This book from award winning fantasy author Patricia A. McKillip is a departure from her usual genre. When we first meet Frances she is a young grade school girl with a very active imagination, getting into trouble for daydreaming in class, and telling herself stories about green hell-giants and a wild child in the desert. Her unnamed shadow sister narrates the story as we follow Frances over the course of several years, from Arizona to Germany to Britain as she moves with her military family.   By the time she gets to college in California, Frances has created her own internal mythology and is struggling to reconcile her inner world with the reality of the world around her as she seeks to overcome her shyness and connect with others. Vivid descriptions and skillful depictions of Frances' inner world make this coming of age story of a young writer a very compelling and thoughful read.