Last weekend, I got to go to the Colorado Teen Writing Conference. One of the authors there was Sandhya Menon, and I wanted to read one of her books before I went. While I was trying to figure out which of her books to read, someone mentioned that Dimple was a computer scientist. Just like The Kiss Quotient had me at math, When Dimple Met Rishi had me at computer science.
Both Dimple and Rishi come from traditional Indian immigrant families. Dimple rejects these traditions. While her mother wants her to find the Ideal Indian Husband and get married, Dimple wants a career as a computer scientist. Rishi, on the other hand, wants to follow the path that his family has lined up for him and marry the girl that his parents have arranged for him: Dimple Shah.
Dimple doesn’t have any clue about this so-called marriage arrangement, so when she meets Rishi for the first time at Insomnia Con (a six-week summer program for computer scientists) things don’t exactly turn out the way that Rishi would have hoped. I won’t say what happens, but it is funny as anything.
What I Liked
I loved this book. It was funny and the characters were great. I haven’t read many (perhaps not any) stories with Indian-American characters, and I really liked that aspect too. The relationship development between Dimple and Rishi was realistic and sweet.
There were so many awesome quotes I wrote down into my book journal from this book, such as when Rishi’s brother told him “You’re like, some weird thirty-five-year-old teenager” or when Dimple’s “stomach began to flutter up a tiny tornado.” It made the book much more colorful.
There were so many ways that I could identify with Dimple as a character. Not only did I major in computer science in college, but Dimple also had to deal with jerks who mocked her for her looks. The book is full of truths about life, and the characters learn these things for themselves as they develop throughout the course of the book. I just love it.
I can’t think of anything I didn’t like about the book.
If you’re looking for a cute contemporary story, I highly recommend When Dimple Met Rishi. It’s funny, sweet, and has so much to say. I definitely plan on reading more books by this author at some point, and hope to read the accompanying eNovella, As Kismet Would Have It, that comes out on April 30th as well.