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Between the Mountain and the Sky: A Mother’s Story of Love, Loss, Healing, and Hope
Between the Mountain and the Sky shows us the goodness that is possible when a single person--regardless of age--takes action to help another and, in the process, changes the lives of hundreds. Maggie’s story begins in suburban New Jersey, in a comfortable middle-class family that supports her decision to travel the world during a gap year before starting college. During her travels, the trajectory of her life alters when she has a surprise encounter with a Nepali girl breaking rocks in a quarry. Maggie decides to invest her life savings of five thousand dollars to buy a piece of land and open a children’s home in Nepal. That home becomes Kopila Valley Children’s Home, and eventually, the nonprofit Maggie launches, the BlinkNow Foundation, also starts the Kopila Valley School, which provides tuition-free education for more than four hundred students. Maggie and BlinkNow’s work have been recognized around the world for their innovative, sustainable work. However, this book isn’t a how-to for fledging philanthropists or nonprofit founders--it’s a coming-of-age story about a young woman suspended between two worlds, as well as the love, loss, healing, and hope she experiences along the way. And Maggie’s inspiring, intimate tale shows readers an important the power to change the world exists within all of us.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2022
144 people are currently reading
2636 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 284 reviews
February 11, 2022
This memoir is a gift that will touch your soul and inspire you in the most beautiful way. Between The Mountain and the Sky details Maggie’s journey as she builds and operates an orphanage and school in Nepal. The children she cares for are all so lovely. As you read her story, I guarantee you will fall in love with their personalities and their resiliency. I cheered through the triumphs and cried through the misfortunes. This book will stay with me for a long time. ❤️
Maggie takes a gap year to travel the world before starting college. She ends up in Nepal. Fate brings her to meet a very young girl who is a child labourer crushing large rocks by the river. It begs the question: Why is this young child doing such gruesome work and why is she not in school? Maggie quickly learns that education is not free in Nepal. Parents cannot afford the tuition and they rely on their children working to support the family. This is the beginning of Maggie’s dream, Kopila Valley, an orphanage and school for the children of Nepal.
Thank you @maggiedoyne for sharing your amazing journey and having the courage and heart to undertake this huge humanitarian project. 🙏🏻❤️ Thank you to @netgalley and @harperhorizon for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
#netgalley #harperhorizon #booksofhcc #betweenthemountainandthesky #maggiedoyne #bookadoration #bookstagram #canadianbookstagram
Maggie takes a gap year to travel the world before starting college. She ends up in Nepal. Fate brings her to meet a very young girl who is a child labourer crushing large rocks by the river. It begs the question: Why is this young child doing such gruesome work and why is she not in school? Maggie quickly learns that education is not free in Nepal. Parents cannot afford the tuition and they rely on their children working to support the family. This is the beginning of Maggie’s dream, Kopila Valley, an orphanage and school for the children of Nepal.
Thank you @maggiedoyne for sharing your amazing journey and having the courage and heart to undertake this huge humanitarian project. 🙏🏻❤️ Thank you to @netgalley and @harperhorizon for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
#netgalley #harperhorizon #booksofhcc #betweenthemountainandthesky #maggiedoyne #bookadoration #bookstagram #canadianbookstagram
December 3, 2021
This is heartfelt story of a young woman who travels to Nepal on her gap year and falls in love with the country and its people. It reminds us how much one person can do to change the world.
January 6, 2022
There are few books that I sit down and read in a day, but this was one of them.
Between the Mountain and the Sky is a memoir written by a woman who started a home for orphaned children in Nepal. Her gap year between high school and college transformed into her now permanently living in a small mountain village in Nepal.
The memoir itself is beautifully written with great descriptive language. And the book is really easy to read because you want to hear more and more of her story. However, her story is far from easy. She has experienced an unbelievable amount of heartache, loss, despair, anxiety, and danger. But she has such obvious love and passion for the children she raises and the community in which she lives that that is what you take away from her story. Her love. In fact, she shares love notes that she’s written to every one of her 50 children and the numerous members of her team that help make it all possible.
