Ponweera

A stunning, lyrical picture book exploration of the nuances of friendship as two best friends experience jealousy for the first time when one of them receives a beautiful gift of rainbow bangles from her mom.

Selvi’s best friend in the whole world is Divya. She and Divya are alike in so many ways: they love biking to school; they love to play dress up; and they both miss their ammas, who work overseas and only come home once a year. It’s hard not having their moms home all the time, but it’s okay because they have each other.

But when Divya’s amma returns home early and gifts Divya with a beautiful set of rainbow bangles, Selvi starts to feel jealous of her friend. Why is Divya’s amma home and not hers? Does Divya even need Selvi anymore now that she has her mom back?

As their friendship is tested, Selvi and Divya learn the real treasure they have to cherish is each other.

Thushanthi Ponweera is an author and poet from Sri Lanka. Before daring to follow her dream of being published, she was a marketing specialist and entrepreneur. Her writing reflects the frustration she feels at the inequality and injustice she sees around her and the deep love she feels for her island home. Thushanthi currently lives in Qatar with her husband and two children.

Maithili Joshilikes a rich, textured finish to her work, which tends to be playful, delicate, and subtly whimsical. Childhood anecdotes, books, and interesting conversations inspire her more personal creations. Her art has been recognized by the New York and Los Angeles chapters of the Society of Illustrators. After graduating from the School of Visual Arts, Maithili is illustrating picture books as well as designing middle grade covers for Scholastic, where she works full time.