Cindy Welch (Booklist, Sep. 15, 2004 (Vol. 101, No. 2))
A year after their mother's sudden death, 14-year-old Geena, 12-year-old Ambajit (Amber), and 11-year-old Jazvinder (Jazz), aka the Bindi Babes, may be perfectly behaved and rule at school and at home (in England), but they still haven't dealt with the loss of their mom. Then Auntie arrives from India and tries to interfere with their carefully constructed routines and coping mechanisms. In an effort to be rid of her, the sisters decide to find her a husband. If they can just get her to their school, they'll orchestrate a meeting with Amber's gorgeous teacher, Mr. Arora. But are these "perfect" girls able to unbend enough to misbehave? Indian words describing food, clothing, and familial relationships add cultural flavor to the story, but girls from everywhere will relate to the main characters. Although there is some sense of the girls' grieving process, the overall tone of the story is light and innocent as the girls come to realize that being perfect is no substitute for dealing with a life-altering event. A sequel, Bollywood Babes, is planned for March 2005. Category: Books for Middle Readers--Fiction. 2004, Delacorte, $14.95, $16.99. Gr. 5-8.

Carolyn Mott Ford (Children's Literature)
Geena, Amber and Jazz are three beautiful sisters who excel in school, are fawned over by their teachers and yet somehow manage to be the coolest, most popular girls in the neighborhood. In short, their lives seem enviable. At least this is the image they work very hard to project, but they have all been wounded by the death of their mother; wounded so deeply, they cannot mention it and work to avoid any offer of sympathy. The approach to this story of the three girls is lighthearted and funny and the author has done a wonderful job of showing their underlying emotions while maintaining the tone, which is not an easy task. The Dhillon sisters have been taking advantage of their father who spoils them, buying them expensive clothes, shoes, and just about anything they ask for. Their lives change when their father's sister, the dreaded Auntie, arrives from India to care for them. They plot to get her out of their house, but she outwits them at every turn. There are many subplots, involving school plans and the girls' friends, but all is resolved and the three sisters come to terms with the loss they have suffered and learn a lot about human nature in this well-rounded story. 2003, Delacorte/Random House, $14.95. Ages 8 to 12.

Uma Krishnaswami (Children's Literature)
It's a treat to read this contemporary story of a British family of Indian origin, where issues of culture and context constitute backdrop rather than plot. Amber, Jazz, and Geena Dhillon are the Bindi Babes. Amber's the first person narrator, but there's no question that the three are a team. The sisters are dealing with the secret sorrow of having lost their mum, although no one would know from the face they put on. Then their dad's sister arrives from India to live with them, and the delicate balance they have achieved between family and the external world is suddenly upset. For a book with the serious premise of loss and grief this one turns out surprisingly to be a breezy roller coaster. Pushing defiance to outrageous levels, the girls do their best to get rid of Auntie, or at least to make her life unbearable. Auntie however is every bit as determined as her nieces, so the initial antagonism between them soon turns into outright pitched battle. Little touches of neighborhood and community, like the school getting ready for inspection, the madcap paperboy, and a neighbor engaging in deadly reminiscence of the old days in India, are both whimsical and deft. The book perfectly captures a sassy middle-grade sensibility, especially in the girls' wild-growing-wilder schemes for getting Auntie married off. Dhami reels out the comic stuff with zest, verve, and unerring timing. In contrast, the tragedy of the mother's death seems a large issue that is only partly resolved. Used as an inciting incident, it is then handled rather sweepingly, largely in backstory. The publisher promises a sequel, Bollywood Babes, with the same engaging characters. 2004, Delacorte, $14.95. Ages 8 up.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, August 15, 2004 (Vol. 72, No. 16))
Amber, Geena, and Jazz have it all. The three tremendously popular Indian-British sisters are beautiful, brainy, and blessed with a closet full of cool designer labels, thanks to an indulgent, workaholic dad. Privately, the girls grieve their recently deceased mother and refuse to talk about her, instead diving into shopping and their envied reputation as the school's best and brightest. Until, that is, an interfering aunt from India comes to take over the household. Auntie sticks her nose into every part of the girl's lives, so they conspire to get rid of her the Indian way: by marrying her off. But how far are the polite girls willing to go, and will Auntie beat them at every turn? When they risk their sterling reputations, the plan has hilarious-and unexpectedly poignant-consequences. Told vibrantly from the middle sister's point of view, this light-hearted, fast-paced teen drama is instantly adorable, funny, warm, and genuine, with a delicious helping of multi-cultural spice. As with Bend It Like Beckham, which Dhami novelized so well, this features charmingly spunky every-girl characters to love and good storytelling to cheer. 2004, Delacorte, 192p, $14.95. Category: Fiction. Ages 10 to 14. © 2004 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Dian Boysen (Library Media Connection, January 2005)
Amber, Jazz, and Geena are the Bindi Babes. They are three sisters who are the most popular and best-dressed girls in school. The girls lost their mother a year earlier and do their best not to think about it. They like their lives as it is with their dad until he invites auntie to come live with them. She interferes in every aspect of their lives. They must do something. The girls decide to marry her off to one their teachers. The plan begins to backfire and the girls must make some quick adjustments before all is ruined. This is a true-to-life novel of children having difficulty adjusting to the death of a parent. Even though the author uses some British vocabulary, which would not be familiar to students, it does not detract from understanding the story. Girls will identify with the sisters even though they border on being perfect. Recommended. 2004, Delacorte Press (Random House), 192pp., $14.95 hc. Ages 10 to 14.

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, Spring 2005)
Beneath their ultra-cool appearance, the three Dhillon sisters share the unspoken grief of their mother’s recent death. Drama ensues when their "interfering" Auntie moves from India to the Dhillons' British home, but the family’s bonds ultimately heal their sorrow. The sisters’ crafty antics and spirited relationships make this book a vibrant, humorous read. Category: Older Fiction. 2004, Delacorte, 186pp, $14.95, $16.99. Ages 12 to 14. Rating: 3: Recommended, satisfactory in style, content, and/or illustration.