The amount of things she’s accomplished in just over a decade since she started with the idea is astounding. In addition to the children’s home, the complex houses a sustainability-based school for the kids, a woman’s cooperative for the women of the community to learn a trade, a transition program for the kids as they near adulthood and find their way into the world, a safe home for at risk girls and young women (the threat of being sold or forced to marry young is very real), and a health and wellness clinic. In 2015 she was named CNN Hero of the Year. And what’s more astounding is that she’s done all of this and currently is only in her early 30s. Just amazing when you can write a memoir at 30.
If you’re interested in learning more about Maggie Doyne’s work in Nepal, check out BlinkNow Foundation and Kopila Valley Children’s Home and School.
Between the Mountain and the Sky is a memoir written by a woman who started a home for orphaned children in Nepal. Her gap year between high school and college transformed into her now permanently living in a small mountain village in Nepal.
The memoir itself is beautifully written with great descriptive language. And the book is really easy to read because you want to hear more and more of her story. However, her story is far from easy. She has experienced an unbelievable amount of heartache, loss, despair, anxiety, and danger. But she has such obvious love and passion for the children she raises and the community in which she lives that that is what you take away from her story. Her love. In fact, she shares love notes that she’s written to every one of her 50 children and the numerous members of her team that help make it all possible.
The amount of things she’s accomplished in just over a decade since she started with the idea is astounding. In addition to the children’s home, the complex houses a sustainability-based school for the kids, a woman’s cooperative for the women of the community to learn a trade, a transition program for the kids as they near adulthood and find their way into the world, a safe home for at risk girls and young women (the threat of being sold or forced to marry young is very real), and a health and wellness clinic. In 2015 she was named CNN Hero of the Year. And what’s more astounding is that she’s done all of this and currently is only in her early 30s. Just amazing when you can write a memoir at 30.
If you’re interested in learning more about Maggie Doyne’s work in Nepal, check out BlinkNow Foundation and Kopila Valley Children’s Home and School.
April 8, 2022
This book! One of the very best I've read in some time. I laughed, I cried, I stayed up way too late on a work night. Maggie's story is inspirational, compelling, heartfelt, real. Having spent a couple weeks volunteering at this children's home myself back in 2016, I was honored to meet Maggie and many of these children in person. This is a book that permeated my being so deeply, that I feel unable to pick up another book just yet, as I wait to allow all the feels of this story, to settle within me.
March 29, 2022
I was already familiar with Maggie and Blink Now but oh my goodness…..the story behind the story is even more incredible. Hope radiates off the pages. I am a mother of two and I’ve never read anything that evokes the indescribable love of your child, and the sheer terror that that love can inspire, the way Maggie’s words did. It was also a beautiful tribute to Nepal and its people. Thank you Maggie for sharing your story with the world. I can’t wait to one day pass it along to my boys and hopefully inspire them too to change the world.
March 25, 2022
A MUST READ:
Maggie's honest, heart centered writing carries the message we all need now. This candid memoir is a powerful book about her endless courage, her generous life, and the profoundly important work she and her co-founder Tope bring to the wold. The stories in this book will make you pause, laugh, weep, and perhaps more importantly remember the power each and every one of us has to create a more loving world.
Please read this book.
Maggie's honest, heart centered writing carries the message we all need now. This candid memoir is a powerful book about her endless courage, her generous life, and the profoundly important work she and her co-founder Tope bring to the wold. The stories in this book will make you pause, laugh, weep, and perhaps more importantly remember the power each and every one of us has to create a more loving world.
Please read this book.
May 14, 2024
Honestly, I didn’t know this book (or author) existed until a few weeks ago but am glad my bookstore browsing paid off. Doyne’s story is an incredible reminder how powerful and life changing a little intentionality can be. This book made me rethink my life goals - the way I want to live and the type of person I want to be. May we all strive to create a world where every child is fed, educated, and cared for.
January 18, 2023
4.5 Maggie’s heartwarming book is an incredible inspiration that makes you feel connected to humanity in such a profound way that it leaves you wondering “What can I do next to help others?” The world will be a better place when more people are impacted by Maggie’s story.
