First published 2004
Madeleine slips into a sleep so deep that her dreams begin spilling into her provincial French village. Around her, reality bends in strange ways. A heavy woman suddenly grows wings and soars through the air. A photographer who cannot capture beauty finds himself creating pornographic images instead. A young bride slowly transforms until she looks like her husband's musical instrument. Madeleine moves through this shifting world, watching her own body and mind change in ways she cannot understand. She leaves her family home and joins a traveling gypsy circus, where new desires awaken within her. Two people pull at her heart, creating a triangle of longing and confusion. The boundaries between sleeping and waking dissolve as Madeleine discovers her own sexuality, learns what art means, and finds her place among strangers who become her chosen community. Her journey takes her far from the girl she once was.
Genres: literary-fiction, fantasy, contemporary, magical-realism
Vibes: intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: France, Gypsy Circus
Period: Contemporary
259 pages · Hardcover · Houghton Mifflin Harcourt