The Girl in the White Cape: A Novel

(Paperback)

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Fifteen-year-old Elena lives in a church attic in San Franciscos Richmond neighborhood, where she is cared for by her guardian, a kind Russian priest named Father Al. Six days a week, Father Al sends her out of Our Lady, across the meadows and ponds of Golden Gate Park, and all the way to Baba Veras house on Taraval Street for Babas version of school.

Unlike regular school, however, Elenas learning is unnerving. Baba Veras preposterous demands, dizzying antics, and housewhich is full of skeletons, brooms, strange implements, and guinea pigs, among other odditiesseem straight out of a Russian fairy tale Father Al used to read to Elena . . . not life in 2020. If not for her beloved doll, Kuklabequeathed to her by the mother she never got to know, but of whom she often dreamsElena would be overwhelmed. Yet she works hard at every task given her, understanding intuitively that there is a purpose to every one of her grandmothers strange assignments.

Frank, a young taxi driver, enters Elenas world on the day he delivers a strange, witch-like woman named Anya to Our Lady. Upon meeting Anya and Elena, a dream-world begins to spin for himand he feels a deep, protective pull toward Elena. In the days that follow, Frank devotes himself to saving her from the harm he is sure Anya intends toward her. What he comes to understand, as he enters more deeply into Elenas story, is that she has magic of her own. He thought he was supposed to save herbut in the end, the two of them may just save each other.

Reviews

I identify with Elenas journey as she faces the unknown and opens herself to magicalconnections with others. She is afraid, but she still leans into and trusts an inner intuition that guides her, teaching us that even as we encounter darkness, new ways of seeing can be found.
Gail Warner,author ofWeaving Myself Awake: Voicing the Sacred Through Poetry

InThe Girl in the White Cape, gifted storyteller Barbara Sapienza awakens our childlike wonder as she invites us to explore the power of the feminine, of mystical knowing, and of trusting our heart in this beautifully crafted fairytale of love and healing. Her rich characters, like a fine Cabernet, made me want to savor each page.
Donna Stoneham, author ofCatch Me When I FallandThe Thrivers Edge

Author Bio

Barbara Sapienza, PhD, is a retired clinical psychologist and an alumna of San Francisco State Universitys creative writing masters program. She writes and paints, nourished by her spiritual practices of meditation, tai chi, and dance. Her family, friends, and grandchildren are her teachers. Her first novel, Anchor Out (She Writes Press, 2017), received an IPPY Bronze for Best Regional Fiction, West Coast. Her second novel, The Laundress (She Writes Press, 2020), received a starred review from Kirkus Reviews. Sapienza lives in Sausalito, California, with her husband.