Literature Overview
A Group of One by Rachna Gilmore
Summary
Tara Mehta is a typical high school teenager, born and raised in Canada. Like most students her age, she strives to be seen for who she is while trying to figure just what that means. Throughout this novel, Tara gives her opinions strongly and without apologies. She calls herself a "group of one" so that others will stop pigeon-holing her as Indian-Canadian, exotic, and a minority.
In the beginning of the story, readers are introduced to Tara, her family: Dad, Mom, sisters Nina and Maya, best friend Erin, and love interest Jeff. A high school student could easily relate to Tara's life at first.
Upon closer inspection, however, Tara struggles to be seen as a Canadian. Her parents are of Indian descent, both having been born in India before emigrating to Canada after the struggle for Indian Independence began. Tara's parents strive to create a "normal" life for their daughters and manage this quite well until news comes that Mummyji, grandmother, from India is coming for a visit...with an open-ended ticket.
The household goes into overdrive to create a warm, welcoming, and acceptable home for Mummyji. As the preparations are taking place, Tara and Nina try to uncover the family secret concerning the relationship between their mother and Mummyji. Slowly they learn that Mummyji fought with Mahatma Gandhi in the nonviolent Indian Independence movement while their mother's parents moved to Canada to escape the discord in their homeland. Given the two families highly diverse experience with Indian culture, there is great cause for tension and unsaid feelings.
When Mummyji arrives, Tara is determined to get to her go back to India as soon as she walks in the door. Tara is proud of her mother, who strives for women's rights, and does not want her old grandmother trying to convince her to be a typical subservient Indian woman.
As hard as Tara tries she cannot avoid getting to know Mummyji, eating her delectable Indian cuisine, and becoming engrossed in the heritage and life story of her family. Mummyji, thanks to an assignment from Tara's teacher, is given the opportunity to fill in all the background information of her experience with the Indian Independence movement and work with Gandhi. Tara learns of how Mummyji's brothers and father were imprisoned on her birthday and her life changed forever. She began fighting for independence from Britain and how she worked to keep Indian heritage alive.
Tara writes a gripping report that she unwillingly shares with her entire class. There are twisting connections between her family heritage and Jeff's, soul-wrenching details of the abuse suffered under British rule, and eye-opening similarities between Tara and her Mummyji. After reading her report, Tara is again pigeon-holed by her teacher's ignorance and she can no longer tolerate it. She loses her cool and tells her teacher to view her as Tara or leave her alone.
As Mummyji's visit nears an end, unresolved conflict comes to a boiling point between Tara's mother and Mummyji. After both sides are their hurts and views, Tara give Mummyji a piece of her mind about the fact that she had never bothered to come and meet her grandchildren and be a part of their lives. As all parties ponder what has finally been said, the family comes together in a spirit of unity and diversity.
About Racha Gilmore
The acclaimed and highly published author of A Group of One, Rachna Gilmore, was born in New Delhi, India in 1953. She remained in India until she was fourteen and then moved with her family to London, England. She completed a degree in biology, knowing she did not have the desire to pursue a career in the medical field. She moved to Canada following graduation. She married, settled in Prince Edward Island, obtained a B.Ed., and had two children.
Rachna loved books as a child and secretly dreamed of becoming an author. She tinkered with writing while her children were young and then took the leap to become a published author. She has written many children's books and knows the struggles and dedication of being a writer.
For more on Rachna Gilmore, please visit her website.
The acclaimed and highly published author of A Group of One, Rachna Gilmore, was born in New Delhi, India in 1953. She remained in India until she was fourteen and then moved with her family to London, England. She completed a degree in biology, knowing she did not have the desire to pursue a career in the medical field. She moved to Canada following graduation. She married, settled in Prince Edward Island, obtained a B.Ed., and had two children.
Rachna loved books as a child and secretly dreamed of becoming an author. She tinkered with writing while her children were young and then took the leap to become a published author. She has written many children's books and knows the struggles and dedication of being a writer.
For more on Rachna Gilmore, please visit her website.
Teacher's Review
There are so many qualities of fine literature found in this piece. I believe any reader can connect to this work either personally, comparing to another novel, or to the world around them. Gilmore's writing is gripping, fast-paced, real, and engaging. The vocabulary exposure and cultural experience alone makes this a worthwhile read for adolescents. Tara's straightforward style relates easily to students in the 21st century. The intricate web of themes (independence, familial struggles, love, immigration, cultural identity) gives this story depth beyond what current adolescent novels portray. The highs and lows of the story line move quickly and keep the reader engaged while teaching about Indian culture, Gandhi, and family relationships. In my opinion, Rachna Gilmore's A Group of One, is an unknown literary treasure.
One of my favorite things about this story is the way Gilmore brings out the struggle that teens face to first learn who they are as a person and second to make that known. That is why I've titled this project: Making Myself Known. I remember the difficulty one teenage years, trying to combine who people expected me to be, whether it related to my culture and heritage or religious expectations, and who I believed I wanted to be. Tara goes through this struggle very openly, through dialogue and inner conversations she has with herself. My goal through the activities on the assignment page is to have my students become familiar with Indian history and culture, but also find ways to express who they are.
There are so many qualities of fine literature found in this piece. I believe any reader can connect to this work either personally, comparing to another novel, or to the world around them. Gilmore's writing is gripping, fast-paced, real, and engaging. The vocabulary exposure and cultural experience alone makes this a worthwhile read for adolescents. Tara's straightforward style relates easily to students in the 21st century. The intricate web of themes (independence, familial struggles, love, immigration, cultural identity) gives this story depth beyond what current adolescent novels portray. The highs and lows of the story line move quickly and keep the reader engaged while teaching about Indian culture, Gandhi, and family relationships. In my opinion, Rachna Gilmore's A Group of One, is an unknown literary treasure.
One of my favorite things about this story is the way Gilmore brings out the struggle that teens face to first learn who they are as a person and second to make that known. That is why I've titled this project: Making Myself Known. I remember the difficulty one teenage years, trying to combine who people expected me to be, whether it related to my culture and heritage or religious expectations, and who I believed I wanted to be. Tara goes through this struggle very openly, through dialogue and inner conversations she has with herself. My goal through the activities on the assignment page is to have my students become familiar with Indian history and culture, but also find ways to express who they are.
References
Gilmore, Rachna. A Group of One. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Co., 2001