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"The brilliance of Higuera’s narrative is that it shows rather than tells us the power of story. As Petra shares her tales and they guide her shipmates out of darkness, readers will find corners of their own hearts illuminated as well. This book is gripping in its twists and turns, and moving in its themes - truly a beautiful cuento.” - New York Times

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2022 Newbery Award Winner

Había una vez . . .

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There lived a girl named Petra Peña, who wanted nothing more than to be a storyteller, like her abuelita.

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But Petra’s world is ending. Earth has been destroyed by a comet, and only a few hundred scientists and their children — among them Petra and her family — have been chosen to journey to a new planet. They are the ones who must carry on the human race.

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Hundreds of years later, Petra wakes to this new planet — and the discovery that she is the only person who remembers Earth. A sinister Collective has taken over the ship during its journey, bent on erasing the sins of humanity’s past. They have systematically purged the memories of all aboard — or purged them altogether.

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Petra alone now carries the stories of our past, and with them, any hope for our future. Can she make them live again?

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Pura Belpré Honor-winning author Donna Barba Higuera presents us with a brilliant journey through the stars, to the very heart of what makes us human.

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Books by Donna Barba Higuera: 

© 2021 by the Renegades of Middle Grade

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