Mirror in the Sky

April 4, 2016
The discovery of another planet that nearly mirrors Earth, right down to inhabitants who are close facsimiles of both well-known writers and average citizens, heralds a cosmic shift in Tara Krishnan’s life just as she begins junior year. After her best friend and fellow outcast Meg moves away for the year, Tara is accepted into the cool clique, amid other personal shake-ups including her mother’s sudden involvement with a cultlike group. Debut author Khorana keeps the science fiction elements of her story light, using Terra Nova more as a metaphor for the distortions of social image versus the true self, as well as “what if” questions that leave Tara pondering if another version of herself has made different choices with less disastrous results. Changes big and small get equal footing, with news developments that alter the history of mankind given similar attention to Tara’s musings on her crush giving her a ride to a party. For the most part, the focus is on Tara’s social struggles, which reveal that even the most outwardly perfect girls can be insecure, damaged, and flawed. Ages 12–up. Agent: Jenny Bent, Bent Agency.

Starred review from April 15, 2016
New friends and the discovery of a new planet cause one teen to question her life on Earth--and beyond.With her best (and only) friend spending a year abroad, Tara faces her junior year of high school as a loner. Even though she's biracial Indian-American (with an Indian father and white mother) and stands out as the only person of color at her elite Greenwich, Connecticut, private school, the 16-year-old often feels invisible. But her world's about to change when NASA receives a response to their Arecibo message and confirms a mirror planet, dubbed Terra Nova, and she's invited to a party at popular Halle's estate home. This quiet, thoughtful debut novel doesn't bound with adventure, yet Tara's internalized angst and quest for identity make the story a quick read. Beautiful language and mature, realistic adolescent situations flourish as Tara considers quantum physics and philosophical theories and whether a different or even better version of herself exists on the parallel planet. And are there other versions of the important people in her life? A mother who stays at home rather than joining a planet-worshipping cult? Another Nick, who loves her and doesn't orbit around Halle? True friends?Like a space explorer, Tara is thrust into the uncharted territory of life and must decide how she will navigate this new part of herself. (Fiction. 14 & up)

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April 1, 2016

PopGr 7-10-As Tara prepares to start her junior year without her best friend, who will be studying abroad, a new, Earth-like planet is discovered, throwing the world into a mild chaos. Besides the temporary loss of her best friend, Tara must also deal with the departure of her mother, who has left for California to join a cultish organization that hopes to make contact with inhabitants of the new planet. After attention from a popular boy gets Tara invited to a big party, she spends her year infiltrating the popular circle of her posh Connecticut prep school. Khorana focuses on how social groups take shape and thrive as she compares the friendship circles that develop in high school with the various groups forming because of the potential existence of life beyond Earth. Readers won't necessarily learn hard science, but they will be encouraged to ponder the vast expansiveness of the universe. The writing style is eloquent, and the characters are well developed, particularly Tara, who is struggling as the only Indian girl in an all-white school. VERDICT Although this work is grounded in the premise of life beyond Earth, the main focus here on teen social interactions will appeal to readers who enjoy realistic fiction with a splash of sci-fi.-Carrie Shaurette, Dwight-Englewood School, Englewood, NJ

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2016
Grades 9-12 Junior Tara Krishnan is a star student at an exclusive Greenwich, Connecticut, prep school, but her social life is torture. She is the only person of color and one of the very few nonwealthy students. With her only friend heading for a year abroad, Tara is petrified about being alone. Then Halle Lightfoot, queen bee of the school, inexplicably pulls Tara into her exclusive circle. Tara is dumbfounded and delighted because that group includes her secret crush, who is also Halle's boyfriend. Meanwhile, an alternate Earth light years away has been discovered by NASA, and as knowledge of this mirror planet grows, people everywhere react in surprising and shocking ways. Tara's mother leaves the family for a cult in California, and Tara must navigate her puzzling new social order while hiding this secret. Khorana perfectly captures the excruciating pain of a high-school society divided by race and socioeconomic status, and presents a thought-provoking topic (alternate realities) within logical plot devices. Tara herself is a flawed, multidimensional character, and her empathy towards fellow students and her own mother's desertion is beautifully drawn.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)