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Stand on the Sky



by
Erin Bow

Edition
Hardcover edition
Publisher
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Imprint
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
ISBN
9781328557469

Awards and Honors
2019 Governor General's Literary Award Winner
POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Language: Infrequent Use
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Mongolia: Aisulu and her family are Kazakh nomads. To help her sick brother and keep her family from losing their way of life, Aisulu decides to train the orphaned eaglet she’s rescued and try to win the annual Eagle Festival.
Glossary. List of characters.

POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Language: Infrequent Use

Details

Format

Print

Page Count

336

Trim Size

8 1/4" x 5 1/2"

Dewey

F

AR

4.8: points 10

Lexile

HL670L

Genre

Fiction

Scholastic Reading Counts

17

JLG Release

Apr 2019

Book Genres


Topics

Family life. Gender roles. Eagles. Nomads. Kazakhs. Mongolia. Girls and women. Birds. Self-esteem and self-reliance. Cancer. Aunts and uncles. Eagle festivals. Asia.

Standard MARC Records

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Cover Art

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Praise & Reviews

Starred or favorable reviews have been received from these periodicals:

Publishers Weekly, The Horn Book Magazine

Horn Book

Aisulu knows her brother Serik is sick, and when he breaks his leg trying to capture a golden eagle (he wants to become a burkitshi, or eagle hunter), Aisulu is left behind in her uncles’ care to worry while their parents take Serik to the provincial capital for treatment. Rescuing the eagle chick orphaned as a result of Serik’s hunt helps distract Aisulu; she hopefully names the eagle Toktar, or “he lives.” When her parents finally return, their news is mixed—Serik will live, but his osteosarcoma diagnosis and resulting amputation mean he will need a prosthesis and expensive physical therapy in the capital city, Ulaanbaatar. Aisulu’s father plans to sell everything to pay for it—horses, yaks, and goats, even the family’s dwelling— but if he does, it will mean giving up forever the nomadic life Aisulu loves. One chance remains: if Aisulu can become a burkitshi herself and fly Toktar at the National Eagle Festival well enough to win, the prize money would be enough to help her brother and save her home. Details of day-to-day nomadic Kazakh life in Western Mongolia, with its subsistence-level animal husbandry, its rich cultural heritage of embroidery, its milk economy (“milk was life”), along with modern incorporations of solar panels and university education, are authentically woven throughout the narrative. Aisulu’s efforts to raise and train Toktar, and the bond that develops between them, recall classic nature drama in the vein of Jean Craighead George or Gary Paulsen. Aisulu’s struggles in a culture with strict gender roles and expectations, and the strong family support that helps her finally succeed, give this book all the heart and warmth any young reader could desire.

Praise & Reviews

Horn Book

Aisulu knows her brother Serik is sick, and when he breaks his leg trying to capture a golden eagle (he wants to become a burkitshi, or eagle hunter), Aisulu is left behind in her uncles’ care to worry while their parents take Serik to the provincial capital for treatment. Rescuing the eagle chick orphaned as a result of Serik’s hunt helps distract Aisulu; she hopefully names the eagle Toktar, or “he lives.” When her parents finally return, their news is mixed—Serik will live, but his osteosarcoma diagnosis and resulting amputation mean he will need a prosthesis and expensive physical therapy in the capital city, Ulaanbaatar. Aisulu’s father plans to sell everything to pay for it—horses, yaks, and goats, even the family’s dwelling— but if he does, it will mean giving up forever the nomadic life Aisulu loves. One chance remains: if Aisulu can become a burkitshi herself and fly Toktar at the National Eagle Festival well enough to win, the prize money would be enough to help her brother and save her home. Details of day-to-day nomadic Kazakh life in Western Mongolia, with its subsistence-level animal husbandry, its rich cultural heritage of embroidery, its milk economy (“milk was life”), along with modern incorporations of solar panels and university education, are authentically woven throughout the narrative. Aisulu’s efforts to raise and train Toktar, and the bond that develops between them, recall classic nature drama in the vein of Jean Craighead George or Gary Paulsen. Aisulu’s struggles in a culture with strict gender roles and expectations, and the strong family support that helps her finally succeed, give this book all the heart and warmth any young reader could desire.

Grades 5-7
Upper Elementary & Junior High
For Grades 5-7

The perfect literary mix for your middle-grade readers. Featuring subject matter a bit more complex and multi-dimensional, this category is packed with captivating novels and fascinating nonfiction. Expect the 12 books offered in tis category to fly off the shelf.

12 books per Year
$236.64 per Year
Interests
Clean Books,Chapter Books/Novels,Fiction,Reluctant Readers,Transitional Readers,Realistic Fiction
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Grades 5-7
Upper Elementary & Junior High
12 books per Year
$236.64 per Year

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