“Both a portrait of an exceptional life and a gimlet-eyed view of the upheavals of the first half of the 20th century, Ariela Freedman’s novel reads like a real-life Bildungsroman. Léa, indomitable and idealistic, journeys from adolescent inklings of social inequities through a believably, tenderly, and, often necessarily brutally evoked series of political awakenings and disillusionments which carry the reader seamlessly from Montreal to France, New York, Berlin, Rome, and Moscow. Utterly engaging, Léa is a welcome addition to the literature of social justice.” –Zsuzsi Gartner, author of The Beguiling (2020) Better Living Through Plastic Explosives (2011, shortlisted for the Giller) and All the Anxious Girls on Earth (1999).”In sensual, cinematic prose, Ariela Freedman tells the story of a true Montreal heroine. This sweeping novel brings a forgotten chapter of twentieth-century history vividly to life.” –Claire Holden Rothman, author The Heart Specialist