Querida Amanda

by Marlena de Blasi

«Cher Maman: Tú no me conoces. Quiero decir que no nos conocemos. Bueno, en realidad sí que nos conocemos, pero yo era muy pequeña y creo que tú también. Se me ha ocurrido que tal vez me eches de menos y quieras tener noticias mías. No quiero que te preocupes y por eso he pensado en escribirte para decirte que estoy bien. Me siento bien. Me llamo Amanda y soy tu hija.» Cracovia, 1931. La joven princesa Andzelica, de tan solo dieciséis años, se obsesiona con un joven apuesto y elegante con el que mantiene una breve aventura de la que quedará embarazada. Su madre, la condesa Valeska, temerosa de que el honor de su ilustre familia quede mancillado para siempre, decide, en secreto y sin decirle nada a Andzelica, deshacerse de la criatura. Para ello deja a la pequeña Amanda, que nacerá con una grave malformación en el corazón, al cuidado de unas monjas en el convento de San Hilario, en Francia. La vida de Amanda será dura y difícil: una madre perdida, una rectora particularmente severa con ella y el recelo constante de sus compañeras del colegio. La única esperanza de Amanda será encontrar a su madre y averiguar por qué la abandonó... ¿Hay algo más fuerte e indestructible que el amor entre una madre y su hija?

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, France, Historical, War, Italy, World War II

416 pages, Hardcover

First published May 18, 2010

Reviews

[Tara Chevrestt · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was so looking forward to this novel and it is with much disappointment that I write this.. It stank. I do have one good thing to say about it before I start my litany of complaints tho. The heroine, Amandine, is endearing and likeable. The story begins with her as a baby with a heart problem and follows her as she grows up in a nunnery wondering who her parents were and living way past everyone's expectations.

However, the writing style is terrible. First of all, it is written in present tense as tho it is happening right NOW. Second, the characters constantly go into "thought monologues" and these monologues are vague, confusing, boring, and go on for pages and all in italics. Third, the narrative and style suddenly switches (for the better I think) in part four. All of a sudden, it is first person POV, past tense, and not even from Amandine's perspective. I like the style of part four better, but to suddenly switch like that.. It doesn't work.

I read an arc and I have no idea what the finished copy looks like, but this could use a lot of improvements.

[Sheri · Rating 2 out of 5]

I won on GR's give-a-ways and was a bit disappointed. The synopsis was interesting, the book was not. It was a bit hard to follow, since the narrator changed often, and it was a bit confusing as to who was thinking and when someone was speaking.

This is the story of Amandine, a girl who was taken to a convent to be raised. Amandine at age 5 finds that she is an orphan and wants to find her mother. Set in 1930-1940's during World War II, there is some wartime details and how it must have been to live in Europe during that era. Amandine is a lovable character, she just can not seem to get a break in life. Much tragedy follows her. I could not help feeling sorry for her with the hopes that there would be a happy ending, and that she would find her mother.

I would have liked to rate this book higher, but it just did not read as I thought it would. A nice story line that did keep me reading in the hopes it would get better.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amandine was a novel full of magical words in an unsettling time in Europe's history. The story centers around a baby left at a French convent with no trace left of her past. Raised as an orphan, she has to surpass a childhood full of trials all the while longing for the mother she never had the chance to get to know. Though World War 2's effects rage through France, she sets out on a journey with her caretaker to find her family, but this itself is no easy task. This part of the novel takes the reader through a dangerous and beautiful part of France.
Her words and the general sense throughout the novel evoke a dark and rich world, and I intimately felt the setting. The characters were all well written and fascinating, if not slightly exaggerated.
I didn't think it was confusing to understand who was the person speaking when the text was in italics because I felt it was obvious through context. I did read the advanced uncorrected proofs through a firstreads giveaway, so I expect all the typos and confusion have been corrected.
Her understanding and description of the culture and the scenery made me want to read de Blasi's travel memoirs, but I'm impressed by her first fiction writing.

[Martyna Antonina · Rating 3 out of 5]

„Amandine” oczarowała mnie swoim klimatem; nieco tajemniczym i mrocznym, pachnącym francuskim krajobrazem.
Natomiast nie podobało mi się idealizowanie głównej bohaterki - tytułowej Amandine. Od początku do końca była dzieckiem idealnym, wyróżniała się życiową inteligencją, opanowaniem, altruizmem i błyskotliwym językiem - i nie byłoby w tym niczego złego, gdyby nie drażniąca nierealność jej zachowań jak na dziecko w tak młodym wieku. Styl pisania także nie przypadł mi do gustu. Zabieg wrzucenia czytelnika w środek historii, a następnie stopniowe tłumaczenie faktów z przeszłości, zamiast wzbudzać ciekawość wywoływał zagubienie. Język momentami ocierał się o poetyzm, jednak często był w nim kanciasty i bezbarwny.
Na pewno nie była to zła historia - wojenne realia i pięknie rozkwitające relacje między bohaterami były bez zarzutów, a sama powieść naprawdę wciągająca. Jednak pod pewnymi względami okazała się być rozczarowaniem. I to tymi, w które pokładałam największe nadzieje.

