Eva Ibbotson
Penguin (2007)
I'll be honest, I fell in love with the cover of this book (as well as several of Ibbotson's other novels) and the title. I drooled over it for a months online, hoping the library would pick it up. When nobody ever did, I bought it myself, to see if it's as good as it looks and to get a feel for Ibbotson's style. Oh man. I am hooked.
The premise of the story is interesting in and of itself - pre-WWII Europe, a handsome man with a secret, a beautiful girl with a heart of gold. I love WWI and WWII stories, so I was already interested. Even knowing it involved WWII ideas, which frequently become quite heart-gripping, I never expected to become so emotionally attached to this novel and/or its characters. In Ellen, I recognized some of myself - a desire to see and not become blinded by any one thing/love/person. In Marek -- well, quite simply, in Marek is frank examination of our very humanity. But not in a daunting way. Nothing about this tale is daunting. It feels real. I lived the story. I was caught unawares by the shifts and changes, I got to know the characters as they got to know each other and themselves. I thought about things while reading, and after. And I have made the decision to read more of Ibbotson's novels, because if they are all this good, it's worth tracking them down.
Book provided by my personal library.
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