Summary:
12-year-old Leo hates his new home—a massive, gray concrete apartment building his dad designed. It’s all sharp corners, echoing hallways, and zero color. “It’s art,” his dad says. Leo calls it “a robot prison.” But when he finds a hidden symbol etched under the stairwell—a twisting spiral—he starts to wonder if the building has secrets.
With his chatty neighbor, Zara (who carries a neon fanny pack full of candy), and his nervous rescue dog, Brick, Leo investigates. They discover weird stuff: a locked door that hums at night, elevator buttons that don’t go to real floors, and a grumpy janitor who seems to watch them. Turns out, Leo’s dad didn’t just build the place—he buried clues to a forgotten project inside it.
The kids brave dark air vents, solve riddles involving math (Zara’s worst subject), and accidentally flood a laundry room. Leo learns the spiral symbol isn’t just a doodle—it’s a protest sign from decades ago, linked to his dad’s past. The deeper they go, the more Leo sees the building’s “brutal” style has a heartbeat: hidden gardens under the parking garage, splashes of paint behind walls, and a rooftop view that makes the whole city look like glitter.
In the end, Leo doesn’t find treasure. Instead, he uncovers why his dad built the place: to hide beauty in plain sight, just like how Leo hides his love for comic books under his “too cool” attitude. The Brutalist isn’t just a building—it’s a giant, stubborn love letter. Leo still thinks concrete is boring… but now he adds neon stickers to his bedroom walls.
