Twelve-year-old Rahul Kapoor is anxious about starting seventh grade in his small town in Indiana. He takes to heart what he thinks is the moral of a story from his beloved grandfather Bhai: Find one thing you’re really good at and become the best at it. He hopes this will help him fit in at his predominantly White school and keep away the bullies.
Rahul isn’t so good at self-examination, however. He starts with football and acting, neither of which he is the best at, but dismisses the Mathletes as too nerdy and too close to stereotypes about Indian Americans. His friend Chelsea, who is White, supports him in his explorations and eventually helps him give Mathletes a try. He soon becomes a star.
We see him continue to struggle with embracing his Indian and gay identities, though, as he faces homophobia and racism and tries to calm his anxieties and possible OCD. Yet his family is supportive, as are some friends, and he gradually finds his way towards self-acceptance. Author and actor Maulik Pancholy notes that the book is semiautobiographical, and this shows in the thoughtful, but sometimes raw descriptions of Rahul’s feelings, as well as in the joy Rahul expresses as he comes to better understand and love himself.
A Stonewall Honor Book, and well deserved.
