A coming of age tale in which Heidi goes on a cross-country journey in search of the meaning behind a mysterious word in her mother's 28-word vocabulary.
You couldn′t really tell about Mama′s brain just from looking at her, but it was obvious as soon as she spoke. She had a high voice, like a little girl′s, and she only knew 23 words. I know this for a fact, because we kept a list of the things Mama said tacked to the inside of the kitchen cabinet. Most of the words were common ones, like good and more and hot, but there was one word only my mother said: soof.
Although she lives an unconventional lifestyle with her mentally disabled mother and their doting neighbour, Bernadette, Heidi has a lucky streak that has a way of pointing her in the right direction. When a mysterious word in her mother′s vocabulary begins to haunt her, Heidi′s thirst for the truth leads her on a cross-country journey in search of the secrets of her past.
Industry Reviews
"Refreshing, offbeat characters. As the riddle of Heidi's life slowly unfolds, readers will be genuinely touched and surprised."--VOYA (starred review) "Readers will pull for and empathize with the likable characters."--School Library Journal "A quick and satisfying tale of love, determination, and the kindness of strangers."--Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books "The heart of the search for home and history is one that readers will find compelling."--Kirkus Reviews "A remarkable novel. [Heidi's] cross-country journey is brave and daring and yields surprising results."--New York Times Book Review A remarkable novel. [Heidi s] cross-country journey is brave and daring and yields surprising results. --New York Times Book Review" Refreshing, offbeat characters. As the riddle of Heidi s life slowly unfolds, readers will be genuinely touched and surprised. --VOYA (starred review)" The heart of the search for home and history is one that readers will find compelling. --Kirkus Reviews" Readers will pull for and empathize with the likable characters. --School Library Journal" A quick and satisfying tale of love, determination, and the kindness of strangers. --Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books" "Weeks has a distinctive voice that's all her own. Her fully dimensional characters are remarkable yet believable [and] the foreshadowing builds to a beautifully satisfying ending. This is lovely writing--real, touching, and pared cleanly down to the essentials."--ALA Booklist (starred review) "The novel has enough suspence to draw in mystery fans, while Weeks portrays Heidi's emotional and physical odyssey with admirable economy and restraint."--Horn Book Magazine (Starred Review)