Savi and the Memory Keeper

by Bijal Vachharajani

Funny, thoughtful, and deeply moving--with a unique blend of fantasy and actual science--this novel explores both personal grief in the face of family loss and collective grief in the face of climate crisis, and how the only way to move forward is through friendship of all kinds. In Shajarpur, everyone is always happy. The weather is always perfect. But newcomer Savi, a lonely teenager, doesn't know what happiness means anymore. If she were to make a list of things that were the absolute worst, moving to Shajarpur would be right on top. Well, right after missing her father, who just died of a heart attack. As Savi grapples with loss in a strange new town, she discovers something startling. Not only can she communicate with her father's plants--all forty-two of them--she can talk to the giant ficus tree behind her school. Savi soon learns that Tree (as they are known) knew her father as well and that their friendship was at the heart of a magical network of animals and plants working together to protect Shajarpur. However, Tree is in danger, along with everything else, and needs Savi's help. As she joins with all kinds of living things to save the town, Savi is shocked to find she is happy again, even if forces of nature are beyond her control.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Nature, Climate Change, Audiobook

288 pages, Hardcover

First published December 10, 2021

About the author

When Bijal Vachharajani is not reading a children’s book, she is writing or editing one.

She has written A Cloud Called Bhura: Climate Champions to the Rescue, which won the Auther Children’s Book Award 2020, and So You Want to Know About the Environment, and has co-authored 10 Indian Champions Who Are Fighting to Save the Planet and The Great Indian Nature Trail with Uncle Bikky.

Her picture books include PS What’s up with the climate?, What’s Neema Eating Today? and The Seed Savers.

The former editor of Time Out Bengaluru, Bijal has worked with 350.org, Fairtrade and Sanctuary Asia. Senior Editor at Pratham Books, Bijal has a Masters in Environment Security and Peace, with a specialisation in climate change from the University for Peace. She's now a certified climate worrier.

Reviews

[Renee Godding · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 stars

"For thousands of years, Tree and other trees have given and given. We’ve just taken. It gets tiring, propping up the world on your roots and canopies. We do what we can and then it’s time to go. To become soil again. To feed the fungi that were your voice and ears for so long. To become nourishment for the earthworms, to replenish the soil, so that new life grows again.”

A beautiful and heartwarming middle-grade story that combines themes of climate-change with personal grief and friendship. Although it may be a bit too heavy handed on the climate-metaphor at the end, the portrayal of grief (both collective and personal) in our young protagonists is spot-on. A story that leaves a bittersweet glow behind, suitable for middle-graders, teens and adults alike.

Reminded me in tones and vibes of my favourite middle-grade read of the year The Girl from Earth's End

[Romita Mukherjee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was so beautiful and heart-warming that I didn’t want it to end. Being a person who loves plants and greenery, this book is going to be very close to my heart. There were so many critical and pressing issues highlighted in the book like global warming, weather change, deforestation and all of this weaved articulately through an emotional and witty story.

I loved the character of Savi – she was passionate, loving, caring sarcastic, and most importantly, so relatable. Every other character was well portrayed and developed throughout the book. This story made me aware and conscious of how nature and our environment is changing and how we are the ones bringing that change. This was a very thought-provoking story indeed.

I enjoyed the simple and contemporary style of writing and the easy language used in the book. The pacing was neither too slow nor too fast which was a thumbs up from my side. Lastly, the pretty cover and the apt title were the cherries on top.

I would highly recommend this book to everyone.

[Indumathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so cute. Reminded me of all the YA books I used to read 🥹

[Darya · Rating 4 out of 5]

When you are about to turn fourteen, you don't even need additional reasons for the entire world to hurt. But Savi has them in abundance: her father has just recently unexpectedly died of a heart attack, and then the remaining family moved from Delhi to the city of Shajarpur, which boasts a perfect climate and where everybody is disgustingly happy. In Shajarpur, weird things start happening to Savi, making her doubt her sanity: trying to keep her father's plants alive, she starts getting weird flashbacks about something the plants witnessed years ago, and the same occurs with the huge ficus tree that grows behind her new school. Savi at first relishes these memories as a connection to her father - but ultimately she reluctantly realizes she becomes a part of an ongoing battle...

