233. Sebastian Faulks - The Girl At The Lion d'Or

Beautifully written, really quite a simple love story, except not really.

A compressed version of 'Birdsong', I had forgotten how much of the war and the complexities of 1920’s French politics permeates this book.

I was confused by the ending – not clear to me why Hartmann has to reject Anne in a way so painful, particularly to her. And some minor mysteries; why does Hartmann’s friend Mattlin lie so persistently about him? Cheap anti-Semitism?

But mysteries apart, a wonderful story.

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