bkish's review
3.0
Who is she? Her father was I think a known film director Rudy and her mother seems a lonely superficial woman. Liliane's childhood is so sad family had money and yet they didnt connect to people. That left Liliane a very lonely child. She tells her story in the third person - it is not herself - it is Liliane. This is extremely well written and the style is unique - very precise and much is like double edged two sides. She is always polite says the right things and then says something that reveals her real reaction. As I read this I was certain she would eventually come apart. I dont remember now how it all ends and it ends with her in the air flying to see some man. As I read this I was certain she didnt get any decent values from her parents like she was living in limbo. If she survived that it is much to her credit.
If this kind of book interests you do read this!
If this kind of book interests you do read this!
lazygal's review
4.0
Because this is a mix of fact and fiction - a fictionalized autobiography, apparently - it took far longer for me to read this than usual: I kept stopping to check on this person, that location. It was gratifying to find them, frustrating when I couldn't or when their reality didn't quite match with what was going on in the book! My hope is that the final version (this was an ARC) provides more clarity or at least a resource list... Even without that, I'm definitely recommending this look at the life of a young girl in France, whose parents must flee/avoid the Nazis, and how she moves into both adulthood and an American existence. No, it's not easy, but it is fascinating.
ARC provided by publisher.
ARC provided by publisher.
mckenzierichardson's review
3.0
I received this book from Goodreads in exchange for an honest review.This book was a bit difficult for me to really get into. Tuck builds the novel around fact and fiction, toying with the idea of autobiographical texts and demonstrating the deconstruction that occurs in all text, "it is impossible to tell what is fact and what is fiction... it is impossible to know whether configuration produces reference in a text or whether reference produces the figure" (231-232).So on an intellectually level, the book is fascinating. It gets the reader thinking. Is this part autobiographical? Is this part fiction? In the text, Lilane herself constantly questions those telling her stories, "Is that true?"However, the jumping from one character, time, story, and event to another makes the book as a whole a little difficult to read. The book is less about the character, Liliane, and more about the people, places, and times connected to her throughout her life through varying degrees of relatedness. The writing was well done, but the lack of a cohesive story made it difficult to engage with. A very smart book, one that takes real effort to fully understand.
harrietnbrown's review against another edition
2.0
I could not finish this book, though Tuck is clearly a gifted writer and just as clearly was compelled to tell this story in this way. For me, though, it was neither compelling nor effective.
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