A review by jayisreading
The Door by Magda Szabó

emotional reflective tense slow-paced

3.5

I think I'm going to have to check out Szabó's other writings, because this one had most elements that I like in a book that are character-driven, but it didn't quite grab my attention as much as I'd have liked. This was an interesting dive into a rather intense and complicated relationship between two women who came from very different backgrounds but crossed paths because one (Emerence) was hired to be the housekeeper of the other (the narrator). Emerence in particular was a memorable character with her sharp personality and mysterious background. I think what threw me off a little, though, was how she sometimes came off as an almost mythological figure, which didn't quite work for me. On another note, there was definitely significant symbolism attached to the door that led into Emerence's house that left a lot of food for thought.

Again, I'll have to check out Szabó's other works. This was an interesting step into modern Hungarian literature for me though.
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