Midnight Motorbike
by Maureen Shay Tajsar; illus. by Ishita Jain
Primary    Porter/Holiday    40 pp.
4/25    9780823456628    $18.99
e-book ed.  9780823462285    $11.99

On a sweltering monsoon-season evening, a mother begins a soothing tale to her child about using her “shimmering sari” as she “pulls down the night sky,” enfolding them together in the comforting serenade of frogs and crickets. They then ride their motorbike out of their South Indian village toward the Bay of Bengal. Through lush landscapes of banyan trees and jungle, bustling cities, and silent temples, the two are enveloped in moonlight, their senses delighted by the aromas of “steaming silver-cupped chai, spicy potato-stuffed masala dosas, and the warm hay of an elephant’s bed.” As they travel, Mother connects the everyday actions of people to the permanence of the starry sky, the movement of ocean tides, and ancient stone-carved temple monkeys covered by the frangipani flowers of worshippers (e.g., an “old man braiding together jasmine blossoms is collecting stars on a garland”). Lulled to sleep by rhythms ancient and modern, the child is content knowing their place and connection, surrounded by love. Inspired by her own motorbike rides with her mother in Tamil Nadu, Tajsar’s lyrical text, coupled with Jain’s jewel-toned illustrations in gouache, crayons, and pencil (done with “paintbrushes, cut-up hair combs, a craft knife, dirty hands, and a whole lot of nostalgia”), weave an immersive, sensory-rich, and timelessly magical connection among mother and child, other people, and the larger world. Appended with author and illustrator notes.

From the July/August 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.