Parasol Against the Axe

Description

On the eve of her birthday, Hero Tojosoa travels to Prague with her friends Sofie and Thea. What should be a fun weekend celebrating their friendship quickly becomes something much stranger. Prague has its own personality, filled with beautiful streets, old stories, hidden corners, and an atmosphere that makes ordinary events feel slightly magical. As the three women explore the city together, their relationships begin to shift. Memories resurface, old tensions emerge, and the boundaries between past and present become increasingly difficult to distinguish.

At the centre of the story is the mysterious Parasol, a recurring object that seems to take on a life of its own. As the weekend unfolds, Helen Oyeyemi plays with perspective, memory, friendship, and the idea that a city can hold secrets of its own. Parasol Against the Axe is less a straightforward mystery and more an imaginative exploration of friendship, identity, memory, jealousy, travel, and the complicated ways people experience the same relationship differently.