Praises

“Interesting and engaging book. As a parent I can appreciate the struggle teenagers have these days, trying to bridge between progress, technology, and also navigate the social scene. The main character is a good role model. She is just like everyone else with strengths and weaknesses. I love her strong character. Very relatable.”

“I truly enjoyed this book. Disclaimer: I know the author personally, which always makes me nervous....will I like it and if I don’t, how will I review it? Well, there was no problem with this one, because it was so good, I kept forgetting who wrote it and just read out of pure interest. This fiction book is set in India and tells the story of a teenager and her sister, dealing with a very traditional father and their electronically-connected world. The plot of how Abby gets her name, makes money, and grows her relationship with her sister, was relatable even for those not living in India. I found myself connected and caring about all the characters and what happened to them. I’ll be giving this book as a gift to my niece, as there are many lessons to be learned.”

“Set in New Delhi India with a sub plot in New York, Abhaya an Indian Teen has a secret passion for the international tech sector crossing cultural and Country boundaries into the foreign world of free enterprise.
Overcome by traditional household rules and her Indian parents limiting beliefs, Abhaya (Abby) sets out to do something that is forbidden by a woman of her traditional upbringing. The explosive twists in the plot occur unexpectedly leaving the reader with the thought “everything happens for a reason”. This clever novel by Author Divon forces us to seek truth and meaning of our cultural rules and life events, when things appear to be not what they really are. I loved this book and read it in one sitting.”

“I think it’s been over a decade since I last read a novel (I prefer non-fiction and have little patience for most stories). I picked up this book because it seemed like I might learn something from it even though it is a fiction book. I was very taken in by the descriptiveness of the many tensions - young vs old, tradition vs modern, East vs West, male vs female, religious vs non- religious, wealthy vs poor. I felt like I learned a great deal from the perspective of the young Indian girl (the main character in the story). The story both warmed my heart and broadened my perspective. Huge kudos to the author for his ability to draw in a reader like me who does not waste time on books unless I can truly learn something from it to help me be a better person. I had fun reading and learning from this book and look forward to this author’s future books.”

“This book brings back memories of my youth - the struggle for acceptance, finding a place in the world while trying to meet others’ expectations, first love, dreams of the future. It also vividly portrays the inequity in the world - between genders, between economic classes, between those in power and those who ‘serve’ them. Finally, it is about those who support our journey - and how being connected to them makes the journey worthwhile. Moving and timely story. Highly recommend!”

“Abby Virtually is a brilliantly written little book. I am no longer a “young adult” but the themes running through the stories are universal to all of us. Whether it is the gap of generations or the clash of a fast pace modern society vs a more traditional one, the chapters find an accurate balance to describe the ever increasing stress imposed upon us by the internet and social medias...i.e how do we define who we are in real life vs life on the world wide web? I enjoyed discovering the well-defined characters as the book progressed and I was sorry to see them go at the end. For me, characters that go on living beyond the last page are the best ones; they engage my imagination to a greater creative world. ”