Rajani LaRocca was born in Bangalore, India, and immigrated to the US when she was a baby. She grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, graduated from Harvard with both a BA and an MD, and has worked as a primary care physician since 2001. She is the author of several books for young readers. Rajani LaRocca lives in eastern Massachusetts with her family.

Sara Palacios is the illustrator of many picture books, including My Day with the Panye, written by Tami Charles. She divides her time between San Francisco and Mexico City.

Centering a tender grandparent-grandchild relationship, LaRocca (Where Three Oceans Meet) offers an endearing narrator in Jyoti. . . Warmly patterned and textured illustrations by Palacios (A Song of Frutas), rendered in gouache and acrylic and assembled digitally, further conjure the brown-skinned family and rich dual settings. A loving ode to intergenerational relationships and cultural exchange, beyond borders, years, and language barriers.
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Based on LaRocca's childhood experiences as an Indian American, the well-cadenced text tells a story of international, intergenerational love. Palacios' digitally assembled illustrations, created with gouache and acrylic paints, are particularly effective in capturing the growing bond between grandmother and child. A vibrant picture book that reads aloud beautifully.
--Booklist

Jyoti and Sita Pati say "I will go and come back" when their visits end, never "Good-bye," in a satisfying story told with great economy. Gouache and acrylic illustrations with the grainy effect of woodcuts and wonderful attention to textile patterns, exude the mutual delight between grandparent and grandchild. . . . A tender sharing of culture and empathy that bridges generations, and an essential purchase.
--School Library Journal

The tender relationship between a grandmother and a grandchild extends beyond distance and language. . . The simple yet heartfelt text makes excellent connections between the fun they have in India and in America. . . A loving depiction of familial connection between generations.
--Kirkus Reviews

Publisher: Candlewick Press (MA)

Pub date: 2026-11-03

Length: 40 pages