Sugarbread revolves around a Sikh family based in Singapore and is set in the 90s. It is narrated through the eyes of 10-year-old Parveen, or Pin, who lives with her parents in a small flat that houses middle-class families. Pin is highly aware of her surroundings; she tries to guess her mother's mood based on the food she cooks--more spice means her mother is angry, bland food signifies her mother's distractedness, etc. Food is the centre of the book, and I could feel my mouth watering as I was reading it.

Her mother, Jini, keeps telling her to not become like her, which baffles Pin. It is only when Pin's naniji (maternal grandmother) moves in with them in their small flat, that she realises there are some unsolved grudges between the two. But Pin hasn't been made aware of Jini's traumas. Jini, in an attempt to please her mother, hangs the photo of God on their wall, and this commences a new relationship b/w Pin and God and how she feels His sad, omnipresent eyes on her all the time.

Balli Kaur Jaswal throws light on race, sexism, tradition and culture in this book. Pin is a mature and hyper-aware character who experiences and fights with all of these and the people around her as well. She notices everyone carefully. As Sugarbread also deals with intergenerational trauma, I was mighty impressed with Pin's wisdom as she can understand each generation's trials and tribulations. But what melted me was her pure heart that forgave those who had hurt her and her family. I wanted to pat Pin on the back because a child's mind is highly malleable, and her ability to truly understand not only her experience but her mother's as well was heartwarming.

This was one scrumptious read!