Solis
From the authors of Sanctuary comes a haunting near-future companion tale about undocumented immigrants subjected to deadly experiments in a government labor camp and the four courageous rebels who set into place a daring plan to liberate them.
“Set in an alarmingly near future, Mendoza’s sequel to her novel Sanctuary describes a nightmarish United States in which all immigrants, regardless of current status, are categorized as “illegal”…The plot is tautly written and the pace increases rapidly toward the climax.”
“Resistance and a fight for freedom in the face of unspeakable horrors…the characters are three-dimensional, and their deep connection and care for one another are highlights of the story. A gripping concept.”
“SOLIS is an urgently needed antidote to the fear, fascism and destruction that defines so much of the present world. At the core of this staggeringly beautiful story, is a singularly rich, beautiful and evocative queer love that reminds us that getting to live and dream as our full selves is the ultimate gift. Through Rania and Kenna, Paola and Abby have allowed queer love to breathe and transform – defying narrative and societal constraints, SOLIS finally lets queer readers see themselves fully on the page.”
Sanctuary
It’s 2032, and in this near-future America, all citizens are chipped and everyone is tracked–from buses to grocery stores. It’s almost impossible to survive as an undocumented immigrant, but that’s exactly what sixteen-year-old Vali is doing. She and her family have carved out a stable, happy life in small-town Vermont, but when Vali’s mother’s counterfeit chip starts malfunctioning and the Deportation Forces raid their town, they are forced to flee.
Gripping and urgent, co-authors Paola Mendoza and Abby Sher have crafted a narrative that is as haunting as it is hopeful in envisioning a future where everyone can find sanctuary.
Best of lists:
- A 2022 Garden State Teen Book Award Nominee (NJ)
- A 2021-2022 Green Mountain Book Award Nominee (VT)
- A 2021 Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year
- A 2021 YALSA Best Fiction Book For Young Adults
- A 2020 School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
- A 2020 Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
- A Teen Vogue Book Club Pick
“In their portrayal of Vali’s family’s quest for safety, the authors beautifully mirror the treacherous, painful, and terrifying treks involving natural and human threats that migrants to the U.S. undertake as they traverse continents and oceans…Wrenching and unmissable.”
“Mendoza and Sher’s descriptions of emotional trauma are heart-wrenchingly raw. A story of survival and hope, Sanctuary is a gripping work of fiction, with a message about xenophobia that’s rooted in a scarily real world.”
“[This] stunning work of YA dystopian fiction . . . is a triumph in its genre and so politically astute that it sears.”
“The all-too-possible future in this suspenseful dystopian novel amplifies the undocumented immigrant experience in the U.S.”