A remarkable story of grit and courage set in Mongolia.

Aisulu and her brother Serken are looking for Serken's horse when he breaks his leg. Aisulu rescues him and brings them all back home, and while family and friends set the leg, she reveals - against Serken's wishes - that his leg has been hurting him, and she's afraid it's worse than just a broken bone. Their parents whisk him off to the hospital, leaving Aisulu alone to take care of the family's home and herds of goats, horses, and yaks. Her aunt and uncle take her in, and when she rescues an eaglet, her aunt becomes a surprising ally. Aisulu calls the bird Toktar, and with her uncle's help, begins training him for a competition at the end of the summer - a competition that, for once, has a cash prize that could help pay for Serken's medical treatment and save their family's way of life.

See also: Bea and the New Deal Horse

Quotes

...a longing so fierce it was almost like pain... (3)

There were three gers, the canvas walls and roofs round and gray and weathered, cupped in the high hollow like eggs in a nest. (37)

Abai put his hand on her head, warm as a cuddle, heavy as a crown. (148)

"The world is a big place. Don't get trapped in a part of it that's wrong for you." (Dulat, 148)

In the music and in the rustling nights, Aisulu felt the great love of her family and the deep roots of her people. But she had put her heart back in her body, and now she also knew that she was afraid. (155)

Aisulu had wished for a bigger world. She had wished for a bigger life. But she had never, ever wanted to be something besides what she was. And now she did. It made her stomach sour, her heart twist. It was a terrible, terrible thing. (172)

There is no joy like the fierce joy of going what you are meant to do. (184)

"But what do men know about what women can do?" (202)

This was what it meant to be Kazakh: to welcome, and to be welcomed, unconditionally. (217)

"Money is one kind of freedom." (Dulat, 225)

There are moments on which your whole life turns. Sometimes you see them coming, and sometimes you don't. (285) ( )

When a friend commissioned me to make a pair of earrings to match this book cover for the author, I knew I would have to order a copy to keep. We'd watched The Eagle Huntress documentary as a family and had been fascinated. A return to that world in fiction (especially one I knew to be well researched) was too good to pass up. So I bought a copy for our bedtime story shelf, and my thirteen-year-old picked it up immediately.

This book was instantly captivating to both of my kids. In fact, my nine-year-old frequently tried to bargain to skip his own story to get extra chapters of this book instead. Aisulu's life is so completely different from their lives, but her feelings are so relatable, and even though you suspect from the beginning that she will triumph in the end, enough tension remains to make nearly every chapter a cliffhanger.

An incredibly well told tale, and an unforgettable look into a different way of life. Would love to replace Island of the Blue Dolphins with this in school libraries across the country. ( )

OK - I really liked this book. I felt like it will let kids see outside their own worlds ... & I loved the girl hero of the story .... BUT see the kirkus review cribbed below ....

"Readers will root for Aisulu and her community, an ancient culture negotiating the contemporary world. However, Aisulu’s story is insufficiently contextualized. In 2014, Aisholpan, a 13-year-old girl, competed and won at the festival, depicted in a 2016 documentary, The Eagle Huntress, well-reviewed and nominated for an Academy Award but also persuasively criticized for falsely claiming, so as to magnify her achievement, that women are barred from eagle hunting. The existence of women eagle hunters is briefly acknowledged here, but Aisulu’s activities provoke damaging, misogynistic bias, expression of which reinforces Western misconceptions and misrepresents reality.

A beautifully told, textbook example of cultural appropriation." - Kirkus Review ( )

Stand on the sky is a book that will make you cry good and bad tears because of how hopeful it is. It takes life through the eyes of a 12 year old, her emotions are so intense that you can't help but feel for her. This is a good read you almost get caught up in the book. This book will get readers interested in reading it is a page turner.

This is achingly beautiful. I don’t cry easily and it kept making me tear up because while it’s only sometimes sad -- while this is a hopeful and joyous story -- it captures twelve year old Aisulu’s emotions so intensely. Aisulu’s family are nomadic Kazakhs living in Mongolia. When her older brother is taken away to hospital, Aisulu is left behind with her uncles and aunts and their herds. She throws herself into raising an eaglet, and discovers that together, she and Toktar might be able to save her family.

This is a fascinating insight into nomadic Kazakhs -- a largely traditional lifestyle, but with things like denim and solar panels and university degrees -- and into the challenges and the rewards of eagle-hunting. I love the prose and the sense of place and the characters; I love the bond Aisulu has with her brother, and relationships she develops with her aunt, her uncle and Toktar. And I love the way this is her story -- her journey.

“Was there a second chick in the nest -- a larger one? How do you know this one is male?”
Aisulu considered. The Fox Wife’s answer -- he is male because he will take things from you -- did not seem like a good thing to say. She settled for, “Kara-Kat-Kis knows things.”
“I do,” said the Fox Wife, sounding wicked.
“She does!” Dulat half laughed. “It’s a pity it’s not female, though.”
“Yes,” said Aisulu, and as soon as she could, she flew outside, to do the work of a girl in the evening, and then to murder more mice. There was a lot of work, and a lot more murder. It was nearly dark by the time she went in to feed the eaglet. ( )