In a park in Berlin in 1923, author Franz Kafka comes upon a little white girl, Irma, who is sad because her doll, Soupsy, is lost. Kafka takes to writing letters from Soupsy to Irma, describing her adventures and eventually—as Kafka grows ill with tuberculosis—ending the letters in a thoughtful and hopeful way. (The doll won’t be returning, but she’s got good things ahead: She’s off on an Antarctic expedition.) Soupsy’s bold adventures are inspiring to the girl and help her accept the loss of her doll. Children won’t have to know who Kafka is to appreciate this moving story about a stranger’s kindness and compassion. The digital art has a distinctly old-fashioned look, helping to relay that the story is set in times past. An author’s note explains that Kafka did, indeed, correspond with a young girl who had lost her doll, writing in the doll’s voice. Although the actual letters have been lost, Theule’s own imagination supplied the missing letters, though she acknowledges that there is no way she could have replicated Kafka’s distinctive writing style. (Ages 4-7)