Faraway Family

Padma Venkatraman (PadmaVenkatraman.com) was born in India and became an American after living in five countries and working as an oceanographer. She wrote the novels Safe Harbor, Born Behind Bars (South Asia Book Award, Junior Library Guild Selection), The Bridge Home (Walter Award, Golden Kite Award, Global Read Aloud Selection), A Time to Dance (IBBY Selection, ALA Notable), Island’s End (CCBC Choice, Kirkus Best Book for Teens), and Climbing the Stairs (ALA Amelia Bloomer List, Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People). Faraway Family is her first picture book. She lives in Rhode Island.Nicole Wong (Nicole-Wong.com) has illustrated numerous picture books, including Love Stays Strong (by Paula Schneider). She was born in Fall River, Massachusetts, graduated from Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in illustration, and is now a full-time illustrator of children’s books. She continues to live in Fall River with her husband, daughter, mean kitty, and happy, high-energy dogs.

* “Capturing a familiar yet often underexplored childhood experience, this story follows a young girl visiting relatives who feel more like strangers than family. . . . She feels nervous and confused and is unsure how to connect across differences in language and culture. The story’s pivotal moment occurs during an unexpected power outage. . . . The grandmother introduces a playful solution of entertaining her granddaughter using hand-shadow animals brought to life with a flashlight. This simple act becomes transformative. It transcends language barriers and creates a shared space of imagination and joy, helping the granddaughter see her grandmother not as a stranger, but as a companion. By morning, the girl’s fear has transformed into curiosity and excitement, symbolized through her eagerness to try new foods and spend time with her grandparents. Many children navigating multicultural identities or long-distance family relationships will see themselves reflected here. This book stands out due to its quiet realism. There’s no dramatic conflict, just the subtle discomfort of unfamiliarity. The lack of character names makes the narrative feel broadly relatable. The detailed illustrations strongly suggest a journey from the United States to India, adding cultural richness without heavy exposition. This book offers both representation and reassurance to children with ‘faraway families’ and is well suited for classrooms and libraries serving diverse communities.” —School Library Journal, starred review“A young child, initially excited about traveling, becomes understandably anxious about visiting extended family. . . . At the airport, the ‘old couple’ are unrecognizable: ‘I know they’re family, but they feel like strangers to me.’ . . . Grandma finally helps the exhausted grandchild to bed, but the fan and the nightlight both turn off following a power outage. Grandma soon appears with a flashlight and an entire menagerie of animals—cleverly created with hand shadows—that entertain and soothe the child until they can ‘understand each other perfectly.’ In the morning, delicious cooking smells welcome a brand-new day—and outlook: ‘We aren’t just family, forced to be together. We’re friends too.’ Wong transforms Venkatraman’s sweet debut picture book into a magnificent visual feast of inviting spreads, notably enhanced with intricate details and textures. Her various points of view—zoomed-out crowded airport, distanced snapshot of the dense city, overview of the laden dinner table, final multigenerational close-up—underscore the stages of family reunion. A heartwarming story—gorgeously, vibrantly illustrated—of family bonding.” —Kirkus Reviews