Sanctuary

By: Paola Mendoza, Abby Sher

Narrated by: Paola Mendoza

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Co-founder of the Women's March Paola Mendoza and award-winning writer Abby Sher’s timely, haunting near-future dystopian where a young girl and her brother must escape a xenophobic government to find sanctuary.

It's 2032, and in this near-future America, all citizens are chipped and everyone is tracked--from buses to grocery stores. It's almost impossible to survive as an undocumented immigrant, but that's exactly what sixteen-year-old Vali is doing. She and her family have carved out a stable, happy life in small-town Vermont, but when Vali's mother's counterfeit chip starts malfunctioning and the Deportation Forces raid their town, they are forced to flee.

Now on the run, Vali and her family are desperately trying to make it to her tía Luna's in California, a sanctuary state that is currently being walled off from the rest of the country. But when Vali's mother is detained before their journey even really begins, Vali must carry on with her younger brother across the country to make it to safety before it's too late.

Gripping and urgent, co-authors Paola Mendoza and Abby Sher have crafted a narrative that is as haunting as it is hopeful in envisioning a future where everyone can find sanctuary.

And don’t miss the sequel, Solis, available now!

Critic reviews

Praise for Sanctuary:

USA TODAY Bestseller!
A 2022 Garden State Teen Book Award Nominee (NJ)
A 2021-2022 Green Mountain Book Award Nominee (VT)
A 2021 Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year
A 2021 YALSA Best Fiction Book For Young Adults
A 2020 School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
A 2020 Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
A Teen Vogue Book Club Pick

“Mendoza and Sher’s descriptions of emotional trauma are heart-wrenchingly raw. (When she was 3, Mendoza herself emigrated from Colombia to America with her mother and younger brother.) A story of survival and hope, Sanctuary is a gripping work of fiction, with a message about xenophobia that’s rooted in a scarily real world.” —New York Times

"Like classic dystopian novels 1984 and Fahrenheit 451... Sanctuary feels all too real in today’s oddly apocalyptic world." —Teen Vogue

★ “This searing near-future dystopian novel . . . [uses] a speculative lens to lay bare the trauma and anguish that migrants to the U.S. can experience as well as the human capacity for survival. Though the novel’s unflinching honesty and real-world parallels deliver uncomfortable truths, its propulsive narrative and its message of hope and resilience will carry readers through.” —Publisher Weekly, starred review

★ “In their portrayal of Vali’s family’s quest for safety, the authors beautifully mirror the treacherous, painful, and terrifying treks involving natural and human threats that migrants to the U.S. undertake as they traverse continents and oceans…Wrenching and unmissable.” —Kirkus, starred review

★ “[This] stunning work of YA dystopian fiction . . . is a triumph in its genre and so politically astute that it sears.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“This fast-paced drama depicts the trauma of Vali’s journey in an unflinching, heart-wrenching way that can feel all too real and timely.” —The Horn Book

“The all-too-possible future in this suspenseful dystopian novel amplifies the undocumented immigrant experience in the U.S.” —Booklist

A Handmaid’s Tale Like Page Turner - A Must Read

If you are counting the days until the U.S. 2020 elections, if you loved A Handmaid’s Tale tv series or book, if you love the United States but are so sad about what Trump and his gang have done to our country, you must immediately listen to/read Sanctuary. Mendoza and Sher have written a classic that makes you laugh, cry, cheer, fear and hope while inspiring you to do what you can to fight hate, climate change, and dehumanizing immigration policies.

I finished the book in 24 hours - I had trouble “putting the book down” because the authors have created such lovable characters who are so easy to root for. They have also created a world that seems so real if we don’t all vote and do what we can to make positive changes. Living in California right now not able to go outside because the air quality is so bad and ready to evacuate from fires if necessary, the dystopian world they have created doesn’t seem far away at all.

Note about the narration: This is read by one of the authors. It isn’t the high quality recording I’m used to on audible and I would have preferred a more experienced narrator. It distracted from the story at times but not so much that I wouldn’t recommend listening.

I hope this becomes required reading in high schools.

This book is timely and needed!

I have so many emotions about this book. Firstly everyone needs to read this book. This book truly takes a look at the immigrant experience. This book is timely in the worst of ways. No matter where you fall on the political spectrum you need to read this book. The author perfectly encapsulates the empathy that we require as a nation. There are so many people here that deserve love and empathy. I think many times we get caught up in the political lines and forget that these people who are here are just that, people. I know many readers understand that books are political. This one tells a story of a young girl who struggles to protect her brother in a climate and not so distant country that only wants to destroy them. Please read this book.

A warning of what our country can become

This book follows a young lady through her journey in the US as someone who is unwelcome, yet she calls it home.

Very Real Trauma in These Pages

This was a very good book, especially if you're interested in the immigration experiences of others. I've read other books and heard stories about how others have found their freedom, but none as hard as this. I had to take breaks because even though this is fiction, the emotion and the trauma are very real and very possible in this 2025 we are in.

Gripping story

It is interesting to see how the United States could become dystopian and it was fascinating to see how Vali was able to get her and her brother to push forward through all the struggles in life to become a citizen who was free from danger.