Reading the 20th Century discussion

Just opening up a spoiler thread for this book, for anyone who wants to discuss later plot twists.

I've just finished.

As I mentioned on the other thread, I didn't realise this was intended for a teen/YA audience when I started reading it. I think that came through later when the plot was more transparent than I'd have ideally liked: I thought it was quite clear that Mr Konig was going to turn out to be the dissident and Abigail, though I was momentarily distracted by the red herring of Mitsi Horn.

I also thought that the school was going to be a kind of Hungary in miniature with Gina being the rebellious insider as her father is - but actually it turns out to be a sanctuary for her where the rules and prohibitions about moving outside turn out to keep her safe.

Interesting that Feri turns out to be crucial to the plot. At first I thought it was a coincidence when he turns up, but then the deep surveillance makes his presence in Gina's life more chilling.

I think Szabo does an excellent job of balancing out the entertainment with a deeper portrait of the politics of resistance.

Very interested to hear what everyone else thought of this.

I agree RC, I liked Mr Konig's character, he reminded me of Professor Bhaer in Little Women for some reason. And I thought Szabo's rendering of the culture of the town was very convincing, and worked well to communicate the atmosphere of Hungary during that point in the war, and in a surprisingly understated manner. I did find the central sections detailing the ritualistic habits of the schoolgirls quite intriguing though, there was something semi-mystical about their behaviour.

Oh yes, that's a great comparison of Mr Konig and Professor Bhaer, Alwynne.

RC, I do agree it was obvious that Mr Konig was going to be Abigail and the dissident (I was also derailed for a minute by Mitsi Horn!), but I wondered if readers were supposed to realise or at least suspect this early on even though Gina doesn't. As you mentioned in the other thread, Gina's perceptions are limited and the author does give us an idea of the surrounding world, even when Gina isn't thinking about it and is only focused on her here and now.

Judy wrote: "Oh yes, that's a great comparison of Mr Konig and Professor Bhaer, Alwynne.

RC, I do agree it was obvious that Mr Konig was going to be Abigail and the dissident (I was also derailed for a minute..."

Good point Judy, it would underline her solipsistic attitude and the later shift from being the centre of her universe to having the ability to think beyond to other people and events.

Judy wrote: "Oh yes, that's a great comparison of Mr Konig and Professor Bhaer, Alwynne."

Yes! and also a bit M. Paul from Villette who is misunderstood by Lucy Snowe at first, until she comes to a different evaluation of him.

And yes, I think you're both right that we're intended to see past Gina's romantic biases - that's one of the lessons she has to learn, I guess, to let go of those heroic narratives.

There's a parallel there with the contrast between the nationalistic propaganda of soldierly patriotism, and the more covert courage that her father and the resisters show.

I was delayed a little with reading another book, but really enjoyed this. I very much agree with both of your points Alwynne--Konig and Professor Bhaer, and also the way Szabo subtly communicated the atmosphere of the serious trouble going on around Gina.

Maybe the way we’re allowed a hint of Gina’s adult understanding (or our own) was what gave it less of a YA feel for me. It felt written from the older Gina’s perspective, with love and sympathy for her younger self, but with future knowledge--held back, but still there.

I liked the way as adult readers, our sense tells us that Abigail is Mr. Konig. We see Gina does not see him, is distracted by things a young girl would be distracted by. I doubted a bit near the end the way Mitsi saves Gina, but it made for that satisfying solution in a book, where it makes sense but you didn’t know for sure up until the last.

Kathleen, I agree that I also liked the glimpses of the older Gina looking back - the mentions of her with her own children, for instance. It takes away from the sense of peril to some extent, since we know that she survives, but it also helps to give a feeling of how much there is going on that the young Gina doesn't understand or focus on.

I have just finished, the end was so compelling that I read through 2 planned days of reading. While this book did not read like a YA book, the viewpoint, as RC pointed out, does feel like one if the intent is for a reader to think like Gina; the adult readers surely figure out Konig's role. But then again, as Judy points out, Szabo probably intended the 15 year old readers to know more than Gina too. Whatever the intent of Szabo, what is important was that the story was of sufficient depth to always keep my interest.

I also have to admit being a bit confused at the start due to my ignorance of Hungary's role in WWII. At first I thought the Hungarian troops were resisting the Nazis and it seemed to me that Gina's father was advocating less resistance to the Nazi's, more of the Chamberlain approach. Wondering that Szabo would make this heroic, I had to look on the internet for clarification on Hungary's role in WWII to find out that they were part of the Axis. After this clarification, I finally understood what was going on and what Gina father's role was in this "portrait of the politics of resistance." I'm a bit embarrassed as my grandmother was born in Budapest, albeit in the 19th Century, and I really should know about Hungary during WWII. Hungary does seem to have a history of some troubling fascist leanings.

With this book, I learned some history and experienced a suspenseful and entertaining story that gave me insight into people, especially 15 year-old girls, in an interesting time and place, foreign to my previous knowledge. A very worthwhile reading experience.
EDIT: I'm getting a GR headline that says this is YA week at Goodreads so I'll use this novel is my observation of the week