First published 2016
Elsa, a precocious seven-year-old, is reeling from the death of her unconventional grandmother. But the old woman leaves behind a trail of letters, sending Elsa on a strange journey through her apartment building. As Elsa encounters drunks, attack dogs, and other eccentric tenants, she uncovers the truth about her grandmother's fantastical realm of fairy tales, kingdoms, and gods. Navigating this gritty, grim world, Elsa learns to cherish the extraordinary woman she thought she knew.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking, whimsical
Tropes: found-family, unreliable-narrator
372 pages · Paperback · Atria