Little Boy Lost

A browse in a bookstore can be deceptive. One finds a pleasant-looking book, not too long, and seemingly an entertaining work. ETHAN FROME as authored by Edith Wharton would be a good example. Upon delving into the text, however, the reader of this classic piece of American literature soon discovers that this is not going to be a romp, but a deeply moving experience, best appreciated reflectively. So it is, maybe moreso, with Marghanita Laski's LITTLE BOY LOST. This is the story of a man in search of his lost child, as well as a search for himself. Both uniquely disappeared in WWII. The carefully planned and developed plot sucks the reader into its movement from the opening scene on Christas day, for some the happiest day of the year, the family feast. The story which was first published over sixty years ago becomes a contemporary page-turner because one comes quickly to care about the main character and his journey. The clever use of symbols and metaphors is cause for the rapid reader to stop, ponder, and appreciate the very human challenge unfolding, as well as the delicious quality of superior prose when savored. What was it like to live in a less-than-memorable French village after the war? What influence did the war have on the lives of those who lived through it, not in urban centers, but in villages as just-ordinary folks? The response to these interrogatives forms the setting, and one of the major point/ counter-point aspects of the novel. To miss this element of the writing, point/ counter point, is to really miss the challenge and depth of this human adventure. This is a narrative that will not soon be forgotten. THOMAS PATRICK HULL, Chicago

I have enjoyed every Persephone book I have read so far. This one is no different. Hilary marries a French woman during the war and after he briefly sees his baby son, they are separated and his wife eventually dies. He finds out that his son was cared for by another woman who also was taken away and killed and that his son is alive but where oh where is he? The growth Hilary goes through as a person and as a father is worth reading this book.

This is an amazingly crafted and heart-wrenching tale of a man who lost his wife, a member of the French Resistance, and infant son in World War II... only to discover that his son may, after all, still be alive and living in an orphanage in Normandy. This book has you sitting on the edge of your seat until the very end. It is very well written, and a very moving story. I think if I said more, I would be giving away too much. Read it for yourself!

This book shows you how bleak France was after the world war. The idea is very realistic and the characters are well thought up. The main character-Hilary-has lost his son. His wife died in France and the boy as left in the care of her close friend, Jean. But Jean was killed and the boy lost. Hilary gets a visit from Pierre who was in love with Jean who says that he would like to look for Hilary's son. So Pierre goes and looks for the boy after the war and Hilary joins him. When Pierre thinks that he has found the boy, Hilary goes to see him and gets mixed feelings about him. But in the end Hilary has to make a decision and it is a decision that will change his life.