Every letter deserves a reply—even when the questions it contains are difficult to answer. In Judy Duarte’s heartwarming and inspiring novel, a woman shattered by grief responds to a little girl’s urgent note to God and sets in motion a chain of events that helps to heal the lives of all those around her, in wholly unexpected ways…

Each day after work, Claire Harper drives to Mulberry Park and jogs for miles, hoping to find a respite from her sadness. It’s a futile effort, until the evening a letter falls from its hiding place in a nearby tree. Inside the bright pink envelope emblazoned with the words “To God From Analisa” is a note written by a seven-year-old girl, urging God to look after her parents in Heaven and help those she loves on Earth. On impulse, Claire writes back, hoping to preserve Analisa’s innocent belief in answered prayers—even if Claire lost her own faith when her young son was killed in a hit-and-run accident three years earlier.

Since that day, Claire has watched numbly as her life lost its meaning and her marriage dissolved, unwilling and unable to engage with the world around her. But Analisa’s letters gradually draw Claire out of her cocoon and into the companionship of other Mulberry Park regulars—all, in their own way, in need of comfort. Aside from Analisa and her elderly nanny, Hilda, there’s Sam, Analisa’s attorney uncle; Trevor, a young boy in need of companionship; Walter, the chatty old man who plays solitary chess games; and Maria, a single and pregnant young mother of two struggling to keep her family home. As friendships grow, sorrows lift, and lives and hearts connect, each will discover just how far and how high one simple letter can reach…

Advance praise for Mulberry Park

“Judy Duarte brings together a cast of lost and lonely characters and deftly weaves their lives into a story that hooked me from a little girl’s aching honest Dear God request until the very last page. A wonderful, heartwarming read!”--Jill Marie Landis

“When six year old Analisa starts writing letters to God, the Almighty takes a very hands-on approach to the trials and troubles of the folks who visit Mulberry Park. The result is a testament to the power of love, forgiveness and generosity. Such a happy book... I didn't want it to end.” --Druscilla Campbell, author of Blood Orange

“An uplifting story about one little girl’s unflinching faith and how she extends an open and loving hand to the broken people around her, bring them close to each other and back into God’s gentle embrace.” --Cathy Lamb, author of Julia’s Chocolates

“Mulberry Park is tender and touching…this novel will stay with you long after you have read the last page.”--Dorothy Garlock, New York Times bestselling author