September 8, 2024
Hm, consider me conflicted.
On one hand, I think Maggie Doyne's story is absolutely worth sharing. Her efforts to protect children, build a loving community, and help Nepal as best she could were inspiring; any person who dedicates their life so whole-heartedly to something deserves to have their story told. On the other hand, this book's biggest flaw is the writing itself. I felt as though the book's powerful themes of love, grief, and motherhood were lost in some of the questionable literary choices and figurative language. I found it a bit distracting, to say the least. But at the end of the day, this woman is a passionate caregiver, not necessarily a writer.
Regardless of the flaws, I did almost cry reading this. Some of the emotions were so raw that you could not avoid tearing up. Moreover, some of these passages were beautifully honest. <3
Favorite Quotes:
"Life is hard for everyone here, but whereas men struggle, women suffer."
"I've always believed that the universe was just. If there was a God, then God was good and fair. I behaved myself. I tried to do right. I loved my kids. None of it mattered. Ravi is gone. I nursed him from skin and bone into the fullest, brightest light in the world, and he's gone.
Why?
Not everyone who suffers deserves pain. Not everyone who succeeds deserves to prosper. Life rushes in and it rushes out, without pause, reflection, or reward. I can't tell whether I need shelter with God or from him. I'm not sure if there's any God at all."
"'A little green speck. You have to find the little green specks inside of you. Find the speck, nurture it until it grows, until you feel alive again. The pain and the trauma and the grief will never go away but you will find your way to life again. You will feel joy. You'll laugh again. You won't get through this but you will continue on."'
"I always believed that darkness and grief were what my children carried with them when they first lay their heads down at Kopila Valley. I understand now that it was love. Grief doesn't arrive because love is gone -- it arrives because love is everywhere, because it's extraordinary, a mammoth that touches the sky. It stands not in opposition to love, but as a consequence of it. Grief is the shadows cast by the world's greatest wonder. When it falls, all we can do in our suffering is keep looking up for the light to change, for the miracle to reveal itself again."
On one hand, I think Maggie Doyne's story is absolutely worth sharing. Her efforts to protect children, build a loving community, and help Nepal as best she could were inspiring; any person who dedicates their life so whole-heartedly to something deserves to have their story told. On the other hand, this book's biggest flaw is the writing itself. I felt as though the book's powerful themes of love, grief, and motherhood were lost in some of the questionable literary choices and figurative language. I found it a bit distracting, to say the least. But at the end of the day, this woman is a passionate caregiver, not necessarily a writer.
Regardless of the flaws, I did almost cry reading this. Some of the emotions were so raw that you could not avoid tearing up. Moreover, some of these passages were beautifully honest. <3
Favorite Quotes:
"Life is hard for everyone here, but whereas men struggle, women suffer."
"I've always believed that the universe was just. If there was a God, then God was good and fair. I behaved myself. I tried to do right. I loved my kids. None of it mattered. Ravi is gone. I nursed him from skin and bone into the fullest, brightest light in the world, and he's gone.
Why?
Not everyone who suffers deserves pain. Not everyone who succeeds deserves to prosper. Life rushes in and it rushes out, without pause, reflection, or reward. I can't tell whether I need shelter with God or from him. I'm not sure if there's any God at all."
"'A little green speck. You have to find the little green specks inside of you. Find the speck, nurture it until it grows, until you feel alive again. The pain and the trauma and the grief will never go away but you will find your way to life again. You will feel joy. You'll laugh again. You won't get through this but you will continue on."'
"I always believed that darkness and grief were what my children carried with them when they first lay their heads down at Kopila Valley. I understand now that it was love. Grief doesn't arrive because love is gone -- it arrives because love is everywhere, because it's extraordinary, a mammoth that touches the sky. It stands not in opposition to love, but as a consequence of it. Grief is the shadows cast by the world's greatest wonder. When it falls, all we can do in our suffering is keep looking up for the light to change, for the miracle to reveal itself again."
April 4, 2023
Prachtig!!!
