Secrets of My Vanity Case

A sneakily wise novel for grown women: a simultaneously light and merciless story of self-examination.

With her 50th birthday approaching, publishing director Tytti Karakoski notices a decline in her previously springy energy level, enthusiasm and curiosity towards the world. Tiredness gives way to exhaustion and languor to indifference. Tytti isn’t quite sure what has happened, but thankfully her stable financial situation allows her to take part in an experiment: a writing sabbatical.

It’s time to stop and contemplate a change – and to make an alphabetic list of all the things that matter. These notes form a tapestry of the life of a single adult woman: Kaisa Haatanen’s debut novel is a delicious and sharp portrait of what this life should look like, and what it actually is.