At the front of a middle school classroom in Oklahoma, a boy named Khosrou (whom everyone calls 'Daniel') stands, trying to tell a story. His story. But no one believes a word he says. To them he is a dark-skinned, hairy-armed boy with a big butt whose lunch smells funny; who makes things up and talks about poop too much. But Khosrou's stories, stretching back years, and decades, and centuries, are beautiful, and terrifying, from the moment his family fled Iran in the middle of the night with the secret police moments behind them, back to the sad, cement refugee camps of Italy ... and further back to the fields near the river Aras, where rain-soaked flowers bled red like the yolk of sunset burst over everything, and further back still to the Jasmine-scented city of Isfahan. We bounce between a school bus of kids armed with paper clip missiles and spitballs to the heroines and heroes of Khosrou's family's past, who ate pastries that made people weep and cry 'Akh, Tamar!' and touched carpets woven with precious gems. Like Scheherazade in a hostile classroom, Daniel weaves a tale to save his own life: to stake his claim to the truth. And it is (a true story). It is Daniel's.

WINNER, MICHAEL L. PRINTZ AWARD WINNER, CHRISTOPHER AWARD WINNER, MIDDLE EAST BOOK AWARD WALTER AWARD HONOR National Bestseller NPR Best of the Year New York Times Best of the Year Amazon Best of the Year Booklist Editors' Choice BookPage Best of the Year Publishers Weekly Best of the Year Wall Street Journal Best of the Year Today.com Best of the Year NECBA Windows & Mirrors Selection "A modern masterpiece."--New York Times "Supple, sparkling and original."--Wall Street Journal "Mesmerizing."--TODAY.com "This book could change the world."--BookPage "Like nothing else you've read or ever will read."--Linda Sue Park "It hooks you right from the opening line."-NPR ★ "A modern epic."--Kirkus Reviews, starred review ★ "A rare treasure of a book." --Publishers Weekly (starred) ★ "A story that soars."--The Bulletin (starred) ★ "At once beautiful and painful."--School Library Journal (starred) ★ "Raises the literary bar in children's lit." --Booklist (starred) ★ "Poignant and powerful." --Foreword Reviews (starred) ★ "One of the most extraordinary books of the year." --BookPage (starred) A sprawling, evocative, and groundbreaking autobiographical novel told in the unforgettable and hilarious voice of a young Iranian refugee. It is a powerfully layered novel that poses the questions: Who owns the truth? Who speaks it? Who believes it? "A patchwork story is the shame of the refugee," Nayeri writes early in the novel. In an Oklahoman middle school, Khosrou (whom everyone calls Daniel) stands in front of a skeptical audience of classmates, telling the tales of his family's history, stretching back years, decades, and centuries. At the core is Daniel's story of how they became refugees--starting with his mother's vocal embrace of Christianity in a country that made such a thing a capital offense, and continuing through their midnight flight from the secret police, bribing their way onto a plane-to-anywhere. Anywhere becomes the sad, cement refugee camps of Italy, and then finally asylum in the U.S. Implementing a distinct literary style and challenging western narrative structures, Nayeri deftly weaves through stories of the long and beautiful history of his family in Iran, adding a richness of ancient tales and Persian folklore. Like Scheherazade of One Thousand and One Nights, Daniel spins a tale to save his own life: to stake his claim to the truth. A tale of heartbreak and resilience and urges readers to speak their truth and be heard. - Daniel is a major force and one of the youngest publishers in the industry. - He's an #OwnVoices author, public speaker, and storyteller. - A pulled-from-the headlines immigrant story. - Thematically relevant as immigration stories take center stage in politics, news, and media in 2020. - Daniel challenges how we tell stories by using traditional Persian folk tales - A fantastic literary whirlwind that questions western narrative structures.

This is the tale of an exciting journey along the Silk Road with a young Monk and his newfound guardian, Samir, a larger than life character and the so-called "Seller of Dreams". The man is a scammer; his biggest skill being the ability to talk his way into getting what he wants. While that talking did save Monkey's life, it has left a lot of people furious with Samir-- furious enough to hire assassins. Monkey decides to try and save Samir from the attempts on his life--as a way to pay off his debt! If he can save Samir six times, he'll be a free man...but will they all survive that long?