After finishing the book, I now understand why she is the youngest of the New Yorker’s twenty best American fiction writers under forty. She has a way with words…she chooses them wisely and never uses more than necessary. Each one was selected with a precise purpose throughout the story of Natalia, a young doctor, seeking answers to the circumstances surrounding her grandfather’s death.
Throughout her journey, Obreht did a magical job of weaving Natalia’s stories in with those of her grandfather’s. “These stories,” Natalia comes to understand, “run like secret rivers through all the other stories” of her grandfather’s life. And it is ultimately within these rich, luminous narratives that she will find the answer she is looking for.
I missed my metro stop a time or two on the way home because I was so engrossed in this book, so I cannot help but recommend picking this one up if you haven’t already. Yes, the start is a little slow. But trust me your patience will be rewarded.
