The Winter Place

Gr 9 Up—This modern-day family adventure is a mixture of Finnish folklore, poetry, and the supernatural. Told in three parts, this story follows the unexpected journey of Tess and Axel Fortune as they are forced to move from New York to Finland to live with grandparents they never knew existed until after their widowed father died in a freak accident. Throughout their journey, the characters learn about themselves, their heritage, and their parents. Tess, the older sister, tries to keep what's left of her family intact, including her brother Axel, who suffers from a rare form of muscular dystrophy. Meanwhile, Axel secretly travels between worlds to help the ghost of his mother—who appears to him in the form of a brown bear—find her lost husband. Axel dives deep into the dangers of the forest and the world of the dead, battling Keepers and Finnish demons called Hiisi, which are pulled right out of the stories he read with his father. Both characters struggle on different paths, finding themselves in this new world as they mourn the loss of their parents. The siblings' relationship is well-developed and compelling. The story line is detailed and intricate, with underlying themes of illness, loss, and grief that tie together at the end with a strong sense of hope. Though some teens may find the novel's length intimidating at first, good pacing and an engaging plot will keep them turning pages. This has specific appeal to anyone interested in Finnish literature or history.