Eleven-year-old Dini loves everything about movies--especially Bollywood movies. So she would have been really excited about her family's move to I...
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reviews
Sep 01, 2011
Sarah-Greenbeanteenqueen
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About the Book: Dini's parents have just announced that they're moving to India for two whole years! Dini can't believe her parents are making her move away from her best friend Maddie and now she has to miss out on the Bollywood dance class she and Maddie were going to take. But India is home to Dini and Maddie's favorite movies and their favorite Bollywood star, Dolly Singh. Dini's parents aren't moving to Bombay, the movie capital of India, but instead to a small town called Swapnagiri. Surpr
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Jun 03, 2011
Cindy
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Dini and her best friend Maddie love to watch movies from Bollywood. They memorize lines from songs and know all the situations that can be solved by their favorite actress, Dolly Singh. When Dini’s mom gets a grant to study at a clinic in southern India for two years, Dini is both upset and excited. She’s upset to leave Maddie and her home in Delaware. But she’s also excited that she’ll be closer to Bombay, as all the filmi people call Mumbai. Maybe she’ll even have a chance to meet her screen
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May 28, 2011
Barbara
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Dini and her friend Maddie share everything--even an interest in Bollywood and the films of Dolly Singh. But when Dini's mother has a grant approved that enables her to work in a clinic in a small town in India for the next two years, the friends are upset at being separated. The only thing that lessens the pangs of their separation is the possibility that Dini will meet her favorite star. Off to India Dini's family goes, and through a series of unlikely coincidences, Dini hatches a plan to stra
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Sep 24, 2011
Pam
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A light book whose main character skips across the pages, continents, and cultures. Perfect for the middle reader who doesn't take life seriously but cares about friends and life. Set in India, The Grand Plan To Fix Everything tells the story of a Indian-American who leaves her best friend in the US to live in India for 2 years. Her obsession with a Bollywood Starlet is central and fun to the story and provides the cross-cultural bridge that readers need to find the setting and customs access
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Sep 05, 2011
Ruth
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What I liked about this book is that it deals with immigrants but not in a having-trouble-fitting in way. Here 11-year-old Dini (East Indian background) has a very best friend in Takoma Park MD (and I like this since this is my vicinity) and they share a love of Indian movies. The theme of movie scripts goes through the story as Dini hopes to meet the girls' favorite movie star Dolly Singh in India where Dini's family moves for two years. Will she or won't she. She meets a new friend in Indi
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Feb 14, 2012
Virginia
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Eleven-year-old Dini and her best friend Maddie LOVE Bollywood movies, especially those in which Dolly Singh stars. So when Dini's mother gets a grant to work with mothers and infants in a small village in the south of India, the girls see this as the opportunity for Dini to meet Dolly in person. Dini manages to pull this off with all of the panache and ingenuity of her movie heroine. There is just enough local color to bring rural India alive, and the friendship between the two girls is supe
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Jul 09, 2011
Tanja
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What a lovely story, so full of warmth, friendship, Indian flavors, and hope that eventually everything will be fine! I loved accompanying 11year-old Dini from America to India, learning about a part of India I hadn't heard of before. I admired her for her courage and persistence in trying to locate a famous Bollywood star and to fix everything not just for the star but for herself as well. This book will be a wonderful addition to our collection and I have already several readers in mind who wi
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Dec 06, 2011
Brandy
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Originally posted here.
Sometimes a book comes along that is a balance of quirky, enjoyable, and well written. When it happens to be a contemporary fiction novel about a culture many young readers are not familiar with, so much the better. If you are looking for such a book then Uma Krishnaswami's The Grand Plan to Fix Everything is one to check out.
This is a book many kids will be able to identify with even if they don't know anything about Bollywood or Indian culture. Th More...
Sometimes a book comes along that is a balance of quirky, enjoyable, and well written. When it happens to be a contemporary fiction novel about a culture many young readers are not familiar with, so much the better. If you are looking for such a book then Uma Krishnaswami's The Grand Plan to Fix Everything is one to check out.
This is a book many kids will be able to identify with even if they don't know anything about Bollywood or Indian culture. Th More...
Oct 22, 2011
Joenna
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Eleven-year-old Dini loves movies, and so when she learns that her family is moving to India for two years, her devastation over leaving her best friend in Maryland is tempered by the possibility of meeting her favorite actress, Dolly Singh.
I read this for Mock Newbery, and I've got to say, not really impressed. I would recommend this book to kids, but not for the Newbery award.
I read this for Mock Newbery, and I've got to say, not really impressed. I would recommend this book to kids, but not for the Newbery award.