As far as understand, the novel had previously been published on the Indian market and is now being prepared for the international audience. I wish there were more explanations for the Indian elements for the international reader!
I also found the depiction of time passage a bit wanting. I know, I know: it is hard to tell a story both on the scale of climate change and on the scale of the development of relationships with new schoolmates.
Moreover, I would say that the target audience is a bit younger than the protagonist herself - just based on how the main conflict is represented. That's not a drawback but something to keep in mind if you are looking to offer the book to a young reader.

Other than that, I totally loved how this book tackles even more than one major important issue and communicates with the young reader about them. One is grief and depression and coping with the loss. (Vachharajani uses a wonderful metaphor of "the purple frog on my heart"). Another, of course, is the topic of how humanity's pursuit of progress affects the environment and makes the planet a bit less liveable place. The novel is a good primer that may give some initial food for thought.

Thanks to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the eARC. The opinion expressed above is fully my own.

[Menaka Raman · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's a scene in Savi and the Memory Keepers where Savi, her sister Meher and their mother are eating Dhokla and trading plant related puns. It's a warm, funny, drenched in love moment in the book, and I promptly burst into tears. It was not the first or last time I cried reading Bijal Vachharajani's new book. 

I've been moved by Bijal's writing many times before - whether she's writing about seed banks, angry mobs, the climate emergency or grief, and I knew that her new MGYA book was going to have me sniffling, but I didn't quite expect to burst into ugly, snotty tears SO MANY TIMES.

13 year old Savi and her mother and sister move to Shahjarpur after the sudden death of her father. It's a place with perfect climate - not too hot, not too cold, not too rainy. But this  perfect climate attracts more and more people who need malls and steel flyovers and cafes, and who cut down trees to make way for them. And soon the perfect climate becomes extreme and erratic.

While trying to cope with her grief Savi is also dealing with trying to fit in with the nerdy Ents,  making sense of how she's now friends with The Very Cool and Hip People,  and keeping her beloved father's many, many, many plants alive. 

     

In this time of confusion, anger and sorrow, Savi finds herself drawn to a giant ficus tree in her school and realises that the tree (and all the plants at home) are communicating with her,  telling her stories from the past and present. Why are the trees talking to her? Who are the shady men in the shadows she can see in these visions? Why does the young boy in some of the scenes look so familiar? And how are they all connected?

Bijal deftly weaves together strands of science, climate emergency and heart breaking loss together to tell this story, which at its heart is really about love. The love we feel for our family, friends, the love we should feel for the planet and those we share it with and what to do with that love when we lose people. 

[Natasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first read of 2022, and I couldn’t have asked for a better book with which to start the year. The book deftly weaves coping with grief, the urgent need for climate action, teenage friendships and the desire to fit in, and the wood wide web to create a book that is absolutely unforgettable.
After the death of her father, Savi, with her family, moves to a city with a perfect climate, and starts attending a school shaped like a samosa. As she struggles to keep her father’s plants alive, she finds that the plants are communicating with her, and she is being shown scenes from the past and the future. Will she be able to use that knowledge to prevent a catastrophe? Or will one more battle be lost in the conflict between development and the environment?
There have been a few books written on the Wood Wide Web- the interconnectedness of trees which they use to communicate with each other, so they can co-ordinate defences and share resources. This is, however, the first YA book that I’ve read that touches upon the theme.
It is in describing how a family copes with grief that the book really shines. Savi, her sister and her mother are each dealing with loss in their own way. Each of them blocks the other out, and tries to drown themselves in their own pursuits hoping that by avoiding grief, they can overcome it. It is only gradually that they realise that each of them is seeking to fill their own void in different ways.
The book deals with weighty subjects, but when you least expect it Bijal sneaks in a light hearted pun, elevating the experience like sea salt in caramel.
Read the book. And after you are done, go out and hug a tree. Put you ears against it’s heart and allow it to whisper its secrets to you.
And yes, Savi is not her real name. Her name is Savitri, and yes, she is named after someone quite amazing.

[Aalisha (aalishaslibrary) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book perfectly encapsulates the grief of losing a loved one at a tender age, and the flood of emotions that need to be navigated to get to a better place. Relationships change, things lose and gain new meaning, and memories are a lifeline when everything seems bleak.

