The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli
by Karina Yan Glaser; illus. by the author
Intermediate, Middle School    Allida/HarperCollins    432 pp.
9/25    9780063284432    $19.99

Make space on your shelf for this delectable, suspenseful adventure spanning more than a thousand years. Eleven-year-old Luli Lee lives in 1930s New York City, in the tightly knit Chinatown neighborhood. Her family hopes to own their building, a seemingly unachievable goal during the Depression. As their dim sum restaurant and other businesses suffer, Luli looks for ways to support her family. Han Yu, also eleven years old, lives in eighth-century China. Despite his unusual gift with animals, including an elusive, protective tiger, he has not found his purpose. He helps his father make and sell steamed buns at a local market; when his family members fall ill, he begins a dangerous trek along the Silk Roads to acquire medicine and funds to help out. Sharing a curious yet intrepid spirit, Luli and Han Yu seek to support their families through difficult times in their own ways. Their stories weave together clues about an unusual silk artifact that bears traces of a mysterious poem that could result in a change of fortune for both families. Glaser infuses each unforgettable story line with immersive sensory details, situating the reader on the dusty trails of Han Yu’s trek or surrounded by Manhattan pushcart vendors calling out their delicacies for sale; interspersed black-and-white vignettes further provide a sense of time and place. Perfect for readers looking for historical fiction with both mystery and self-discovery. An author’s note offers background about the Silk Roads; a bibliography is also appended.

From the November/December 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.