Even before Nizhoni starts on her quest to save her father from monsters, she struggles with feeling brave. As she transitions to a new school, develops the ability to detect monsters, and tries to create a persona for herself within her middle school’s social context, she battles persistent uncertainty and insecurity characteristic of a coming-of-age narrative. In the early pages, she uses her mother’s turquoise necklace as a talisman that helps ground her in her desire for courage: “Knowing [the necklace] is there helps [her] feel brave […] The way this school year has been going, trying to be brave has become almost a full-time thing” (18). Nizhoni goes on to recount how, despite her expectations, her attempts to gain popularity and social status in her new school context have been unsuccessful. From its opening chapters, the novel implies that bravery is required to face not only epic supernatural quests but also everyday adolescence as Nizhoni and her friends navigate their way out of childhood and into young adulthood.

Nizhoni’s quest helps her define bravery and courage as separate from the absence of fear.