Karma Khullar's Mustache

by Kristi Wientge

“Kristi Wientge deftly captures the turmoil of adolescence.” — Us Weekly

Debut author Kristi Wientge tackles the uncomfortable—but all too relatable—subject of female body hair and self-esteem with this sweet and charming novel in the tradition of Judy Blume.

Karma Khullar is about to start middle school, and she is super nervous. Not just because it seems like her best friend has found a newer, blonder best friend. Or the fact that her home life is shaken up by the death of her dadima. Or even that her dad is the new stay-at-home parent, leading her mother to spend most of her time at work. But because she’s realized that she has seventeen hairs that have formed a mustache on her upper lip.

With everyone around her focused on other things, Karma is left to figure out what to make of her terrifyingly hairy surprise all on her own.

Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Childrens, Fiction, Contemporary, Friendship, Juvenile

272 pages, Hardcover

First published August 15, 2017

Reviews

[Book Riot Community]

Wientge has taken the subject of body hair and turned it into a delightful Blume-esque tale about a young girl trying to figure out how to deal with the hairs that have grown on her lip just as she’s due to start middle school. Karma thinks her parents are too busy with their own problems, so she must deal with what she feels is going to be a horrifying experience all on her own. It’s a charming and funny story about friendship and family.

Backlist bump: The Whole Story of Half a Girl by Veera Hiranandani


Tune in to our weekly podcast dedicated to all things new books, All The Books: http://bookriot.com/listen/shows/allt...

[Jenny (Reading Envy) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't typically read books for middle grades, but the title and cover of this one really caught my eye. It was longer than I expected, but because it is, it shows Karma's story over her first year of sixth grade and middle school. She has started growing a mustache (yay puberty,) but her family is of a religious faith that doesn't cut hair, which complicates an already difficult and awkward situation. Her story is a very realistic depiction of navigating bullies, names, friendship, religious beliefs, and family.

It would be a great addition to any library looking to expand diverse representation or empathy through reading.

Thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy through Edelweiss.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Somewhere between our last day at elementary school and the middle of summer, an invisible rulebook had been wedged between us. Sara had read the book, and somehow I was supposed to guess what was inside."

So much to love about this book—the cover for starters, but also the story that's waiting inside! Karma is about to start middle school. She's sprouted seventeen hairs above her upper lip. Her best friend, Sara, has changed so much that only flickers of her fifth grade self remain. In fact, everything has changed for Karma. Her mom is at work, her dad is at home, and almost everyone at school is being downright mean.

Karma is scared and feeling lost, but she's also beautifully true and kind as she finds her way. There's a spiritual element to her path as well as Karma explores the meaning of her name and Sikh religion, the loss of her beloved Dadima, and how to go forward in the face of challenges, teasing, and so much change. The rawness and realness of this book is relatable to anyone who has gone or is currently going through adolescence.

All in all, Karma charms!

[Wendy MacKnight · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in one sitting. This is one of the finest MG novels I've read in quite awhile that truly reflects middle grade school experiences, mean girls, and navigating changing friendships and bodies. Add in a wonderful family, and a winning character and this is a book you are going to love.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, Karma. You got me! Half Methodist, half Sikh, I loved learning about your blended self. My kids are 1/4 Indian (their dad being the 'Kiran' figure in our story) and I will definitely be sharing this story with them.
The author really nails the discomfort of those awkward pre-teen years, with so much to navigate in terms of self and others. I loved how the mc had to rely on her true self to find her way.

[Mississippi Library Commission · Rating 5 out of 5]

Karma Khullar's Mustache was such a fun read! Just as middle school is about to begin Karma finds seventeen hairs growing on her upper lip and she loses her best friend. As she deals with puberty, fashion choices, bullying, religion, and change, Karma grows a lot. She manages to remain just as endearing and lifelike as she is on the very first page, which made us love her even more. This was a completely rewarding book to read, reminiscent of Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret, but with a unique and fresh feel.

[Jen Petro-Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this. What a refreshingly new, yet universal storyline.

[Katy O. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you so much to the author for providing #KidLitExchange with a finished copy of this book for review purposes! All opinions are my own (as always).

"What goes around, comes around"......Karma Khullar's namesake has her on a quest to fit in and stop the teasing from her 6th grade classmates, while still maintaining her sense of self.

Reading KARMA KHULLAR'S MUSTACHE took me instantly back to middle school, to reading and identifying with ARE YOU THERE GOD, IT'S ME MARGARET, and to just wanting to understand why I didn't fit in perfectly with everyone else. For this generation's tweens, Karma will be THEIR Margaret. While they may still be chanting "I must, I must, increase my bust", they will be able to identify with Karma and her quest to rid her face of facial hair and reconcile her racial, cultural and religious identities with those of her classmates. I adored Karma and my heart ached for her as she strove to understand why she was being taunted and why her best friend wouldn't stand up for her. Her father's new role as a stay-at-home parent while her mom is working more and more as a university professor really doesn't help matters, either.

Required purchase for middle school libraries and classrooms as we fight to teach kids that
"....sometimes the silence hurts worse than the teasing." (p. 161)

[J.S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to read a prerelease version of this story and I seriously could not put it down. Karma is so relatable and sweet--this really is one of my favorite recent MGs.

