Masha Hamilton is the author of three novels: Staircase of a Thousand Steps (2001), a Booksense pick by independent booksellers and a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection; The Distance Between Us (2004), named one of the best books of the year by Library Journal, and The Camel Bookmobile (2007), also a Booksense pick. Booksense called the latest novel an excellent book club selection, Booklist called it "a poignant, ennobling, and buoyant tale of risks and rewards, surrender and sacrifice," and the New York Times said: "Hamilton makes us see how much is really at stake in a poverty-stricken place where every possession carries the weight of significance."