Amil and the After
by Veera Hiranandani; illus. by Prashant Miranda
Intermediate, Middle School    Kokila/Penguin    272 pp.
1/24    9780525555063    $17.99
e-book ed.  9780525555070    $10.99

In this companion to Newbery Honor Book The Night Diary (rev. 7/18), Nisha’s twin brother, Amil, resumes the story. Everything was supposed to get better after their family survived the terrifying journey from Mirpur Khas to Bombay following the partition of India in 1947. Now they have a new flat, their father has a job at the hospital, and the twins are attending school. But Amil keeps flashing back to the terrible things he saw and experienced. He tries to quell his anxieties by drawing in his sketchbook (exuberantly depicted by illustrator Miranda), but what he really wants are “a friend and a bicycle.” Part of those wishes comes true when he meets Vishal, a mysterious boy from a local refugee camp. When Vishal suddenly disappears, Amil discovers that the point of his own survival may be to help ensure the same for someone else. Fans of the previous title will appreciate this compassionate and thoughtful continuation of the family’s story, while new readers can experience Amil’s account of hope and survivor guilt as a standalone volume. A glossary and author’s note are appended.

From the January/February 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.