May 11, 2022
I already knew Maggie's story, but reading it from start to finish was incredibly powerful. It's impossible to overstate the magnitude of what this teenager from NJ accomplished in her mission to help children and women in one terrifically impoverished corner of Nepal -- helping them not by swooping in to be the great white savior, but by empowering them to create a sustainable future for themselves and their community. Much work remains, but this is the story of someone who truly walked the walk.
October 31, 2024
This fabulous memoir shows the power of love and its effects on a community. The writing is lovely; I returned to several sentences throughout the work that were achingly beautiful. At 19, Maggie begins a project of the heart during a gap year. Decades later, readers see growth among the challenges in Nepal. “… poverty, hunger, and violence will be alleviated when children are provided with their most basic needs and human rights— a loving, happy childhood, nutrition, and a quality education.”
I highly recommend this read.
I highly recommend this read.
December 25, 2022
Maggie, a dear friend and teammate of mine from childhood, has done such amazing things to change the lives of so many. I knew this book would be amazing, but I was actually blown away to hear her speak about her story with such nuance and care. I would recommend this book to anyone. So impressed and proud of Maggie, always.
March 27, 2022
A hopeful, heartening look at our complex world. Impossible to put down.
April 17, 2023
Absolutely loved this.. the kindness of a single human and her ability to share her love life and ability to pay it forward to a nation in dire need.
February 12, 2023
Maggies story is really inspiring and it is unbelievable what her Nepalese family and herself have overcome! The story inspires to become the best version of yourself in order to help people and the planet, without wanting to obtain the title of the hero or rescuer. And to above all believe in love: love for your family, love for your children (biologically or by heart), your community and all communities around you. You can overcome a lot when there is love and she teaches herself, and by writing that process in her book she teaches us, that your heart can shatter and expand and reopen and be full and be empty and be full again.
In my opinion, the book does Maggies view (through lessons learned) on philantropy justice. It shows what power white privilege has, for example in rasing money an gaining attention from the western world, but also what it lacks, such as perspective on the culture and valuable traditions. Maggie needs Tope and the other Nepalese team members as much as they need her. Their community is truly equal and shows why the whole world should be. Forcing the western way of living and culture on other communities will never help them. Helping them grow and giving all members of the community a voice and a possibility to educate themselves and teach others will. And all that in a sustainable manner that saves the planet!
I wish that all people can find such a place and have satsung. As Maggie writes: love can change the world in a flash.
In my opinion, the book does Maggies view (through lessons learned) on philantropy justice. It shows what power white privilege has, for example in rasing money an gaining attention from the western world, but also what it lacks, such as perspective on the culture and valuable traditions. Maggie needs Tope and the other Nepalese team members as much as they need her. Their community is truly equal and shows why the whole world should be. Forcing the western way of living and culture on other communities will never help them. Helping them grow and giving all members of the community a voice and a possibility to educate themselves and teach others will. And all that in a sustainable manner that saves the planet!
I wish that all people can find such a place and have satsung. As Maggie writes: love can change the world in a flash.
November 5, 2025
This is incredible, amazing, awesome. Maggie, thank you for being obedient and courageous to your calling. Your example of God’s love is obvious and paramount to those who see and hear your work. In this world where it can be easy to be lost in despair or lost in comfort, you show us that there is hope and the importance of getting the work done.
March 11, 2025
Very impressed by the story of Maggie and her children. The book is about infinite love, loss and hope. Especially the parts about loss touched me to my soul. All respect for you Maggie. You make the world a little better! 🙏🏼
January 11, 2023
Very good
July 4, 2023
I was pleasantly surprised by this memoir. I went in to this book with some skepticism and hint of pride - why should I read a book about an American coming to Nepal and opening an orphanage after her gap year? What can she teach me that I don't already know? The answer was a lot. As someone who is from Nepal but haven't lived in Nepal nearly as long as her, who am I to judge? I applaud Maggie's work and her dedication to her orphanage, her children and Nepal. She's shown a lot of reflexivity and acknowledges her privilege throughout the book. The anecdotes she shares shows that there is still so much to do in Nepal and I am grateful that she has been doing this work with her Nepali community.
