The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani

 

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hiranandani, Veera. 2018. THE NIGHT DIARY. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers. ISBN 9780735228511. 

2. PLOT SUMMARY
Nisha receives a diary for her 12th birthday. She uses this precious gift to write entries to her deceased mother almost every night.  She chronicles the day’s happenings, and her evolving thoughts and feelings.  The entries quickly center around the tumultuous current events of her homeland, which has been India up until now. The Night Diary is set in the summer of 1947, when Great Britain grants India her Independence. But instead of celebrating, the people of India violently divide between Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh.  Because of their religion, Nisha and her family are forced to leave their home and flee South. Nisha and her family experience hardship and change, but they also discover what really matters. 

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The Night Diary is an endearing tale. Hiranandani uses the structure of diary entries to maximize the first person narrative voice of Nisha. Nisha has a limited understanding of the historical politics that affect her life. The adults in the novel give the reader a very limited and basic explanation of the conflicts, introducing the major players, Jinnah, Nehru, and Gandhi. The history within the book is more about the experience of the religious refugee.

There are really two stories within the book- one of a respected family that becomes endangered because of the instability of decolonization, and another of a young girl who goes through a season of self-discovery, while she continues to process the loss of her mother. Nisha can’t reconcile these divisive issues of the world around her with the familiar relationships she has with all kinds of people in her life. 

There seems to be an undercurrent of social commentary about the effect of violence on children. After describing a particularly violent scene, Nisha writes, “I am broken on top of broken.” The simplicity of the syntax is very powerful. 

4. AWARDS & REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
ALA Notable Children's Books, 2019

Kirkus Reviews starred, (January 2018) “Nisha’s voice is the right mix of innocence and strength, and her transformation is both believable and heartbreaking.”

Newbery Honor, 2019

School Library Journal starred, (January 2018) “This rich, compelling story, which speaks to the turbulence surrounding India's independence and to the plight of refugees, should be in all libraries serving middle grade readers.”

Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA), (February 2018)

5. CONNECTIONS
*This book could be a part of a Refugee collection, including Without Refuge by Jane Mitchell, Zenobia by Morten Durr, The day of the Pelican by Katherine Paterson, Everything sad is untrue: a true story by Daniel Nayeri, and there are many more! 

*It could also be used as a great complement to a study of the partition of India, along with primary sources and non-fiction books such as The partition of India (Redrawing the Map) by Kate Shoup, or The partition of British India by Jeff Hay.