My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry

My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman

Elsa, 7, has been hearing stories about the Land of Almost Awake from Granny for as long as she can remember. Its Seven Kingdoms are inhabited by a number of mystical creatures: wurses, norweens, enphants, snow angels, sea angels, a monster, a dragon, and a brave hero, Wolfheart, who once destroyed the evil Shadows and saved the Seven Kingdoms.

Granny is Elsa's best and only friend, and when she dies Elsa is heart-broken and angry. But Granny leaves Elsa a puzzle to solve involving many of the eccentric residents who live in their apartment building and Elsa, though still mad at her for leaving, can't resist. As one clue leads to another, she begins to understand that each resident's story is part of Granny's fairytale. People and events in the Land of Almost Awake are symbolic of things that actually happened in their shared history. Elsa will find consolation in unraveling the truth and in the friendships that develop along the way.

It's sad and funny and complicated, about family and sacrifices made to serve a greater good. Like the other Backman books I've read it's a good story, well told and quirky in all the best ways.