Hellen

The story's set against the event of the Vel' d'Hiv in the summer of 1942, during which thousands of French Jews were rounded up and deported to Auschwitz. The point of view alternates between Sarah, a young Jewish girl who's experiencing the roundup, and the other is Julia, an American reporter living in Paris. Their story lines intertwine when Julia's journalistic and personal interest in the event leads her to Sarah.

I felt that without the Vel' d'Hiv - an event that naturally evokes strong emotions - the story is a bit flimsy. The characters lack dept and because of this, especially Julia's side of the story feels unnatural, as if watching a stranger doing all these apparantly passionate things, but without ever fully understanding why. I'm also wondering why Julia's part is written in first person and Sarah's in third person. Going through all Sarah's emotiotions, to then zoom out to some omniscient point of view prevents you from getting as close to Sarah as the story needs.

I'm afraid I didn't like this book much, though on a totally different note, I love this edition. The pages are strangely soft and the cover has a really nice texture. Just in case... you wanted to know that.