Elsewhere

When sixteen-year-old Ron runs from home, he lands in Bordertown — a gritty border city between the human world and Faerie where magic works better than technology and elf gangs share dangerous streets with human ones. At the heart of the story is Ron's need to understand his older brother's suicide, and Shetterly doesn't soften that. The novel won the 1992 Minnesota Book Award for Fantasy, was nominated for both the Locus and Mythopoeic awards, and genuinely earned those recognitions — the emotional resonance is real and the urban fantasy world-building was groundbreaking for its time. Parents should know the book addresses suicide directly, contains violence, and includes profanity. Not for younger or family reading, but for older teens and adults who can handle the weight, it is worth the effort.