Sunlight Playing Over a Mountain - by Selina Li Bi (Hardcover)

About the Book

Fifteen-year-old Jasmine lives in a world of reverie with her eccentric mother, but when a family secret unfolds, she must decide whether to stay in her fantasy world or face the truth.

Book Synopsis

A lyrical, mythology-tinged debut novel about a Chinese-Filipino teenager whose world of daydreams is destroyed by a family secret--perfect for fans of Emily X.R. Pan and Ann Liang.

Jasmine Cheng has grown up on stories spun by her beautiful, free-spirited mother. Together, they're the Phoenix and Dragon. Jasmine's father is the god Pangu, creator of the heavens and earth. Her mother may have boyfriends, but Jasmine chases them away. For her mother, love brings chaos, sleepless nights, and frightening episodes, and it's Jasmine's job to keep their home life stable--especially now that a social worker has started to keep tabs on them.

When the sudden arrival of Cal, her mother's old flame, fractures their delicate world, events unfold that will send Jasmine on a cross-country journey to the West Coast--and into her past. Trapped in a tangle of fantasy and reality, Jasmine becomes determined to find the truth, even while her mother's refusal to be honest drives a deeper wedge between them. Will the crack in their fantasy destroy her, or finally let the light in?

Selina Li Bi's magical debut perfectly portrays the pain of growing up in a less-than-magical world and introduces a remarkable new voice in young adult fiction.

Review Quotes

Praise for Sunlight Playing over a Mountain

"Li Bi's hypnotic writing blurs myth and reality, capturing Jasmine's inner turmoil as she grapples with her mother's neglect and the harsh truth of their circumstances . . . A book about the myths we weave to survive, the pain of seeing those myths unravel, and the strength it takes to pick up the broken shards and rebuild our story."
--TeenTix

"An extraordinary coming-of-age tale . . . [that] will keep readers turning the pages for answers. Highly ­recommended, especially for those who grew up in a less-than-­magical world."
--School Library Journal, Starred Review

"The emotional impact of Jasmine's struggle to act as her mother's caretaker is viscerally conveyed without overly dramatizing or romanticizing the situation . . . With narrative priority placed on Jasmine's emotional journey, this is a realistic depiction of parentification that readers will find to be either validating or eye-opening."
--Booklist

"Jasmine contends with racism, the prospect of foster care, first love, and complicated feelings surrounding her mother's condition, circumstances which Li Bi depicts in dreamlike, Chinese mythology-tinged prose."
--Publishers Weekly

"Intriguing . . . Bi's young adult debut presents original depictions of mental illness that are suffused with Chinese myth and Filipino folklore. Both Jasmine and her mother walk a fine line between fantasy and reality."
--Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Selina Li Bi was born to immigrant parents from the Philippines. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Minnesota State University Moorhead and is also a certified Creativity Coach. Her work has appeared in Nonwhite and Woman: 131 Micro Essays on Being in the World, riksha: Asian American Creative Arts in Action, and Cricket, among others. She is the author of the poetry chapbook Displaced and has written several books for the children's educational market. She currently lives in North Dakota and enjoys running and yoga. Sunlight Playing over a Mountain is her debut novel. Visit her online at www.selinalibi.com and find her on Instagram: @selina.libi.