As the author reiterates, nature and time are the best healers, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about how Savitri and her Eco Ents discover this through a series of magical, brimming-with-hope encounters. Where can I find my own Tree?!

[Nicole McCann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful story @Bijal!!! ❤️🌳❤️

[Sharanyaa Biswas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review was originally published in my blog (https://seaviolin.wordpress.com/).
This book is a beautiful story of a girl and a big fig tree.

The girl, Savitri aka Savi had to shift to Shajarpur as her father died.

Savi was not happy with the shifting to Shajarpur because it did not suit her nature as hers was rather gloomy. Too-happy people, perfect weather and Samosa shaped school were not for her.

When she couldn’t join a reading club in the school (she had to join one club) and was forced to join a club called Eco Ents, a hardworking club who worked for plants, she felt mad. There was another gang whom she called the Cool and Hip people. They were rude and arrogant. She decided to join the Cool and Hip people mostly to annoy the Eco Ents, but she was also interested in them. She started making connection with all the trees especially the ficus tree which the Eco Ents protect. The ficus tree connected all the other trees and provided Shajarpur with perfect weather. It was also called “Tree” in the story. She learnt about her father from all his trees and from her mother. She started following her father’s footsteps (he used to love gardening) to keep her father’s memory (& plants) alive though she did not like growing trees.

She soon learnt about an organisation, the TLEU(ATA) aka The League of Extraordinary Uncles and Two Aunties. They were attempting to kill Tree (aka the ficus tree). So they were cutting other trees. The cutting of trees was weakening Tree. This was also causing climate change.

Realizing this the Eco Ents’ member Sana, Gia, Samar, Rashid and Savi hatched a plan to stop TLEU(ATA) from killing Tree. But the plan was not working. Sana realized they had to get Shajarpur to love nature. They planted trees and nurtured them.

The Cool and Hip people, one night before an algebra test, grabbed Savi off to school. They then revealed that they were the nieces and nephews of the TLEU(ATA) and asked her to tell Tree’s secret. They then turned into pigeons, just seven feet tall so that they could threaten Savi. Samar was also part of the Cool and Hip people (like her), but helped Savi fight them. The wasps living in the trees also joined the fight. The Cool and Hip people seemed to disappear when they were defeated.

After a few days, Eco Ents found dogs and cats in the name of all except one of the Cool and Hip people on the Internet. They assumed the Cool and Hip people were actually cats and dogs as they did not find their names in the school records.

The next day at a pizza party at Savi’s, they realised Tree had called a meeting. There the TLEU(ATA) appeared and in front of them Tree died because it was time for Tree, also a living being to die. But more people in Shajarpur started loving nature, so TLEU(ATA) lost the war. But even when Tree was dead, she was still Mother Tree proving home to lots of animals and fungi and others.

[Sudeshna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Strikingly original, tugs at your heart. A book that will make you want to hold closer every loved one, be they human, animal, insect or plant.

[springcry · Rating 2 out of 5]

reading this for my thesis since i uncannily have the same term "memory keeper" in my story about memory trees haha. anyway i do appreciate the lengths this story goes to try to centralize our gaze onto seeing the value trees holds to our lives, connecting us to the wider ecosystem but i also find a lot of the dialogue to be quite unrealistic? if that makes sense? like parts of it are REALLY heavy on lecturing about the ills of climate change which i 100% agree on but maybe there are ways to allow the audience to believe this without being quite so heavy-handed?

i do understand the villainous board of evil aunties and uncles against the trees is meant to be a hilariously one dimensional caricature of capitalist polluters, but there are times where the kids in this novel feel too alien or too strange, maybe, in the way they react to each other and to the world. i greatly appreciated how the novel tackled themes of loss and grief with nuance and tender empathy, and sort of wished that was more consistent throughout the rest of the story, even for the quick jokes and comic relief aspects, just to flesh out the characters to feel more like real teens.

another thing too that kind of scratches at my enjoyment of the book is the lack of worldbuilding for the "superpowers" that the trees give the children after they've experienced the depths of their grief. its completely fine to have speculative elements, but i felt a lot of the mechanics of how these superpowers were given to these kids just felt really, really incredulous? i don't know, i was willing to let it pass to finish the novel but i came out of it wondering what could've been done to make this feel more compelling rather than a convenient point that allows these kids to relate to the trees...

