crazygoangirl's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
I found this children’s book by Edward Fenton while cleaning out my bookshelves. The beautiful cover attracted me instantly - a painting by Ted Lewin.
This is the story of Carla, a young girl who has just lost her mother. Ismene was Greek and Carla’s father sends her to Greece to be with her mother’s aunt and uncle, Tiggie & Theo while she struggles to deal with her loss. This book has charming descriptions of life in a tiny Greek village but is primarily a coming of age story. It tackles dark themes of death, grief and a loss of freedoms under an oppressive regime.
Fenton keeps the narrative simple and straightforward yet manages to weave in undercurrents of oppression throughout - whether through the troubles of the hapless ex-judge Solon; or the frustrations of Lefteris - a boy left behind, angry and helpless; or the wary nonchalance of Anghelos Eliou - a marverick poet under surveillance by the military regime; or the sly activities of the spy Panaghiotis. He balances these out by showing the flip side - the courage and defiance of the Hermes man, the Python woman and of course Theo and Tiggie and Carla herself who stand up for their rights in their own way.
As Carla or Eris as she calls herself, is gradually drawn into the slow, languid pace of life in the village, she learns the importance of the grieving process, of love and trust and begins to heal her broken heart. She opens her heart to Tiggie and Theo, makes friends and finds the courage to be the girl she has always wanted to be. In doing so, she finds within herself the mother she has so tragically lost.
Years later, she returns to Greece as a young woman drawn by more loss, but she now has the tools to deal maturely with the emotions this brings. This was an engaging, heart-breaking and yet heart-warming read. Recommended.
This is the story of Carla, a young girl who has just lost her mother. Ismene was Greek and Carla’s father sends her to Greece to be with her mother’s aunt and uncle, Tiggie & Theo while she struggles to deal with her loss. This book has charming descriptions of life in a tiny Greek village but is primarily a coming of age story. It tackles dark themes of death, grief and a loss of freedoms under an oppressive regime.
Fenton keeps the narrative simple and straightforward yet manages to weave in undercurrents of oppression throughout - whether through the troubles of the hapless ex-judge Solon; or the frustrations of Lefteris - a boy left behind, angry and helpless; or the wary nonchalance of Anghelos Eliou - a marverick poet under surveillance by the military regime; or the sly activities of the spy Panaghiotis. He balances these out by showing the flip side - the courage and defiance of the Hermes man, the Python woman and of course Theo and Tiggie and Carla herself who stand up for their rights in their own way.
As Carla or Eris as she calls herself, is gradually drawn into the slow, languid pace of life in the village, she learns the importance of the grieving process, of love and trust and begins to heal her broken heart. She opens her heart to Tiggie and Theo, makes friends and finds the courage to be the girl she has always wanted to be. In doing so, she finds within herself the mother she has so tragically lost.
Years later, she returns to Greece as a young woman drawn by more loss, but she now has the tools to deal maturely with the emotions this brings. This was an engaging, heart-breaking and yet heart-warming read. Recommended.
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