A 2025 Book Page Best Middle Grade Book | A 2025 Imagination Soup Best Middle Grade Book | 2026 Texas Library Association Lone Star List Selection
A funny, poignant MG debut about a boy whose life spirals out of control when he wins a prize in a stolen candy bar.
Ajay Anthonipillai has a million-dollar problem.
Ajay has lived his life dutifully following the rules set by his Tamil parents. Rules like, “straight A’s only” (rule #3), “no such thing as a no-homework day” (rule #5), and “never watch scary movies” (rules #10). But moving to a new school gives Ajay a new rule to follow: get on seventh grade all-star Jacob Underson’s good side.
When Jacob asks him to steal a Mercury bar from Scary Al’s convenience store, Ajay feels this is his chance to finally “get cool” and gain real friends. Maybe even stop eating lunch alone. But Jacob rejects the stolen chocolate bar, leaving Ajay to unwrap it and discover that it contains Mercury’s Twenty-fifth Anniversary Grand Prize: one million dollars!
Faced with an extreme dilemma, Ajay will have to bear the weight of his actions and battle his conscience in deciding whether to claim the prize that may change the life of his family forever.
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
