Når jeg var liten begynte jeg ofte å gråte når en bok tok slutt. Jeg ville vite hvordan det gikk videre med personene jeg hadde møtt i boken, men kunne ikke det. Det er lenge siden jeg har følt det på denne måten, men til vi ses igjen vakte til live disse gamle følelsene. Jeg ble grepet av historien og de sterke karakterene. Vi får et glimt av historier fra forskjellige øyne og perspektiv, noe som gjør boken enda mer levende. Anbefales på det varmeste !

I was thoroughly enjoying this tale of a wronged mother making her way through war torn countries to find her children, until it turned to child sexual abuse.
Why do authors have to do this ?
Why can they not write a story about women without having them beaten and raped, or girls who are fiddled with by paedophiles ?
It normalises violence to women and girls, is triggering for those that have experienced it, and is not entertainment.
Do not read this nasty little book.

Great book, which had me hooked from page 1, I couldn't put it down.

Onde quer que a vida me leve, e mesmo que um dia deixe de ouvir os sons, a Malásia estará sempre dentro de mim, nas profundezas do meu ser. Foi lá que fui criança, antes de saber que a vida podia correr muito mal. E é lá que o cheiro a erva-príncipe ficará comigo para sempre, isso e o som da minha mãe a cantar de manhã, com uma estrelícia a contrastar com o seu cabelo castanho-avermelhado.

Tenho sentimentos contraditórios em relação a este livro. De um modo geral, gostei bastante e achei a história interessante. Mas sinto que deixou algo a desejar, podia ter sido mais explorado.

Os pontos positivos prendem-se, para mim, com a descrição aprofundada da Malásia. Senti-me lá, a ouvir os sons da floresta, a absorver os cheiros em meu redor, a apreciar a diversificada fauna e flora. A autora fez um belíssimo trabalho ao descrever este país, de uma forma que nos transporta para lá. Gostei também bastante do facto de termos dois pontos de vista ao longo da história, pois ajudou a situar o enredo e sabíamos o que se estava a passar na Malásia e, também, na Inglaterra. Além disso, gostei imenso da Emma e de acompanhar a sua vida e o seu crescimento num país diferente, lidando com a falta da mãe para a guiar neste mundo desconhecido. Acho também que os sentimentos de Lydia em relação ao desaparecimento das filhas e a sua busca incansável por elas foi bastante realista.

Agora, alguns pontos menos bons em relação à história. Não gostei dos capítulos de Lydia serem em terceira pessoa, preferissem que fossem como os de Emma. Acho que as personagens secundárias foi muito pouco exploradas, servindo apenas para guiar o enredo da história, faltando-lhes carácter e profundidade. As relações amorosas de Lydia foram muito superficiais e não consegui sentir-me feliz por ela, porque senti que aqueles homens não a amavam realmente. Confesso ainda que esperava que a razão para a fuga do Alec com as filhas fosse algo mais explosivo, fiquei ligeiramente desiludida com a descoberta, aquilo que mais me chocou foi saber que Maz era seu filho. O livro pareceu-me muito longo, foram abordados muitos temas que acabaram por ser pouco explorados, e aquilo que mais esperava, o reencontro entre mãe e filhas, aconteceu mesmo no fim do livro, de uma forma muito rápida.

Apesar de tudo isto, recomendo a leitura do livro, foi muito interessante ficar a saber mais acerca da Malásia e dos problemas que o país enfrentou no passado.

Advanced reading copy received from Penguin Books Ireland

I wasn't sure about this book when I first started, I found it a bit slow at the start, but then after the first eighty pages or so, it rapidly picks up, with lots of subplots surrounding the main story. In the end, I really enjoyed it, it turned out to be a gripping story, although very sad. I loved little Maznen, as well as Emma. It was also quite interesting to read about Malaya, where the story is set.

I really enjoyed this story but I did found it difficult to feel to feel anything towards Lydia, I found her to be a bit flakey. Emma is the daughter that never gave up hope and the star of the story for me.

www.iheart-chicklit.blogspot.com

Normally, I don’t go for historical fiction. I mean, I love stories and conflicts but I’ve got all that from studying History in school, so the books I read outside of school are my escape. But, and this is an impressive but, I was really intrigued by the blurb and premise of The Separation by Dinah Jefferies and since the book is set in Malaya (my lovely country, now called Malaysia), I decided to give this book a go!

The Separation follows the story of an English family who lived in Malaya during the 1950s, at the time of The Emergency. Lydia Cartwright, a mother of two and wife, arrives home after visiting an ill friend, to find her house completely deserted. As she digs deeper into her family’s sudden disappearance, she uncovers more and more about her husband’s deceit and sets on a journey of self-discovery but at a very expensive cost.

Right from the start, I was sucked into the rich and exotic surroundings of Malaya. I really enjoyed reading about Lydia and her family’s lives in Malaya during the 1950s, and reading a fictionalised tale of my country’s history was such a treat. Dinah Jefferies’s description of the vast dangerous jungles and natural beauty of Malaya took my breath away. She successfully painted a gloriously vivid image of Malaya in the 1950s and I must commend her on it.

The book is written from Lydia and her eldest daughter, Emma’s perspectives, which gives the readers an insight to their lives after being separated. My favourite character in the book has to be Emma, she’s strong-willed, independent and matured. I liked reading about her childhood in Malaya and it opened my eyes to the beauty of my country back then. You only see buildings and roads now, back then, it was all lush forestry and nature’s beauty.

The Separation is everything a book should be. It’s got suspense, mystery, heart and a little dash of romance. The emotions in the book were written with such flair that you’d be affected by the up and downs the characters go through. A captivating tale of love lost and found, hope and betrayal, The Separation is a rollercoaster of emotions, which will shake you to the core.

It has been a little while since I last picked up a book by this author but I had forgotten just how beautiful her writing is. This story is split into two perspectives - the first being from the view of the mother, Lydia, who returns home to discover that both her husband and two children have moved away. She understands that her husband had got an urgent job in another location and moved quickly with her to follow them when she can so we follow her as she travels the very hard and troubling path. The second part of this story is that we follow Lydia's daughters as they travel with their father to their new home.

This truly was a heartbreaking story where you have a mother who is separated from her children and not sure how long it will take or whether it is possible for her to see them again. Along the way, Lydia also meets several other characters including a boy who she is asked if he can accompany her on her journey to safety. She agrees but there is more to this boy's history than she realises.

This was such a beautiful story in a mainly sad kind of way and I would highly recommend.


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Debs :-)

Beautifully written, hear breaking, the real sense of period.
I love stories from the early 19th century till the period after WWII. This one has additional feature: location in Malaya and Singapore covering 1950s. From the beginning we know that something terrible had happened, it’s hard to understand how can someone deliberately separate mother and her children. It is not a romance or love story. It is about mother’s love and endless ability to fight against all odds. It is also about children perseverance to fight unfair life despite that they don’t understand adults and just follow their own understanding of everyday events. So much loss and pain. So many secrets to discover.
I don’t know much about this historical period in Malaya and Singapore but it seems the author made really good research (or know a lot from her own experience). While reading we have this special feeling of being there. Which makes the whole story more compelling.
It’s my first book of this author. Loved it from the first to the last page. And I will certainly be looking to read another one.