10/31/2022
On Long Island, an Afghan Uzbek 16-year-old uncovers family secrets while navigating grief in this paranormal ghost story by debut author Zargarpur. Sara Amani’s life is unraveling: her parents, Madar and Padar, have moved into different houses in preparation for a divorce, and her beloved maternal grandmother, Bibi Jan, has dementia. Sara used to confide in Bibi Jan, but now feels as if she has no one with whom to share her inner turmoil, so she buries her emotions and retreats from her cousins and friends. As a distraction, she assists with the family’s real estate business, photographing and helping Madar to flip an abandoned home. There, she sees an apparition of a young Bibi Jan. Desperate to uncover facets of her grandmother that she never knew, Sara delves into Bibi Jan’s past, but her new obsession sows worry within her community. Inspired by her own family history, Zargarpur pulls from multiple literary traditions, including Central Asian fairy tales, Western gothic novels, and contemporary immigration fiction, employing lyrical prose and harrowing ambiance to craft an eerie supernatural debut. The result is a dreamlike novel that engagingly examines grief, healing, and preserving the stories of the past. Ages 14–up. Agent: Elana Roth Parker, Laura Dail Literary. (Nov.)
"Zargarpur has penned a dazzling debut that combines a complex intergenerational immigrant-family drama, a story of a teen dealing with sweeping life changes, and a genre-bending ghost story." —Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
"A suspenseful, artfully written paranormal drama exploring the ghosts of intergenerational trauma." —Kirkus
"[A] dreamlike novel that engagingly examines grief, healing, and preserving the stories of the past." —Publishers Weekly
"Lyrical and poignant, Deeba Zargarpur's novel weaves an evocative narrative of grief, family, and the many ways in which the past can haunt us. A heart-wrenching debut, and one you cannot miss." —Swati Teerdhala, author of The Tiger at Midnight trilogy
“Much like the titular house that both haunts and illuminates Sara’s life, House of Yesterday is an atmospheric powerhouse of a book that will have you gripped in its thrall long after you’ve turned the last page. Zargarpur’s tale of how family both builds us up and tears us apart will stay with me for a long time.” —Roseanne A. Brown, New York Times Bestselling Author of A Song of Wraiths and Ruin
"A beautifully written tale about reckoning the rose-colored stories our family tells us as children with the often painful truths we understand as adults. Sara's unflinchingly messy and deeply heartfelt journey will remain with readers for a long time." —Amanda Foody, New York Times Bestselling co-author of All of Us Villains
"House of Yesterday is a tender, haunting tribute to the secrets, grudges, and forgiveness that bind a family. The story is at once an open door for outsiders as well as an affirming mirror for hyphenated readers." —Nadia Hashimi, author of The Pearl That Broke Its Shell
"A stunning exploration about a girl dealing with grief and identity. Written in hauntingly beautiful prose, Zargarpur captures the struggle of a diaspora girl grappling with how her family's identity clashes with who she thinks she wants to be. A gorgeous debut!" —Kat Cho, New York Times Bestselling Author of Once Upon a K-Prom and Wicked Fox
"Hauntingly beautiful prose evokes a sense of the gothic in House of Yesterday. In this stunning debut, Zargarpur weaves a unique tale of memory, grief, and intergenerational trauma where the past stalks the present, and the future hangs in the balance."—June CL Tan, author of Jade Fire Gold
HOUSE OF YESTERDAY is a haunting, lyrical meditation on generational trauma; a love letter to diaspora families, in all their imperfect glory; and most important of all, a shining testament to the fact that healing can come from the most unlikely of places, if only we have the courage to reach for it. —Adib Khorram, Award-winning author of Darius the Great Is Not Okay
12/01/2022
Gr 9 Up—Fifteen-year-old American-born Sara Rahmat lives on Long Island, where her Afghan-Uzbek family has lived since fleeing Afghanistan. However, the summer before her sophomore year is different as Bibi jan, her maternal grandmother, was diagnosed with dementia; Madar and Padar, her mother and father, are separated; and she is on the outs with her best friend and neighbor, Sam. When Madar ropes Sara into taking photos for the family house-flipping business, the Sumner house is not what she expected. Instead of creating a much-needed distraction, it brings a family mystery to light. In the house, Sara sees what appears to be a younger version of beloved Bibi and a mysterious little girl. As Sara tries to figure out what secrets the Sumner house holds, she starts to unravel, causing her family great worry. Inspired by her own Afghan-Uzbek heritage, Zargarpur has beautifully written a mysterious and haunting story about family. Sara's ability to see ghosts and some of the events that take place provide a bit of magical realism to the story. However, those who don't enjoy fantasy won't be turned off by this book. Aspects of Afghan-Uzbek culture are wonderfully presented throughout the book, and the message of family is marvelously delivered. This well-written story will have readers turning the page to uncover the secrets of the Sumner house along with Sara. VERDICT An excellent choice for libraries, particularly those looking for intriguing books for discussions.—Amanda Borgia
2022-08-31
Through anguish and grief, a 15-year-old is determined to uncover the secrets haunting her Afghan Uzbek family.
What Sara knew, before everything changed, is now only a memory: “the present and past wrapped up so tight until there’s nothing left.” Bibi jan, her beloved maternal grandmother, has dementia. Madar and Padar, her parents, are separated and living apart. She’s estranged from Sam, her former best friend and neighbor, who is cued White. As a coping mechanism this summer before sophomore year, Sara counts the beads on her bracelet to help remember the past. Madar has roped her into taking photos for the family business, flipping houses. Their latest project is the dilapidated Sumner house, where an apparition of her Bibi jan as a young woman, singing and dancing, appears to Sara. Getting to the truth behind the house, the ghost, and her family’s history becomes her new obsession, alarming her friends and family, including an army of aunts and cousins, with her increasingly risky behavior. Is the house truly haunted, or have the sleepless nights and stress taken a toll? Set on a post-pandemic Long Island, the place the Amani family has called home since fleeing Afghanistan, this debut features rewarding character development and complex family dynamics centered in a revelatory cultural lens. Though Zargarpur depicts Sara’s unraveling with compassion, the stellar prose is hampered by the haunted house mystery, which becomes tedious.
A suspenseful, artfully written paranormal drama exploring the ghosts of intergenerational trauma. (Fiction. 13-18)