[Shruti Sharma]

If you love trees just as much or more than I do, then you'll absolutely love this gem of a book. Bijal has weaved a magical story where people still remember the importance of trees, they still care for their environment, and they aren't afraid to stand against big corporations who want to clear off trees and forests in the name of development. And she tells all of that with her signature wit and humor.
The story begins with the big move that Savi hates. She lost her Dad, she had to leave her school friends behind to move to a new city Shajarpur (a fictional place), and the plants her father loved are dying. While she is dealing with the upside-down turn of events, she discovers that she can talk to plants. They show her memories of her father which she begins to love. At school, she can talk to a ginormous Ficus/Fig tree (The Memory Tree), whose heartwood is full of secrets- secrets that the tree has kept safe over generations. As the story moves, Savi deals through plethora of emotions- dealing with the loss of a father, adjusting to new life in a new city and school, searching for companionship in new friends, figuring out how she's suddenly able to talk to plants. On top of that, the Eco Ents Club at school wants her to do something that sounds ridiculously impossible.
.
I enjoyed this book a lot. It's the kind of fiction that I would have loved to read when I was growing up. So if you have young readers at home and you want them to understand the importance of trees, and how they make Earth a habitable planet, I highly recommend this book.

[bookierookie · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF at 65% and I was already skimming through. It’s a unique story about how a girl dealing with the grief of her father’s death tries to find her place in a new school located in a city that’s known for its perfect weather. Hailing from Delhi where the air is polluted and weather is poor, Savi tries to revive her father’s plants with her helplessly brown thumb, while dealing with an unwelcoming eco-club and toxic “friends” from a popular club.

I think young readers will enjoy the mystery and the lessons of eco-awareness that are not too didactic, but it wasn’t for me. I found this quite slow moving and characters quite one-dimensional. There’s no compelling central premise for me, just Savi’s confused visions to go off on, which, if you’re not compelled by, then there’s little motivation to read ahead.

Small content/writing notes: there’s a male teacher with a male partner, in 65% there’s only one small mention of it. There’s mention of grief and dealing with death. And the writer also uses “folx” for “folks”, which may not be conventional for some contexts

[Kyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a formal school librarian and English teacher I strongly suggest having students read this wonderful book for several key reasons. First, the book was originally published in India and presents American students with this culture and identity in a rich way. Second, the main character, Savi, is dealing with two serious issues, the sudden unexpected death of a parent and the ramifications of the ongoing climate crisis, in a way that can be easily relatable to students. Third, and I feel the most important, students are directly exposed to the problems inherent in our climate crisis and firmly places the blame for this crisis in the right place and even more importantly identifies manageable solutions any student can achieve all while presented in an extremely enjoyable reading experience. Reality interwoven with natural, magical elements add to the enjoyment without subduing the reality of the situation. This is a wonderful book that I highly recommend.

[Ashri · Rating 2 out of 5]

First of all, I'd like to thank NetGalley for providing this book in exchange to my honest review.

I love the cover and the illustrations inside the book. I also love the way the author articulated the heroine's feelings throughout the story.

Yet, the story itself, while the first half was very promising, the last half was not my cup of tea.

Some things left holes in plot and maybe this was intentional assuming there would be a sequel? I don't know.

I just feel like the book needs more of concrete way for teens to save the trees. Not just some tips from the Ents.

And I also a bit confused about Maharukh’s partner. Was it a she/he? I think it would be best she because naturally, sir is partnering with ma’am. Wasn’t the book is about natural world that needed to be saved?

Hence, 2.5 it was.

[Dawn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am the audience for this book. I usually like middle grade and young adult novels. Everything concerning mother trees, the Wood wide web, plant communication, regenerative gardening l, earthworms etc. has been on my reading list lately, and I wasn’t even looking for this book. It appeared at a great price. And yet. There isn’t enough magic in this book or characterization, or regenerative practices for that matter. Adults against children with magically nature allies is a cool idea but there’s almost no segue between them. Savi and her friends become friends without any bonding. They share secrets without buildup. The friends are interchangeable, although the villains are appropriately also interchangeable with each other. The ending is quick. It’s a shame. Maybe there’s an error in translation but Savi’s emotional moments and journey weren’t connecting with me.