January 12, 2025
A really lovely memoir about the first decade of the Kopila Valley NGO. Following along as Maggie (and her team) learn how to love, build, and serve the kids of Nepal through grief and joy was educational and touching. It felt fairy aware of the discrepency between empowering a community and the white savior complex. Would recommend.
July 12, 2025
I’m in awe of Maggie Doyne. She is brave, hopeful, motivated, strong, and so full of love!
September 10, 2022
Het prachtige verhaal van zo’n bijzondere vrouw, kon het geen hoofdstuk droog houden
April 4, 2023
The events at the heart of this book are epic, life-changing. A young American woman goes to Nepal, sees a need and decides to do something about it. She ends up saving and enriching countless Nepalis and building structures of change to lift generations to come.
The telling of the tale, however, falls short for me, because it feels like there's a lot of padding to stretch this to book length. Some of it, textual tics, adds unnecessary words. "Every" conveys the same thing as "each and every." Use of "each and every" each and every or even many times in the tale became noticeable, then annoying. The timeline and details about the BlinkNow organization feel redundant. That's covered well in the text.
The notes to the children of Kopila Valley at the beginning of (and amid) the chapters are very repetitive. I'm guessing the point there was to establish how well Maggie Doyne knows her young charges, a dynamic never in doubt for me. I'd have liked to read about more success stories and see photos of the place, staff members, etc. I found photos and videos online, but it's not the same as having them in hand.
I'm curious, too, about what thought Maggie Doyne has given to her exit strategy. If the program is intended to be self-sustaining and run by native peoples, where will Doyne take herself? Does she have an interest in furthering her education or teaching others? She has much to offer a needy world, also has every right to step into an anonymous life.
Loved this passage, a perfect description of grief for a loved one: "I think of Ravi. I find him on billboards and in grains of sand, in bathroom stalls and in crossword puzzles. How can he be gone and still be so alive in the world? Am I standing in his shadow or his light? How can I move forward when all I want is to remember?"
Three and a half stars.
The telling of the tale, however, falls short for me, because it feels like there's a lot of padding to stretch this to book length. Some of it, textual tics, adds unnecessary words. "Every" conveys the same thing as "each and every." Use of "each and every" each and every or even many times in the tale became noticeable, then annoying. The timeline and details about the BlinkNow organization feel redundant. That's covered well in the text.
The notes to the children of Kopila Valley at the beginning of (and amid) the chapters are very repetitive. I'm guessing the point there was to establish how well Maggie Doyne knows her young charges, a dynamic never in doubt for me. I'd have liked to read about more success stories and see photos of the place, staff members, etc. I found photos and videos online, but it's not the same as having them in hand.
I'm curious, too, about what thought Maggie Doyne has given to her exit strategy. If the program is intended to be self-sustaining and run by native peoples, where will Doyne take herself? Does she have an interest in furthering her education or teaching others? She has much to offer a needy world, also has every right to step into an anonymous life.
Loved this passage, a perfect description of grief for a loved one: "I think of Ravi. I find him on billboards and in grains of sand, in bathroom stalls and in crossword puzzles. How can he be gone and still be so alive in the world? Am I standing in his shadow or his light? How can I move forward when all I want is to remember?"
Three and a half stars.
August 28, 2022
First read for book clubbbbb :) :) :) I wouldn’t have picked this book at all for myself and my mixed feelings have stuck around after finishing it. It’s got white saviour issues big time but she also kind of briefly says she knows that and they are working on it? But like your writing a book that kind of perpetuates it then briefly says yeah so this probably wasn’t the best? It’s meant to be a memoir (which I hate to over judge - it’s her story after all) and you can tell she’s passionate, loving and well intentioned but the white saviour impact of her work/this book might matter a lot more then the good intention behind it?
January 8, 2025
When I came across the Instagram page for the Kopila Valley School I was curious to hear the founders' story and her thoughts around being a foreigner doing NGO work in Nepal. What I enjoyed about this book is that it's a truly inspiring story told with a lot of love and humility. However, I didn't particularly enjoy the writing style itself, which felt a bit cliched or effortfully poetic, and I would have liked more in-depth personal reflections on the ethics of development work and how she navigates those ethical dilemmas where she disagrees with the priorities/values of the local community.
