family forever.

This graphic novel offers a very quick read that is packed full of Indian culture. The glossary of terms at the end of the book would better serve readers at the story’s start, but the illustrations carry the story well enough. Pashmina is an interesting fantasy adventure that will appeal to readers of many backgrounds.