‘He has no notion of how to care for a saint. Even a small one. Does not even believe … Still. Catholic or not. You don't turn away a saint.’

In the north-western corner of 1950s Australia, a saint arrives at the home of a retired engineer, who unwittingly becomes her custodian. A girl of indeterminate age, her body remains as it was when she died, incorruptible. And though no one knows it, she is conscious, reflecting on past and present.

Little World stretches across continents and eras – from the Canal Zone in Panama and the island of Nauru all the way to the onset of Covid in contemporary Victoria. Beautiful, rich and strange, it weaves a tale of interconnected fates as characters grapple with the unknowable, and in this way come face to face with their deepest needs.

‘Josephine Rowe is a breathtakingly good writer.’—Michelle de Kretser

‘Each new work from Josephine Rowe is a revelation.’—Madeleine Thien

'Little World is a swoony, atmospheric, blink-and-you'll-miss-it short novel told through three interwoven stories … it tenderly explores what small things can make a life sacred.'—The New York Times

'Little World is a chronicle of the unmoored lives touched by this small, sanctified body and the funny, observant, determinedly unsanctified spirit tied to it. At just more than 100 pages, it's the kind of concise, precisely sketched novel that you can read in one sitting, coming away with a sense of having been briefly but profoundly transported ... a book fit for the moment.'—The Washington Post

'A book that, despite its brevity, contains multitudes … Rowe is an incredibly gifted stylist.'—The Saturday Paper