Wioletta Greg

An excellent book about growing up in Poland in the 80's. Wioletta grows up on a farm and she seems to have a good childhood, full of running around in the fields, going to church, and being with her family. Its not all sunshine and roses, though, as the title "swallowing mercury" suggests.

Each chapter is a memory, one slice of time, good or bad. The descriptions are vivid, down to the smells. The characters in the village are wonderfully portrayed. And, like most childhood memories, the resolution to to the problems are left hanging. What exactly did the adults do in these cases? Who knows, the memories are those of the young girl, strong and confident or bewildered and confused.

I wanted more and was sad the book was over.… (meer)

I'm at a cross whether to rate it 3.5 or 4. It started off, well, slightly underwhelming which I feel was due to my lack of knowledge of Poland's history but I read the Translator's Note and it started making much more sense and I also got more used to this style of interlocking short stories.

I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was very interesting. I love how it is purely from the perspective of the child and there is no external input. It is interesting to see her reaction to certain political events, superstitions, sexual encounters, and death.… (meer)