Souvik

The common theme for me in this book was how casual cruelty shapes people’s lives. The indifference/distantness of Berie’s parents towards her, Berie’s lack of love for LaRoue, the random hands dealt to Sils and Berie in their fragile youth - these all seemed so preventable, yet so very real. I loved how the narrator talks of both the present and the past; this gives the reader a chance to realize that this little girl has in her fate a not so happy life with a man who only half loves her, with no Sils in it. Also, Silsby Chaussee, what a lovely name!