In einem polnischen Dorf am Vorabend des 2. Weltkriegs: Ein Mann mit dem Spitznamen "Pigeon" verliebt sich ein engelsgleiches Mädchen. Doch während er für ihre Liebe wirbt, erfassen die Wirren des Krieges das Dorf und bringen furchtbare Ereignisse mit sich. 50 Jahre später: Eine junge Frau namens Baba Yaga verläßt ihr Dorf für ein neues Leben in Krakau. Doch anstelle der Stadt aus den Erzählungen ihrer Großmutter findet sie einen Ort vor, der mit den Nachwehen des Kommunismus' kämpft und nur wenigen das Glück gönnt... Mit zwei Geschichten, die von Pasulka auf wunderschöne Art verknüpft werden, erzählt die Autorin mit polnischen Wurzeln von der Liebe - aber ebenso von der Geschichte ihres Heimatlandes.
On the eve of World War II in a place called Half-Village, a man nicknamed the Pigeon falls in love with a girl fabled for her angelic looks. Using his 'golden hands' he decides to turn her family's modest hut into a beautiful home, and build his way into her heart.
But war arrives, cutting short their charming courtship and bringing with it terrible events.
Fifty years on, young Baba Yaga leaves her village to make a new life in Krakow. What she finds is not the city of her grandmother's tales but a place struggling in the aftermath of communism's fall, where opportunity seems reserved for the lucky few. Then tragedy strikes and the past reaches out an unexpected hand to her.
What Louis de Bernières did for Kefalonia, Brigid Pasulka does for Poland, weaving together the two strands of her story with a deftly magical touch into a witty, wise and heartbreaking love story that will enchant you to the very end.
On the eve of World War II in a place called Half-Village, a man nicknamed the Pigeon falls in love with a girl fabled for her angelic looks. Using his 'golden hands' he decides to turn her family's modest hut into a beautiful home, and build his way into her heart.
But war arrives, cutting short their charming courtship and bringing with it terrible events.
Fifty years on, young Baba Yaga leaves her village to make a new life in Krakow. What she finds is not the city of her grandmother's tales but a place struggling in the aftermath of communism's fall, where opportunity seems reserved for the lucky few. Then tragedy strikes and the past reaches out an unexpected hand to her.
What Louis de Bernières did for Kefalonia, Brigid Pasulka does for Poland, weaving together the two strands of her story with a deftly magical touch into a witty, wise and heartbreaking love story that will enchant you to the very end.