[Elizabeth☮ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book perfectly encapsulates what it feels like to be in sixth grade. It is a time of discovering your own voice and how to use it and that is what we see with Karma Khullar.

Karma is half Sikh and half Methodist. Her home life is changing as her father is a stay at home dad and her mother works full time teaching at the local university. Karma's older brother is a brooding teenager and so Karma takes it upon herself to be a good daughter and not complain about the challenges in her own life: namely, she has a mustache!

What unfolds is a great story about friendship and choosing what is right in the face of negativity (not easy to do). Karma tries to live by the lessons put forth by her grandmother. Karma learns life is a challenge, but that is what shapes your character.

I couldn't put this one down once I picked it up. It is a great message of standing up for yourself and embracing that which makes you unique. A good lesson for us all.

[Dov Zeller · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is a book that doesn't really pack any surprises and doesn't go very deep into questions it raises about friendship, bullying, puberty, gender and body image, identity, food and identity, loss, converging and conflicting cultural locations and experiences...But Karma is plucky and admirable and the specificities of her family life are relatively complex and drawn with an appreciation of the complex (love in this novel isn't perfect, but it's still meaningful and powerful) and that makes it enjoyable.

I'm not sure what to make of the ending (spoiler--a rodent sort of Jackson Pollocking an entire room with cake icing, or something of the sort (???) and Karma getting blamed and the kind of nonsensical resolution and Karma's response to her mustache related nickname...)

So, hmmm. I suppose this is probably a wonderful read for its intended audience. Not necessarily my thing, but definitely appreciate the mom showing up at the end in the way that she does and the family managing to stay connected and grow and change together.

[Michelle Hauck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Karma Khullar's Mustache is a sweet look at the perfectly normal anxieties of going to middle school and going through puberty. Friends, rivalry, and family are all tackled with the wonderful addition of a main character who is half Methodist and half Sikh.

Kids and adults alike will find something to relate to in this book. We've all undergone the painful way friendships, and bodies, evolve and change.

The book blurb says in the style of Judy Blume and I feel like that author would approve of this book. Karma Khullar's Mustache will stand the test of time.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't want to read a book about a middle school girl who grows a mustache; it didn't sound like a book I'd be interested in.

I was so wrong.

I loved Karma. I loved (and hated) her friend, Sara. I loved (and hated) the new student at her school, Lacy. I loved Karma's parents, who were flawed enough to be real but who were also amazing enough to want to emulate. I loved the plot, friendships awry and refurbished and anew during those difficult early adolescent years.

Loved, loved, loved.

[Supriya Kelkar]

As an Indian-American, I have been excited about this book since I had first heard about it last year. It did not disappoint. This was a fun, touching story and I loved Karma Khullar. Her middle school experience was so relatable. I'm sure many readers will be able to identify with it and be comforted in the fact that they are not alone in dealing with the changes middle school has to offer.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Speaking as both a hairy girl and a girl who experienced plenty of upper elementary-aged friend drama, I can tell you that this book is pitch perfect. Karma is just so damn resilient. She has the kind of strength I wish I'd had. Though honestly, it would've helped enough just to have this book to read at the time.

[Jeimy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this novel about middle school life, friendship, religion, culture, and body hair/image issues. I will be adding a copy to my classroom library.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Middle school is rough on friendships. People are changing, dynamics get all out of whack, and no one seems to know how to talk to each other. There are thousands of permutations of this: friend K is immature/suffers from embarrassing puberty-related thing/only has one friend who seems to be slipping away; friend S wants to be more mature, but can only manage it by ignoring or hurting friend K; frenemy L is a new/cool person who starts sucking up the attention of friend S; friend G is the rebound for K, nice, but unwilling to put up with poor treatment.

While the foundation of this story draws on the oldest and tiredest elements of cruel school behavior and friendship breakups, there was enough fresh material to make it a fun and enjoyable read. Karma’s Sikhism fades into the background most of the time, but sneakily offers up some information as well. Most of the characters have decent complexity and depth, and I really couldn’t help but root for Karma as she struggled with her mustache, loss of a friend, minor troubles at home, and general questioning of why the world is so chaotic and inexplicable.

Moral of the story: don’t be a dick.

[Pooja Banga · Rating 3 out of 5]

Karma Khullar is about to start middle school, and she is super nervous. Not just because it seems like her best friend has found a newer, blonder best friend. Or the fact that her home life is shaken up by the death of her dadima. Or even that her dad is the new stay-at-home parent, leading her mother to spend most of her time at work. But because she’s realized that she has seventeen hairs that have formed a mustache on her upper lip.

With everyone around her focused on other things, Karma is left to figure out what to make of her terrifyingly hairy surprise all on her own.

[Amanda Searcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautifully written book. The author evocatively captures so many universals about being 11 and starting middle school. (I had to put the book down a few times and remind myself that I wasn't in middle school again.) This book will be a great comfort to young people who are themselves going through the trials of changing bodies, changing friendships, and just changing.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review from Advance Readers Copy

Karma Khullar is entering sixth grade. She also keeps count of how many hairs she has on her upper lip.

