Butterfly Heart
Butterfly Heart by Moa Backe Åstot, published by Levine Querido on October 14, 2025, is a poignant exploration of identity and loss. In this 184-page novel, Vilda navigates her mixed heritage as she seeks to connect with her Sámi roots through her grandfather, Áddjá. However, her world is turned upside down when Áddjá passes away unexpectedly, leaving her grappling with grief and a sense of disconnection from her history.
Readers will find a narrative that delves into Vilda’s emotional journey as she confronts the complexities of growing up, including her changing relationships and feelings for an older boy. The story addresses themes of social and family issues, highlighting Vilda’s struggle to find her place in the world amidst the turmoil of loss and self-discovery. Butterfly Heart presents a thoughtful reflection on the challenges of defining one’s identity in the face of profound change.
Official synopsis Publisher
Vilda takes life as it comes, talking for hours about everything and nothing with her best friend, Alma. It’s never been a big deal to Vilda that her mother’s side of the family is Sámi and her father’s is Swedish, but as summer vacation starts, she wants to know more about her indigenous roots-and she’s looking forward to her beloved grandfather, Áddjá, teaching her the Sámi language.
Then Áddjá has a fatal heart attack and, overnight, Vilda loses not only a person she loves most in the world, but a crucial link to her history and identity. It’s disorienting in ways deep and superficial: she doesn’t know what to wear, what to say, or how Alma and her friends should react. And all this comes while her body is changing, and she’s swamped by confusing thoughts and feelings about an older boy she meets at her grandfather’s funeral.
Feeling whole seems impossibly hard to reach.
Butterfly Heart is a tender, heartwarming story about love, grief, and the right to define who you are.
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