Veera Hiranandani is an American writer of children's books. Her 2018 novel, ''

The Night Diary ''The Night Diary'' is a young adult novel written by American writer Veera Hiranandani and published by Penguin Random House in 2018. It is set in 1947, during the months before and after the independence of India and subsequent partition, and ...

,'' received a

Newbery Honor The John Newbery Medal, frequently shortened to the Newbery, is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the author of "the most distinguished contr ...

in 2019. Her novel ''How to Find What You're Not Looking For'' won the 2022

Jane Addams Children's Book Award The Jane Addams Children's Book Award is given annually to a children's literature, children's book published the preceding year that advances the causes of peace and social equality. The awards have been presented annually since 1953. They were ...

Life and work

Hiranandani, the daughter of a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

mother and a Sindhi

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

father who was originally from

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, was raised in

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. She attended

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

, and later studied fiction writing at

Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College (SLC) is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Yonkers, New York, United States. Founded as a Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in 1926, Sarah Lawrence College has been coeducational ...

. Her first book, ''The Whole Story of Half a Girl'', was published in 2012. It would become a Sydney Taylor Notable Book and a South Asian Book Award Finalist Hiranandani's next novel, ''

'', is set against the background of the 1947

Partition of India The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Dominion of India, Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The Union of India is today the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Paki ...

. She stated that this book was partly inspired by the experiences of her father, who was nine at the time of the Partition, and fled his home with his family. The book was named one of two Newbery Honor titles in 2019. Hiranandani lives and works in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

state.

References

21st-century American novelists Newbery Honor winners Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) American women novelists 21st-century American women writers American writers of Indian descent George Washington University alumni Sarah Lawrence College alumni Novelists from Connecticut {{US-novelist-stub American people of Jewish descent American people of Sindhi descent