Aru Shah and the End of Time

Aru Shah and the End of Time
Roshani Chokshi
Rick Riordan Presents/Disney, 2018
368 pages 
Grades 3-7
Fantasy/Mythology
Pandava series #1

Aru Shaw struggles socially. When three classmates show up at the Indian heritage museum where her mother is the curator, she shows off to them by lighting the Lamp of Bharata, which is cursed and forbidden. All heck lets loose as the people in her life become frozen and she lands in a mythical Hindu world, where she meets various Gods, including her new spirit guide, a pigeon named Boo. She also meets her new soul sister, a young girl named Mini. Aru and Mini discover that they are reincarnations of famous Hindu demigods: the Pandava brothers. When the lamp was lit, an evil force called The Sleeper was awakened. The Sleeper in turn is bent on waking the Lord of Destruction, who will end the world. It is up to Aru and Mini to stop the Sleeper from completing his evil task. Their adventures land them in many different scenarios, including a bewitched beauty parlor and the Night Bazaar, which is disguised as a surreal Cosco, and meet many crazy re-imagining of evil Hindu Gods. The two would-be heroes work hard to battle the forces of evil, all while learning to trust each other and form bonds, overcoming self-doubt, and finding their inner-courage and hidden magical talents. Other reincarnated Pandava brothers are still unaware of their lineage and will more than likely be acquainted with our heroes in the next installments of the series.

Rick Riordan takes his popular modernized mythological/adventure format and taps into new cultures and fresh authors from the culture explored. The first in his new imprint is focusing on Indian mythology. It feels as if America is finally waking up and noticing that we have a significant Indian-American population that is invisible in popular culture. From TV, movies, and literature Indian culture is an emerging and welcoming presence. Similar in format and content to the recently released Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond series, Chokshi explores similar content in a different way that is equally exciting and fresh. There is certainly room for both series and fans of one will migrate easily to the other. Aru Shaw has the Rick Riordan name on it, therefore guaranteeing an audience. I love that the Pandava brothers are reincarnated as girls, giving the series a feminist slant. Even though girls are the main characters, the adventurous aspects will appeal to both sexes and boys will not be put off by the story and may discover that girls can do cool things and be fearless when the situation dictates. Much like Percy Jackson, even though the tales are old, the story is modern, welcoming contemporary kids to the classic stories. Gentle humor and witty dialog is infused throughout, making this an enjoyable read and giving the intense action a bit of lightness. This series will be popular and is a welcome addition to the genre.