June 19, 2022
My initial impressions were this is about to be a
'white savior' narrative on this woman's journey to 'saving' the poor and disenfranchised youth of
Nepal.
There were some instances where I noticed the divide and possible influence of Western beliefs and the struggle to keep the customs of Nepal in
perspective. However, I also felt the work Maggie
is doing has been helpful to the people of Nepal.
It was an ok read.
'white savior' narrative on this woman's journey to 'saving' the poor and disenfranchised youth of
Nepal.
There were some instances where I noticed the divide and possible influence of Western beliefs and the struggle to keep the customs of Nepal in
perspective. However, I also felt the work Maggie
is doing has been helpful to the people of Nepal.
It was an ok read.
October 1, 2024
Listening to the audiobook added a lovely layer
July 2, 2022
A story like this doesn't come along often. From the beautifully descripted scenery, to the love Maggie pours into each word, this book will stay in my heart forever.
At 19, during a gap year, Maggie visited Nepal. Inspiration struck when she witnessed a young girl breaking rocks in the dry riverbed, thinking, why isn't she in school? Maggie quickly learned about the war-torn Himalayan culture; school is not free in Nepal, and many impoverished children could not attend. She felt compelled to do something. She wired her college savings and helped a few children get into school. With the rest, Maggie scouted for a business partner and a plot of land.
Within a decade, Maggie built the foundation of hope, helping a community off their feet and educating and empowering them with hope, love, and possibly. She has helped not only hundreds of children, but also disenfranchised women, and families that had been separated or lost.
I appreciated her mentioning she was always mindful that she is a guest in another country, and not to adopt the white savior complex, but to be a foothold to the communities and empower them to take the lead and grow.
As her phrase, One Human Family speaks to my heart.
My favorite parts of the books were Maggie's love letters to each child. I could see all of their smiling faces and the love they felt for each other. I even dreamed of them.
Such a heartwarming story, I recommend 100% if you are in need of goodness in your heart.
You can find out more of Maggie's foundations here at Kopila Valley Children's Home/School, and BlinkNow.
Both are on Instagram.
*there are a few difficult moments of loss, but Maggie's journey and big heart help you through it to hope and healing. 💖
At 19, during a gap year, Maggie visited Nepal. Inspiration struck when she witnessed a young girl breaking rocks in the dry riverbed, thinking, why isn't she in school? Maggie quickly learned about the war-torn Himalayan culture; school is not free in Nepal, and many impoverished children could not attend. She felt compelled to do something. She wired her college savings and helped a few children get into school. With the rest, Maggie scouted for a business partner and a plot of land.
Within a decade, Maggie built the foundation of hope, helping a community off their feet and educating and empowering them with hope, love, and possibly. She has helped not only hundreds of children, but also disenfranchised women, and families that had been separated or lost.
I appreciated her mentioning she was always mindful that she is a guest in another country, and not to adopt the white savior complex, but to be a foothold to the communities and empower them to take the lead and grow.
As her phrase, One Human Family speaks to my heart.
My favorite parts of the books were Maggie's love letters to each child. I could see all of their smiling faces and the love they felt for each other. I even dreamed of them.
Such a heartwarming story, I recommend 100% if you are in need of goodness in your heart.
You can find out more of Maggie's foundations here at Kopila Valley Children's Home/School, and BlinkNow.
Both are on Instagram.
*there are a few difficult moments of loss, but Maggie's journey and big heart help you through it to hope and healing. 💖
January 4, 2024
I knew little of Maggie’s story before reading this book. BlinkNow and the Kopila Valley Children’s Home have always been on my “update radar” for many years. But now knowing the true depth of love, heartbreak, and devotion of those who surround Maggie is astounding. Each chapter I was consistently reflecting on my own role in a situation like where Maggie found herself. Is that love something I’m capable of? What kind of person does it take to instill equitable, sustainable, and systemic change? This book brings us closer to an answer to that question
I’m eager to see what will come next for them.
I’m eager to see what will come next for them.
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