Daniel Nayeri Books in Order

A knight wants to enter a tournament but fears losing, so he asks Sasha's father's shop for a courage potion. Since the supposed magic does not work, Sasha and her friend Puck must find another way to help him compete.

When a chocolate maker buys a luck potion before a matchmaking appointment, Sasha knows the remedy from her father's shop cannot work. With Puck's help, she sets out to discover what the customer really needs and make the day go better.

In an Oklahoma classroom, Iranian refugee Khosrou tells skeptical classmates stories of his family's past and escape from religious persecution. Persian folklore and memories of refugee camps intertwine as he struggles to make himself understood and preserve a history others doubt.

A greedy customer gives Sasha's father a supposed persuasion potion and orders him to sell the family shop. Sasha must prevent the sale without revealing that the potions are ineffective, placing both their livelihood and their secret in jeopardy.

Four novellas recast familiar genres through unusual worlds: a western populated by living toys, a future threatened by technological transformation, a detective story about dangerous wishes, and a comic romance narrated by Death. Questions of identity, loyalty, and mortality connect their different adventures.

Traveling the Silk Road, young Monkey owes his life to Samir, a persuasive merchant whose deceptions have earned him deadly enemies. Saving his guardian from six assassination attempts promises Monkey freedom, provided they can survive the journey long enough.

A boy grieving his mother ventures into a dark forest seeking an answer about her life and love. Told through a text that reverses direction, his fantastical journey moves between loneliness and the possibility of finding comfort after loss.

Daniel Nayeri introduces the craft of storytelling through visual prompts and exercises that ask readers to write as they learn. Sections explore conflict, motivation, plot, characterization, dialogue, and voice, using illustrated starting points to turn abstract principles into practical experiments.

An Iranian boy joins his grandmother in making a new family rug, from preparing wool to knotting threads. Worried that his work is imperfect, he discovers how patience, tradition, and shared memories can matter more than matching a flawless pattern.

Ignored by family and classmates, Abel falls through a mirror into a world where everyone gives him the attention he wants. The apparent improvement hides disturbing secrets, and he must uncover them before the mirror world traps him permanently.

Orphaned siblings Babak and his sister cross occupied Iran in 1941, hoping to stay together by taking up their father's work teaching nomads. Meeting a Jewish boy pursued by a Nazi spy turns their search for security into a struggle for survival.

Sisters Lucy and Frida have never been allowed beyond their family's Carolina farm, though they long to visit town. Strange disturbances in the nearby woods lead them to investigate a possible monster and question what their father has kept from them.

A boy travels across the desert to visit his grandfather, whose storytelling opens a world of princes, giants, and an enchanted lemon. The family visit frames a tale about rescuing a princess, connecting shared memories with the imaginative possibilities of stories.

Orphaned Ing follows a prince sent to defeat a giantess, accompanied by his dog and mouse friends. Crossing strange lands and facing frightening creatures, he searches for the truth about his parents and a purpose he can claim for himself.