[Divya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so glad that Savi and the memory keeper was my first read of 2022. This middlegrade book touched my heart. Tree reminded me of a tree that was right outside the canteen at my school, which bore witness to all our shenanigans. And of course her attempts at reviving her father’s plants made me wish I could find some Ents to help me revive my houseplants. This is a book about love, loss and hope. And it will make you cry. While my daughter is years away from being able to read this one, I plan to tell her the story in the meanwhile. Because we need more Ents. Thank you for this story Bijal! Special mention to the lovely artwork by @rajiveipe (Also good to know I’m not the only one battling the sky rats 🙈)

[Zev · Rating 2 out of 5]

I misread the title -and- misunderstood the synopsis. The synopsis I got was super vague, though. I thought Savi herself would be a memory keeper, kind of a magical realism book. That she'd hold memories of people before the grief set in. No, this is a book about a magical tree who keeps the memories. It lets Savi have memories of her late father, and also raises awareness of humans ruining its habitat. I was not the intended audience for this. I couldn't relate to anyone, despite wanting to. The whole time, I felt like I was missing something. The buildup of whether the tree would die or be cut down was--um, I thought I was getting a different book. Just--okay. I do hope others enjoy it. I wasn't the intended audience for it..

[Charvie Mishra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very refreshing read. I wasn't expecting the very cool and hip people turning into pigeons, that was funny.
On a serious note, great parallels to actuality. It shows a simple( not so simple) way of saving nature.
I wish things were this easy, but I guess that's how this line of work is. You win some you lose some.
Liked how they gave an ending to Tree but then how it's feeding others. Shows the cycle of nature.
And how they were all connected by loss. That was an important touch. The chapter where people were reconnecting with nature. That was really nice. Feel good.

Liked the tone of the book, very Indian like that cricket love story book. Good overall.

[Graisi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you Bijal Vachharajani, Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for this free ARC in exchange for a review.

Unfortunately, I only made it 32% through before I gave up. It's marketed as funny, thoughtful, moving and magical, but it mostly seemed like a typical, generic novel about teens. Maybe it gets better and there's more actual magic, but I shouldn't have to read more than 30% of a book before it stops being boring.

[Kendell Timmers · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the plus side it was original - and the descriptions of plant life were evocative and beautiful without being overwrought.

But.. one plot point involves a sinister plot to ruin the environment, just … because? And that makes what could have been a nuanced discussion about the trade offs between development and the environment- especially in a place like India - into a dumb black and white struggle. Grrrr.

[Sundarraj Kaushik · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very nice and pertinent book for today's situation. A situation where forests and tress are being cut indiscriminately in the name of "Progress" or "Development".

The ending is bit fantastical but the message that it conveys is very important.

A very good read. Not just children, even adults must read it.

[Nita · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another book I would keep for my daughter when she's old enough to read it! What an enchanting, realistic and fantastical, and richly beautiful read! This is a children's cli-fi book but I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves plants.

[Clitus Fernandes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Its a really good book which is based on nature and a bit of magic .
This book revolves around a kid called savi who recently lost her father and is trying to take care of his plants , but she finds bits of secrets while doing that . Fun read. Makes you fall in love with plants and trees

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This author is extremely talented in writing
I especially loved the witty humor and the grief aspect as I am also journeying through grief
I have always loved trees and have discovered more about them through this book

[Ila Markley · Rating 3 out of 5]

[This review is for the audio version.]
The story was just okay. Top a preachy narrative, unrelatable characters, with a side of overly dramatic, whining narrator and, well, I almost didn’t finish. It was really bad.

[Aruna Kumar Gadepalli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about climate change, loss of loved ones, trees and how the protagonist deals with all these?

[Can Dragons Read? · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a sweet and lovable story that felt like sunshine. If you want something to read to put a smile on your face, this is it. It's also a quick read too.

[reshma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am going to call trees 'they' hereafter.

[Erica Schimmel · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5