[tiasreads]

I won this book as my first GoodReads First-Read book and was so excited to read it. But I was sorely disappointed in it. First, the good: the characters were well-written. Their motivation was easily understood. They were not caricatures, only 'good guys' and 'bad guys'- they were multi-faceted. Also, the basic plot was, while not exactly unique, interesting enough to have caught my eye to begin with. And if the writing had been better, the story would have held my interest.

Now, the bad: the first thing that started to bother me was that it was written in what I can only describe as 'real-time', as if the action were taking place as you read. As in, 'She takes a step' or 'He turns his head'. That got annoying quickly. Also, the characters would go off on these long, wandering soliloquies to themselves that added very little to the story. I'm always interested in what a character is thinking, but the author just didn't know when to stop. And finally, the part about Solange's father and the attempted incest was too much- completely pointless to the story and just put there to titillate. Incest is not entertainment in my book. The whole book was uneven and had too many slow parts. I will not be reading it again or seeking out other books by this author.

[Charlotte Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a sweet story with some interesting characters and a hapoy ending with room for a sequel.

[Isa (Pages Full of Stars)]

The premise was interesting but I read first 50 pages and the writing style really isn't for me. I may come back to it some day, if I change my mind, however for now it's "dnf".

[Chrissie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was hard to get into this book, but I really did like it at the end! The beginning is confusing because the author expresses thoughts of individuals in italics. Whan you begin you don't know whose thoughts you are following. When you come to know the different characters there is no difficulty knowing whose thoughts are being projected. I wasn't until the last 3/4 of the book that I could understand why the author chose to use this technique. It is the thoughts of the characters that play a central role in the book. If a reader does not like such an introspective approach, I would not recommend this book to them. It is hard to find one quote to explain this because you have to know the people to completely understand, but I think the following does illustrate the introspective nature central to the book:

"So fickle are the convent girls, how can she know what word or action of hers might relight the antipathy? Further, she reasons Paul is constant. Her hate hurts more, but Amandine can count on it. So who is the greater foe, and how can one tell? And what if one can't? The mystery swims and dives and leaps about in her, and she thinks it might continue to do so for some time. Perhaps forever. No, it is hardly the bonhomie that pleases Amandine the most but rather two other spoils of the evening: the first is the thought that she might not be wicked after all and the other a sentiment more difficult to comprehend and to name, is the beginning of her understanding of her own grit"

Furthemore there is a subdued atmosphere to the entire book. There is a distance between the reader and the characters. Not only the "thoughts" but also the descriptive style chosen by the author reinforce this aspect. Another quote:

"Along our route we find burned farmhouses, new graves. Slaughtered animals. Silence. The hoche take the wheat and the potatoes from the field, fruit from the trees, wine from the cellars, they take horses and petrol and autos. They take women when they can. Mostly they can. They leave the lavender along the paths to the farmhouse doors though. And the rosebushes. Gentleman conquistadors. And what the hoche don't take the French keep. To themselves. Go away. All those hissed voices from behind the wide warped doors of the landed gentry. From behind the toile de Jouy drapes of the bourgeoise in the towns. Go away.

The narrator in this instant is omniscient. The author changes who is speaking to fit the message to be conveyed. Particularly in the beginning this feels uncomfortable, but it enhances the mood and fits the message conveyed. It takes awhile to get use to this! I liked it in the end. The author uses many French words. Not all are translated. If you know French you will enjoy this.

The plot is filled with action, but always the telling is distant. There is an emotional barrier put up between the characters and the readers and only at the end do you feel you have torn the barrier down. Without the resistance, you wouldn't feel the accomplishment you do if when you feel you truly know the characters.

The very, very best of the book, and it is utterly heart-wrenching, is Amandine's travels through occupied France! For me this depiction of the French people's struggles under German occupation was brought vividly to life. Exceptionally well done! All the small mundane details of the French people's suffering. The author has a talent for describing the beauty of a meal, of freshly baked bread, of fresh produce. Such descriptions felt very wonderful to people who had little enjoyment in their lives. The enjoyment of such bread or a stew or a fragrant jam brought happiness in the dismal despair of the times.

What Amandine lived through from her birth to her teens is brought poignantly to life. My difficulties with this book at the beginning were well worth fighting to reach the end. The beginning felt like a two star book, the end a four star book. My heart wants to give this four stars, but my head says average the two and four to a three star. That is what I have done! I may go back later and change it to four stars.... Read this book to learn about this wonderful little girl Amandine and to better understand France during its occupation during WW2. I also very much liked the ending!

