Karina Chopra is delighted when her paternal grandfather comes to live with her family, but not so thrilled when he begins tutoring her next door neighbor, Chris, in math. But when the three of them are attacked by a knife-wielding racist on the way home from school, Chris stands by Karina, and her photos of the event go viral, sparking much support (and also, inevitably, more hate). Chapters alternate between Karina's and Chris's POV.

See also: Wishtree by Katherine Applegate, Yusuf Azeem Is Not A Hero by Saadia Faruqi

Quotes

He still sits on the bus with the hyenas. I imagine it would be hard work to break from the pack - on Animal Planet, they said that if a hyena tries to leave his pack, sometimes the others will literally tear him apart and have him for dinner.
I don't want Chris Daniels to be eaten alive... (Karina, 26)

"We don't really know that we are safe anymore, do we?" (Karina to Dad, 60)

I've always been more comfortable saying things with my photographs. (Karina, 74)

Like Mr. C says, you have to be able to imagine a better world to make it a reality. (Chris, 82)

I slap my laptop shut and stare at it as if I have trapped a rat in there. (Karina, after reading the comments, 148) ( )

Recommended Ages: Gr. 4-6

Plot Summary: Karina and Chris are next door neighbors who never got to know each other. Karina calls Chris and his friends hyenas for their mean laughter. Karina's Papa comes to live with her family and becomes a math tutor at her school to keep him busy. Papa is an amazing math tutor, espcecially to Chris, who needs to do better in math in order to stay on the basketball team. Now, Chris and Karina spend more time together. On the way home from an afterschool tutoring session one day, a man approaches the three. The man uses a knife to convince them to give him their phones, which he throws in a bush. Then he throws racist insults at Papa and Karina, and even knocks Papa down and kicks him. Thankfully a neighbor across the street finally spots what is happening and calls the police. A newsppaer reporter, she also thinks to take a picture of hte license plate as the man drives away. Papa's femur is broken and he needs a metal rod before he can learn to walk again. Chris and Karina are extremely shaken up by their first personal experience with racism. Will Papa be ok? Will Chris and Karina be ok? How will Chris do well in math without his tutor? Will Karina turn in her photograph for the contest in time?

Setting: unnamed suburb

Characters:
Karina Chopra - 7th grader, photographer using a real camera
Trisha - Karina's mom,
Dad -
Papa - AKA Mr. Chopra, moved as a student from India, was very proud of his owning his first home in the US, has lived in the US for over 50 years
Ashley - Karina's best friend
Chris Daniels - 7th grader, Karina's next door neighbor
Bill Daniels - Chris's dad, cranky and stressed which makes him irritable
Quinn - on Chris's basketball team, racist

Recurring Themes: racism, community, reporters, friendship, family, Indian (from India), basketball, photography, social media

Controversial Issues: none

Personal Thoughts: This book is an important one for the themes and topics, but not something kids will read too much on their own. Expect it to be more of a class read. The writing feels slightly preachy and forced.

Genre: realistic fiction

Pacing: medium-fast
Characters: chapters switch between Karina and Chris, sometimes the same event is repeated or rehashed by the other character
Frame:
Storyline:

Activity: ( )

Goodreads Review:
An uplifting story, told through the alternating voices of two middle-schoolers, in which a community rallies to reject racism.

Karina Chopra would have never imagined becoming friends with the boy next door–after all, they’ve avoided each other for years and she assumes Chris is just like the boys he hangs out with, who she labels a pack of hyenas. Then Karina’s grandfather starts tutoring Chris, and she discovers he’s actually a nice, funny kid. But one afternoon something unimaginable happens–the three of them are assaulted by a stranger who targets Indian-American Karina and her grandfather because of how they look. Her grandfather is gravely injured and Karina and Chris vow not to let hate win. When Karina posts a few photos related to the attack on social media, they quickly attract attention, and before long her #CountMeIn post–“What does an American look like? #immigrants #WeBelong #IamAmerican #HateHasNoHomeHere”–goes viral and a diverse population begin to add their own photos. Then, when Papa is finally on the road to recovery, Karina uses her newfound social media reach to help celebrate both his homecoming and a community coming together.

Karina and Chris tell the story of their growing friendship in alternating chapters. Then Karina's grandfather is attacked on the street and they have to figure out how they support each other and their community in healing. A quick, accessible read with a good message. I was a little thrown by the fiery death of the attacker, which everyone just sort of accepted and moved on from. ( )

Karina finds out what true friends are when her grandfather is attacked because of his Indian heritage ( )