Child of My Heart - Tapa dura

"McDermott sculpts her small story with a meticulous eye for the telling detail and transcendent metaphor."

On the cusp of fifteen, pretty Theresa is the town's most sought-after babysitter - cheerful, beloved, adored by children and animals, but also a solitary soul with an already complex understanding of human nature. She is Titania among her fairies, the one person to call on for help with a child in extreme distress. Theresa does not doubt her power over the fathers of her adoring charges either, like the elderly artist whose signature and doodles may fetch a fortune, but whose potential lechery Theresa toys with like a kitten with yarn. Yet, during this unforgettable summer, it is her cousin Daisy, a frail little creature with glittery shoes and worrying bruises that don't heal, in whom Theresa invests her greatest love. Infused with suppressed passion, disappointment, and enduring hope, Alice McDermott's wonderful new novel reveals a world seen afresh through the eyes of an utterly seductive fifteen-year-old. Once again, McDermott explores the mysterious depths of what seems like everyday life with unforgettable insight and emotional power.