*Sigh* …. What a great book. The Countess Below Stairs, which I read before, paled in comparison to this one. Don’t get me wrong, the latter is a marvelous book but this one is wonderful… It is romantic and dreamy and brimming with family values, complete with a villain.
Again the novel was set during the war where Ruth, the daughter of a wealthy scholar was accidentally left behind when her family fled from Hitler in Vienna ( lovely city. I love Vienna ). Help came in the form of Professor Sommerville, an old friend of the family who offered to marry her which will automatically make her a British subject. They were to divorce when she is safe in England, free to marry her pianist boyfriend, Heini.
But getting a divorce is not easy during that era. It especially became harder when Ruth became his student, and a bright one at that. And then of course the normal miscommunication, keen to make assumptions and reluctance to put forth questions to clarify those assumptions made things harder for the couple.
Eva had successfully written about human foibles. Not human exactly but couples. We so like to assume which will inevitably turns to hurt then merajuk came and when that happened.. usually all is lost. Even if it was saved,long period if time have been spent apart, nursing our feelings and relishing our wound.
So the moral of the story ? If what you heard is only hearsay… or you saw a woman swooning on your husband.. ask him first before you kapak’ed his head. That is all. Please read this one… kalau tak rugi…..
Again the novel was set during the war where Ruth, the daughter of a wealthy scholar was accidentally left behind when her family fled from Hitler in Vienna ( lovely city. I love Vienna ). Help came in the form of Professor Sommerville, an old friend of the family who offered to marry her which will automatically make her a British subject. They were to divorce when she is safe in England, free to marry her pianist boyfriend, Heini.
But getting a divorce is not easy during that era. It especially became harder when Ruth became his student, and a bright one at that. And then of course the normal miscommunication, keen to make assumptions and reluctance to put forth questions to clarify those assumptions made things harder for the couple.
Eva had successfully written about human foibles. Not human exactly but couples. We so like to assume which will inevitably turns to hurt then merajuk came and when that happened.. usually all is lost. Even if it was saved,long period if time have been spent apart, nursing our feelings and relishing our wound.
So the moral of the story ? If what you heard is only hearsay… or you saw a woman swooning on your husband.. ask him first before you kapak’ed his head. That is all. Please read this one… kalau tak rugi…..
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