The Partition Project

By Saadia Faruqi

A young journalist uncovers her grandmother's hidden past, revealing a story of survival and identity.

4.2/5 Goodreads · 775 ratings

416 pages· 75,748 words· Est. 10.5 hour read

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Bookroo's summary

Mahnoor's life is upended when her grandmother moves in, bringing tales of the Partition of India and Pakistan. As Maha struggles with a documentary project, she discovers Dadi's past is the perfect story. Can she balance family bonds with her passion for journalism, and what truths will emerge from Dadi's memories? Dive into a journey of history, identity, and unexpected revelations.

From the publisher

In this engaging and moving middle grade novel, Saadia Faruqi writes about a contemporary Pakistani American girl whose passion for journalism starts a conversation about her grandmother’s experience of the Partition of India and Pakistan–and the bond that the two form as she helps Dadi tell her story. When her grandmother comes off the airplane in Houston from Pakistan, Mahnoor knows that having Dadi move in is going to disrupt everything about her life. She doesn’t have time to be Dadi’s unofficial babysitter–her journalism teacher has announced that their big assignment will be to film a documentary, which feels more like storytelling than what Maha would call “journalism.”As Dadi starts to settle into life in Houston and Maha scrambles for a subject for her documentary, the two of them start talking. About Dadi’s childhood in northern India–and about the Partition that forced her to leave her home and relocate to the newly created Pakistan.As details of Dadi’s life are revealed, Dadi’s personal story feels a lot more like the breaking news that Maha loves so much. And before she knows it, she has the subject of her documentary.

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