by Kate Seredy
First published 2008
Twelve-year-old Philomena stands at her dying grandmother's bedside, receiving final instructions. Village tradition sends girls her age to the city as housemaids before marriage, but Philomena's aunt departed years ago and never returned home. Babushka commands her granddaughter to journey to Prague and locate this missing aunt, who surely prospered in the capital and can provide employment. Armed with faith that her grandmother watches from above, Philomena ventures into Prague's maze of spires and cobblestones. The city presents her with a series of unexpected encounters and curious opportunities. Doors swing open and slam shut as Babushka's heavenly guidance steers the girl through one predicament after another. Philomena occasionally questions her grandmother's mysterious methods, but each adventure brings new companions, both human and animal, along with valuable lessons about surviving in an unfamiliar world. Kate Seredy's pre-World War I Czechoslovakian setting frames this tale of a determined girl whose journey reveals that finding what you seek may look nothing like what you expected.
Genres: family-life, historical-fiction, 20th-century, adventure, coming-of-age
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Prague, Czechoslovakia
Period: Pre-World War I
95 pages · Paperback · Bethlehem Books