- Parents Magazine Book Club Pick
- Boston Globe Best Book 2021
- SLJ Best Book 2021
- Kirkus Best Book 2021
- John Schu & Travis Jonkers Top 20 Books of 2021
- ProjectLIT selection
- NerdyBookClubAward Nominee
- India Currents BBYA 2021
- Junior Library Guild Selection
- “…compelling novel… evocative details…full of action. A gritty story filled with hope and idealism.” Starred Review, Kirkus
- “An optimistic and earnest tale of the power of hope and the gift of family in all forms.” Starred Review, Booklist
- “authentic…heartfelt…resonant… well-rounded” Starred Review, SLJ
- “confidently stripped down, crystalline style…Borrowing elements of fable” – NYT Book Review
- “capable of making a grown person cry” – Providence Journal
Oliver Twist meets Slum Dog Milionaire in this tale of four determined homeless children who make a life for themselves on the streets of an Indian city.
“A blisteringly beautiful book” – * Starred Review, Kirkus
“Exquisitely narrated” – * Starred Review, PW
“Stellar” – * Starred Review, School Library Journal
“A story that must be shared” – * Starred Review, School Library Connection
“Absorbing” – * Starred Review, Booklist
“Moving…conveys the details of life shared by many of the world’s children…an excellent story” – * Starred Review, Sound Commentary
“Venkatraman brings love, support, and humor to a story undergirded by tough issues. Curricular connections abound, including science, global studies, and ecology. A smart addition to any middle school library.” – * Starred Review, Audio, SLJ
“Gorgeous storytelling” – New York Times Book Review
“Love and loss, desperation and dreams meet in this beautifully rendered tale, both harrowing and heartening.” – San Francisco Chronicle
“An amazing book” – Newsday
“will break hearts and inspire activist longings” – BCCB
“this bittersweet novel is about breaking the cycle of abuse, reaching for your dreams and finding home in the most unlikely of people and places” – Horn Book
Audiophile Earphone Award Winner
Winner, WNDB Walter Dean Myers Award for young readers
Winner, SCBWI Golden Kite Award for middle grade fiction
Winner, Paterson Prize for young people
Winner, Nerdy Book Award
Global Read Aloud, 2019
Malka Penn Award Honor Book
Cybil Awards Finalist
TX Bluebonnet Award Nominee 20-21
FL Sunshine State Children’s Choice Award Nominee 20-21
VA Reader’s Choice Award Nominee 20-21
KY Bluegrass Award Nominee 20-21
MN Youth Reading Maud Hart Lovelace Award Nominee 20-21
WSRA Wisconsin State Reading Association Award Nominee 20-21
ALA Notable Book
ALSC Notable Audiobook
Notable Book for a Global Society (ILA NGBS)
Kirkus Best MG Bks 2019
NYPL Best 2019
Chicago Public Library Best Bks 2019
Booklist Editor’s Choice Best Bks 2019
Washington Post Best Bks 2019
Mighty Girl Best Bks 2019
SLJ Top 10 Audio Bks 2019
Bklist Editor’s Choice Best Audio 2019
Jr Library Guild audio selection
CSMCL Best Bks 2019
GoodReads Best MG Bks 2019
Washington Post KidPost Summer Reading Selection
ProjectLIT, 2019-20
Ebony Teach Best Books 2019
Betsy Bird’s 31 MG titles in SLJ
Mighty Girl pick
Today Show
Listen to the first chapter in the author’s voice
“Spiritually uplifting” – Starred review, Booklist
“magnificently strong” – Starred review, VOYA
“exceptional” – Starred Review, SLJ
“beautiful” – Starred Review, Kirkus
“Heart- achingly hopeful and beautifully written.” – Starred Review, BCCB
“powerful depiction of a teen girl struggling to recover from an accident” – Chicago Tribune
“Sure to go on my favorites list” – Denver Post
“Loved this book” – Newsday
“dazzles & delights…beautifully written” – Providence Journal
ALA Notable
ALA/YALSA Best Book for Young Adults (BBYA)
Booklist Editor’s Choice Best Book for Young Adults
Booklist Top 10 art book for youth
Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) Choice
Crystal Kite (New England) Finalist
Center for the study of multicultural literature (CSML) Best Book
Forever literary top 10 character driven books
Eliot Rosewater (IN) masterlist
IBBY Outstanding book for young people with disabilities
Indienext (summer) selection
IRA Notable Book for a Global Society (NBGS)
Julia Ward Howe Boston Authors Club honor book
Kirkus Best Book for Young Adults
Mighty Girl Best Books of the Year
New York Public Library Top 25
New York City Reads (#NYC365)
Nutmeg Award (CT) masterlist
Rebecca Caudill (IL) masterlist
Red dot award winner (3rd place, Singapore children’s choice)
Sequoyah (OK) masterlist
Sanoc/SABA Finalist
“vivifies a unique era and culture as it movingly expresses how love and hope can blossom even under the most dismal of circumstances” – Starred review, PW
“an intricate and convincing backdrop of a conservative Brahmin home in a time of change”– Starred review, Booklist
“will capture the imaginations of many readers”- Starred review, VOYA
“a compelling story”- Lynda Brill Comerford, Publishers Weekly, “Flying Start”
“Thought-provoking and deeply moving.”- Booksense, Notable Citation
“will appeal to an international audience”- Michelle Reale, India Currents
“ [A] fine, often heart-breaking novel”- Sam Coale, The Providence Sunday Journal
Winner, BAC Julia Ward Howe award
Winner, ASTAL RI Book of the Year award
ALA Best Book for Young Adults (BBYA)
ALA/ Amelia Bloomer List Selection
Bank Street College of Education Best Book
Booklinks Best New Book
Booksense Notable
Booklist Editor’s Choice, BBYA
Capitol Choice
CCBC Choice
Cybil awards finalist
Children’s Literature Network Top 25
NCSS/CBC Notable
NYPL Best Book
Pennsylvania School Library Association (PASLA) Top-40
Publishers Weekly Flying Start
Shortlisted for ME Student Book Award
Shortlisted for UT Beyhive Book Award
Shortlisted for SC Children’s Book Award
Shortlisted for NJ Garden State Book Award
Shortlisted for Reading Across Rhode Island
“enticing blend of mystic tradition & imaginative speculation” – Starred review, PW
“succeeds spectacularly” – Starred review, Booklist
“Vividly written and expertly paced” – SLJ, Starred Review
“consistenly engrosses” – Kirkus, Starred Review
Winner, SANOC/South Asia Book Award
Winner, Paterson Prize
ALA BBYA
ALA/Amelia Bloomer List Selection
Kirkus Best Book for Young Adults
Booklist Editor’s Choice Best Book for Young Adults
CCBC Best Book
Crystal Kite New England, Finalist
Julia Ward Howe Boston Authors Club, Finalist