Mark Helprin's legions of devoted readers cherish his timeless novels and short stories, which are uplifting in their conviction of the goodness and resilience of the human spirit. Freddy and Fredericka--a brilliantly refashioned fairy tale and a magnificently funny farce--only seems like a radical departure of form, for behind the laughter, Helprin speaks of leaps of faith and second chances, courage and the primacy of love. Helprin's latest work, an extraordinarily funny allegory about a most peculiar British royal family, is immensely mocking of contemporary monarchy and yet deeply sympathetic to the individuals caught in its lonely absurdities. BACKCOVER: "With a pitch-perfect sense of the absurd . . . he has produced a delightful romp of a book."
--Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

"Freddy and Fredericka recalls American journeys of self-discovery by Mark Twain, John Steinbeck and Jack Kerouac. . . . I promise you, this will be one of the fastest . . . novels you'll ever read."
--Los Angeles Times

"A rollicking, heartwarming examination of the state of the nation . . . Working his own magic, Helprin transforms the thinly veiled satire of the monarchy into a quirky love song to the colonies."
--People