Avantika brushes and brushes, but there’s no keeping her curly hair down. How she wished her hair was straight and smooth like Amma’s and Appa’s and her brother Avnish’s. Their parents had adopted the two of them when she was three-and-a-half years old and Avnish a six-month-old baby. Avantika often wonders if their birth mother had curly hair.

There are so many questions in her head, the school year has started with hair-raising troubles and Amma is busy at work. Avantika finds a confidante in the mysterious paati she meets in the park.

Why Is My Hair Curly by Lakshmi Iyer is a delightful celebration of curly hair and the courage it takes to be yourself. Interspersed with exquisite black-and-white illustrations by Niloufer Wadia, this chapter book explores genetics, family dynamics and adoption identity through a light-hearted and sunny tale.