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Portland Book Review
May 11 2013
All the Light There Was
You Will Not Be Able to Put This Book Down!
Reviewed by Seniye Groff
All the Light There Was
By Nancy Kricorian
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt,
$24.00, 384 pages
5*
All the Light There Was, by Nancy Kricorian, takes on a common topic
(the Nazi occupation of Paris) but with the unique twist of
representing the Armenian immigrant experience.
In this novel the reader meets Maral Pegorian, an innocent 14-year-old
girl living in 1940s Paris. Maral lives in a cramped apartment with
her family, like many Armenians and Jews in her neighborhood. She soon
loses school friends and neighbors as the Jews are rounded up. Those
left in the neighborhood are fearful and hungry, but not too scared to
fight back in their own little ways - by hiding a Jewish child,
spreading pamphlets or showing up for rallies. Maral experiences death
firsthand, as well as her first love. When the boy she loves, Zaven,
is imprisoned with his brother, Maral is distraught as the families
grieve. When World War II is over, those who have survived have their
own losses to deal with as they try to resume `normal' life.
`This once was the land of baguettes and butter. Now it's the land of turnips.'
Kricorian's tale is based on real history and gives the reader a
glimpse of the Armenian experience in 1940s Paris. As you read this
descriptive tale, your stomach will ache with hunger and you will be
convinced that Maral's nightmares are your own. This reviewer could
not put this book down. Once she started reading, the story was
immersive as quicksand!
http://portlandbookreview.com/all-the-light-there-was/
May 11 2013
All the Light There Was
You Will Not Be Able to Put This Book Down!
Reviewed by Seniye Groff
All the Light There Was
By Nancy Kricorian
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt,
$24.00, 384 pages
5*
All the Light There Was, by Nancy Kricorian, takes on a common topic
(the Nazi occupation of Paris) but with the unique twist of
representing the Armenian immigrant experience.
In this novel the reader meets Maral Pegorian, an innocent 14-year-old
girl living in 1940s Paris. Maral lives in a cramped apartment with
her family, like many Armenians and Jews in her neighborhood. She soon
loses school friends and neighbors as the Jews are rounded up. Those
left in the neighborhood are fearful and hungry, but not too scared to
fight back in their own little ways - by hiding a Jewish child,
spreading pamphlets or showing up for rallies. Maral experiences death
firsthand, as well as her first love. When the boy she loves, Zaven,
is imprisoned with his brother, Maral is distraught as the families
grieve. When World War II is over, those who have survived have their
own losses to deal with as they try to resume `normal' life.
`This once was the land of baguettes and butter. Now it's the land of turnips.'
Kricorian's tale is based on real history and gives the reader a
glimpse of the Armenian experience in 1940s Paris. As you read this
descriptive tale, your stomach will ache with hunger and you will be
convinced that Maral's nightmares are your own. This reviewer could
not put this book down. Once she started reading, the story was
immersive as quicksand!
http://portlandbookreview.com/all-the-light-there-was/