Synopses & Reviews
In a dingy shack in the less-than-desirable Indian neighborhood he calls home, twelve-year-old Anand is entrusted with a conch shell that possesses mystical powers. His task is to return the shell to its rightful home many hundreds of miles away. Accompanying him are Nisha, a headstrong but resourceful child of the streets, and a mysterious man of indeterminate age and surprising resources named Abadhyatta. His quest will take him farther from home than he's ever been and will teach him more than he ever imagined -- and it will force him to make a poignant decision that will change him forever.
Review
This book is a real page-turner...you'll stay up late to finish it.
-- Chicago Tribune
Young readers can only hope for more from this master storyteller.
-- Publishers Weekly, starred review
The action is exciting, and the Indian setting makes this story new and different.
-- Washington Post
Divakaruni [is] a gifted storyteller....Though [she] beguiles us with the sights and sounds of an exotic place, what she really does is make us feel at home.
-- Los Angeles Times
About the Author
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is the author of three acclaimed novels, The Mistress of Spices, Sister of My Heart, and The Vine of Desire; two short story collections, Arranged Marriage and The Unknown Errors of Our Lives; four volumes of poetry; and a novel for young readers, Neela: Victory Song. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, and The New York Times. Born in India, she currently lives in Texas, where she teaches writing at the University of Houston.