Henna Wars Summary
Adiba Jaigirdar

Henna Wars Overview

Adiba Jaigirdar’s young adult novel, The Henna Wars, tells the story of Nishat, a Bengali teenage girl growing up in Dublin, Ireland. At the start of the novel, Nishat comes out to her parents, who respond with silence and shame. At school, her business teacher announces a semester-long competition that puts her into a direct rivalry over henna with her love interest, Flavia. Nishat has to sort through coming out, school, winning the business competition, and her crush on Flavia. This novel explores the themes of Cultural Appropriation, Ties Between Culture and Food, and Shame.