Feb 07, 2012
Heather
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I really, really enjoyed this one. I might have liked it even more, though, if I was a big fan of Bollywood movies (or had seen even one!) because it is clear that the book has been made out to be like a film. I found it quite clever and a lot of fun to read. Others may find it silly. But I thought it was fabulous. Not for every kid, that's for sure. But some ought to find it quite entertaining.
Oct 23, 2011
Meredith
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I did like the way that Dini thinks in terms of possible plotlines, and how the movie theme was carried through with cuts to other characters' scenes and lines like "Life doesn't let you save the bloopers for the archives."
But overall, I didn't connect with any of the characters, and I didn't really care about Dolly. At all.
But overall, I didn't connect with any of the characters, and I didn't really care about Dolly. At all.
Sep 05, 2011
Ruth
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I liked this book for a positive view of Indian-America 11-year-old girl and one from Takoma Park MD, near me. The infatuation with Bollywood is shared by her friend Maddie in the US. When she has to go to India for two years she hopes to find their favorite movie star Dolly Singh. It all fits together in a fun way for grades 3-6.
Sep 07, 2011
The Library Lady
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Tried this on my daughter, pretty sure she wouldn't like it, and was right. But I was surprised at how I really didn't care for it much either.
The storytelling is as muddled and artificial as the Bollywood movies Dini loves. Might work in a movie, but as a kids book? Nope.
The storytelling is as muddled and artificial as the Bollywood movies Dini loves. Might work in a movie, but as a kids book? Nope.
Jun 21, 2011
High-energy, intelligent, confident character with a clear mission from the beginning. This story takes readers on a journey with eleven-year-old Dini with her parents to India where she discovers the kurinji flower, tiny bananas, pesky monkeys on the roof and bottle brush flowers.
Aug 05, 2011
Katie
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A blurb on the cover of the book from author Linda Sue Park described this story as a "modern fairy-tale," and I think that's the best way to sum it up. The events of Grand Plan couldn't happen in real life, but it doesn't matter because it's such a great story. I read this book mostly because it fit so well with the summer reading program theme, One World Many Stories, but it winds up being one of my favorite books of the year so far. I definitely recommend it to girls in grades 4 to
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Dec 21, 2011
Lindsey
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Dini has to move with her parents to India, away from her best friend Maddie. Her "grand plan" is to find her favorite Bollywood star and A)fix her life and B)get an autograph for Maddie.
Cute, but not too cute. I liked it.
Cute, but not too cute. I liked it.
Oct 17, 2011
Mary
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A fun book about Dini who suddenly finds out she is moving to India for 2 years. While she doesn't want to leave her best friend they decide her mission is to find their all-time favorite Bollywood star Dolly Singh.
Oct 20, 2011
I really enjoyed this book. I loved the voice and the style and the cast of quirky, individualized characters. Most refreshing. And, as a lover of Indian food, it made me want to try a curry puff.
Feb 18, 2012
Jenn
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Pretty cute. Dini was a little too single-minded for me to really love her, but overall I still liked reading about her adventure and the Bollywood flair.
Aug 27, 2011
Liz
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Dec 22, 2011
Martha
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Bollywood anyone? This rollicking plot reads like an Indie movie gone wild. Good thing our heroine had a "take two" to finish in grand style.
Aug 05, 2011
Danie
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A cute book about a bollywood obessed Dini who moves to India and hopes to meet her favorite star and help her feel better.
Jun 16, 2011
Kimberley
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Simply delightful! I really enjoyed this book. The voice and storyline are funny and unusually fresh and different. Recommended!
Aug 09, 2011
Beth
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It's a quick read for someone my age, and I'm sure third and fourth grade girls would like it.
Aug 03, 2011
Sandy
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Interesting. This books has a very unique tone which will probably turn off some readers, but which I found to bee kind of soothing once I got used to it.
Dec 03, 2011
Lauren
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A sweet book in an unusual setting. Good suggestion for fourth-grade girls who like realistic, contemporary fiction.
Oct 05, 2011
Mandy
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It's like chick lit for a 10 year old. Not my jam, but I would like it if I were a kid (though not if I were a boy, probably).
Aug 30, 2011
R
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I think what everyone will be saying about this book is that it has a fabulous voice. But that's just the most evident thing, because it also has a fantastic setting, wonderful characters, and food descriptions that make me want to eat curry. (I hate curry.) And there are so many adorable phrases you'll want to use in everyday life. And you'll want to watch Bollywood movies. And abbreviate the movies you already watch.
In short, this book is simply fabulous.
In short, this book is simply fabulous.