Thank you Tara for sening this to me!

I am reading this simply because I adored That Summer in Sicily: A Love Story by the same author. Also I like stories that take place in France! I am a bit worried b/c this book is pure fiction, while the other wasn't. I think it is harder to write pure fiction as convincingly as that which depicts real life experiences. Actually I rarely read several books by the same author. I prefer testing new authors, but in this case I simply HAD to try another. Will it be as good? Tara didn't like this at all........ but each reader has different likes and dislikes!

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really became hooked on this story. It was the audio version and the narrators kept my interest. Maybe this is why some of the other ratings are low. Perhaps it's easier to listen to than to read. I gave it 5 stars even though I found the ending too abrupt. I'd like to know more about Amandine. I also intend to find the print version, to compare with the audio version but also because I really liked the story.

[Book Concierge · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Krakow in 1931, a baby girl is conceived out of wedlock. The child’s grandmother, a countess, believes that she is protecting her daughter when she claims that the baby didn’t survive. In truth, the countess deposits the infant at a remote convent in the French countryside, leaving her with a great sum of money and in the care of a young governess named Solange. Solange names the baby Amandine, and they form a special bond. But even Solange’s love cannot protect Amandine from the disdain of the abbess and the convent girls. Eventually Solange and Amandine set out for Solange’s childhood home in northern France. But what should have been a two-day journey becomes a years-long odyssey across Occupied France.

I found this novel slow to start. DeBlasi gives us considerable emotional background on Amandine’s grandmother (the countess) and the reasoning she uses to convince herself she is doing the right thing, the ONLY thing she can in these circumstances. The narrator changed from chapter to chapter, and internal dialogue was printed in italics, which I found distracting when used for several pages in a row. However, once the characters were well established and Amandine began to show her own personality as a young child I got caught up in her story.

The shame and secrecy of illegitimacy was a heavy burden in this era, and unfortunately, it was frequently laid on the shoulders of the innocent child. Whether it was because they truly believed it in her best interests, or because they feared the money would be cut off, the abbess and bishop conspired to keep any clue as to her origins from Amandine.

War is not pretty and deBlasi does nothing to soften the horrors of the years – deprivation, cold, hunger, fear. Still, despite no encouragement and downright demands that she forget about her unknown family, the child clings to the hope that her mother will somehow find her and they will be reunited. Amandine also exhibits a rare grace and dignity for one so young. How she manages to hold her head high despite all the terrors visited up on her in the convent and on the run is beyond me. To say that she is treated cruelly is an understatement; one scene in particular is very distressing. And she has an amazing capacity to forgive. She seems to intuit the motives, fears, and dreams of the adults around her and accept their actions as necessary, forgiving them for not being able to see another way.

About half-way through the book I had an inkling of how it might end. I was close. But deBlasi’s ending is both abrupt and inconclusive. This is the author’s only novel; her other works are nonfiction. I wonder if she is working on a sequel to this book.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amandine is the first novel written by Marlena de Blasi, an author known for her memoir writing. The story is captivating and the author’s writing is simply beautiful, filled with sense details and unforgettable characters. Amandine is born out of wedlock into an aristocratic family in Krakow, Poland in 1931. She is born with a heart defect and not expected to survive. Under the pretext of bringing her to a hospital in Switzerland, Amandine’s grandmother brings her to a remote convent in France. The Countess arranges to leave the child at the convent with a large sum of money and in the care of a governess, Solange Jouffroi. As a young child, Amandine is doted on by the nuns, Pere Philippe and Solange, but suffers cruelty and humiliation at the hands of the Abbess Mother Paul and the other children attending school at the convent. This cruelty, compounded by the abandonment by her mother, causes Amandine to believe there is something wrong with her. After a tragedy involving Amandine is barely averted, Solange takes her on a harrowing journey north through occupied France toward the governess’s home. Leaving their sheltered life in the convent, the pair discovers the horrors of war all around them. Meanwhile, Amandine’s birth mother, having just recently discovered that her child did not die at the hospital in Switzerland, has begun her own journey to find her. This is a story that will stay with you long after you’ve read it.