It’s not just about the hair, but it’s also about what the hair represents. Karma’s dad is Punjabi Sikh and her mother is caucasian and blond. Mom is busy with a demanding job and doesn’t have time or experience to listen to complaints about body hair. Dad is… Dad. He’s doing a “stay at home” thing after his contract with the university wasn't renewed, he listens to Bollywood songs, and he believes every problem can be solved with tea. He can't fix this problem.

Karma’s friends are not of much help, either, since new girl Lacy moved to town and befriended Karma’s best friend, Sara. While Sara and Lacy are into clothes and attention from boys, Karma still pines for elementary school problems.

This middle grades school story will resonate with many readers who are going through adolescence and will remind them that they are not alone in the world. It also confidently brings in tough topics, like intercultural identities, and, of course, body hair. Karma’s path to increased confidence and greater spiritual discovery is affirming and the discussion of body hair and body image is honest. Similar to Amina's Voice by Hena Khan.

[Jenn Bishop · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this debut novel. Karma's a winning narrator and someone that any tween girl can relate to. It's the beginning of the school year and her longtime best friend is drifting away, drawn in by the cool new girl. Her dad is struggling in his transition to stay-at-home dad, and mom's never around since she's now full-time with lots of responsibilities at the university. But none of these are as traumatic as the dark hairs that have grown above Karma's upper lip -- a mustache! Can anyone else see them? What will they say? And how, how --howwww??-- can she get rid of them? Wientge absolutely embodies the perennial struggles of girls on the cusp of adolescence. A wonderful book for fans of Judy Blume.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not sure how I found out about this book -- I think one of my friends on Goodreads had read it or one of their kids read it. But it thought it sounded fun and since I'm reading a bunch of different books right now, some of which are really long, I decided to pick this one up when I was at the library a few days ago. This was in the "children's" section of my library -- I would consider it just slightly below the YA level. It's a chapter book and the main character is 11 years old.

I REALLY liked this book. It's got such a great message and really kept me interested. I recommend this book to both kids and adults. It was fun to read something geared toward a younger audience that wasn't a dystopian book!

[Meg Eden · Rating 5 out of 5]

As soon as I heard about KARMA KHULLAR’S MUSTACHE, I knew I had to read it. Growing up, I too had a mustache (also a unibrow…and chin hairs) and was very self-conscious about it. I wish SO badly I had this book then! Kristi Wientge does such a great job describing the struggle of growing up and coping with change, as well as showing a healthy example of how to respond to change. Karma is not only a wonderfully likeable, relatable character, but a great model of how to respond to unlikeable people (We all have those Lacys in our lives :)) and non-ideal circumstances. This book is an absolute must-read!

[Hayley Chewins · Rating 5 out of 5]

KARMA KHULLAR'S MUSTACHE is a profound middle grade story about friendship and self-acceptance. It's also a perfect example of how a book can be quiet and still absolutely gripping. I was rooting for Karma -- who is smart and sensitive, kind and anxious -- right from the very first page. The characters are all expertly drawn -- especially the members of Karma's family -- and I loved the details about Sikhism and Punjabi culture that were sprinkled in. An insightful, touching read that I will be recommending to every child I know.

[Ms. Arca · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 out of 5. Content had a lot of pieces I was looking for (body image, friendship, the importance of making kind choices, ethnicity/identity, and a main character who is Sikh ! Yes yes yes.)

That being said I really did think the writing could be much tighter, and with editing this book could go from good to something great. I think I’m at 3 stars because I wanted to love this book badly and just really wish it was the great version. For now, I know there are humans in this intended audience who will enjoy and benefit from this book.

[KT · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an absolutely wonderful book! I loved this story of a pre-teen girl finding 17 hairs on her lip just before school starts. Her journey takes her through managing friendships to feelings of isolation to adjusting to new family dynamics to facing questions of fate vs. choice. Karma has a lot going on, and she finds the courage, strength, and love to manage it all as well as anyone. I can't wait to give this to my daughter in a few years.

[Cassie Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you are entering middle school it's a very scary world for a girl. So many changes: friends, body, life. It's hard to find your place while figuring out who you are. I love the way Karma handles all of her life issues. It's a story I know many young girls will relate to and find themselves in situations similar to Karma, I can only hope they remember how Karma handled things head on and stayed true to who she was.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read as an ARC.

I wanted to read this book as soon as I heard about it, and it charmed my socks off. Kristi's story brought me to tears 3.5 times and made me laugh out loud ten times. Karma is adorable and so real in all those things we all struggle with in those awkward tween years. Another book I'm pre-ordering for my girls (and also for my niece, even if she's not old enough for it yet).

[Afoma (Reading Middle Grade) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this middle-grade book about a young girl dealing with facial hair and the change in friendships that come with middle school. This one is a slice of novel. Unfortunately, the parts of the book featuring Karma’s home life and the obsession with the concept of “karma”made the story lag for me.

[Karina · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book about growing up and trying to find your place in middle school. Honest and funny, I thought Karma was a great character with lots of spirit! Highly recommended for middle grade readers and up.