[Ashley *Booksbrewsandbarks* · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written with an amazing story including parallel storylines that were done perfectly. The imagery and overall emotion portrayed throughout the book was just so enthralling as a reader, with twists popping up here and there not to be overly thrilling, which wouldn't work in this book, but simply to move the story forward. It was just such an overall solid and fulfilling read. The ending was the only thing I felt a little negative about, as I feel as it could've been extended a bit longer but, even at that point, I would probably still want to know more of the characters futures. The author has certainly created a world within is book where you crave to know more about the characters. Highly recommended to most fiction readers, but especially to those that like historical fiction.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I borrowed a friend's advance uncorrected proof that she won here on Firstreads. Despite a lot of dark content, the story is just beautiful. I loved Amandine and the relationship between her and Solange. The author's writing style fit so nicely with the story, too. The prose is lovely, and somehow the whole story seems a little distant to the reader, almost surreal, which helped me get through some of the tougher moments. If not for that distance, I surely would have been crying at several different times. I highly recommend this, and will probably even go buy the final version. Can't wait for more novels from this author.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny that there are so many low ratings. I found this book engaging and interesting. The switching of points of view, the thought monologues and the changing tenses made this book more interesting than if it had been a straight third-person-past type novel.
I enjoyed the way the characters were built up, though the male characters were very 2-dimensional. Especially when compared to the female characters who were for the most part, complex and detailed. Worth reading again and sharing.

[Debra · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first the book was very hard to read. It was confusing as to which person was speaking and there was a lot of background information about the characters. After about 70 pages the story became interesting and I was glad I kept with it. Heartwarming story about an infant girl who is sent to a convent to be raised and wants to find her Mother.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

This historical fiction was a surprise... I liked it! Based on true people/events, it's a sad, yet endearing story. I won this copy from Goodreads, and am glad I did. I might not have read it otherwise.

[etherealfire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Library hardcover

[Krysztyna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Smutna opowieść osadzona w realiach II. Wojny Światowej. Powieść o przyjaźni, miłości (nie tej romantycznej) i strachu.

Szczerze mówiąc, kilkakrotnie wzruszyłam się, czytając "Amandine".

[Kibble · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really disliked this book. It had potential to be an interesting historical novel. Some of the characters had the potential to be interesting but they weren't given enough space. The story was too piecemeal and didn't focus enough on any one character. It slipped too often into schlocky and superficial characters and tropes. Some of it was quite offensive, content warning (s/assault) for the spoilers: The portrayal of a woman who was developmentally delayed as evil and murderous was offensive and unbelievable. Amandine's mother traipsing round nazi-occupied europe adopting traumatised children and saying how delightful they were was awful. The adoptive father-figure "joking" that he wanted to marry Amandine was horrifying. The three different scenes where Solange was assaulted were described in a "titillating" style which was totally unacceptable I do not recommend.

[Lisa James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful book set in France during WW2, it deals with the grand daughter of Polish Countess who makes the baby "disappear" because of the stigma attached to her birth. Growing up in a sheltered convent, her only real protector is a French country girl by the name of Solange, who is her paid keeper. As she grows, there are privations associated with convent life, & the Mother Superior who hates her for no real reason. After a horrific experience at the hand of one of the elderly sisters, Solange takes Amandine & leaves the convent to travel to her home city of Avises, to raise her among her family. The adventures they meet & the people they meet along the way are sweet, & sometimes stark given the horrors of war. All this time, Amandine looks for her real mother, once she realizes she has one.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have groused about this before, but I really hate it when the ending to a book is ambiguous. In this book, shortly before WWII, an infant girl is left with a convent in France, because the baby's royal Polish grandmother doesn't want her family's name to be ruined by this "tragedy." The first half of the book details the baby's growing up in the convent (not a pleasurable experience) and the second half occurs when young Amandine and her guardian leave the convent to head to the guardian's mothers house. What should have been a 2-day train trip turns into several years as the war closes in around them. It's appalling the amount of tragedy one little girl goes through. It could have ended happily but then there's that ambiguous ending......

[Deb · Rating 2 out of 5]

It had so much potential, but writing style is distracting and the end was very disappointing. I was shocked also, by an event towards the last part of the book. I almost did not want to finish the book, but thought surely the author would give Amandine a happy ending or at least a satisfying ending.

[Janet Suarino · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointed. Wanted to like this book but I didn’t. Going back and forth with the italics to let us know what characters were thinking was annoying. The last part of book got interesting but in the end it was disappointing.

[Carl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this story captivating with views of the French countryside and exquisite character development along with a novel long mystery. One short evening a silly party is seen in contrast to the horrors of war.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this story; characters will stay with me for a long while. A lot of words I had to stop & look up (some French, Polish & in general) & it changed narrative styles but I could put that aside for the engrossing story that it was.

[KC Fletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deemed an illegitimate child by her royal Polish family, Amandine is abandoned as a baby at a French convent. As she grows, Amandine struggles to accept her orphaned state.

[Karen Sofarin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good. Characters and plot were a bit flat. Predictable.

[Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is amazing, what à story. Honestly do not understand how could anyone give it less than 5 stars. Everything à good book should be and more.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young orphans journey to find her heritage.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

3and 1/2 stars