The Wish Child
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Vintage Publishing
Published:5th Jul '18
Should be back in stock very soon
A dark and terrifying portrayal of the way two ordinary German children - Siggi and Erich - are drawn into the Nazi dream of a perfect nation
Both children watch as their parents become immersed in the puzzling mechanisms of power.
Drawn together as Germany’s hope for a glorious future begins to collapse, the children find temporary refuge in an abandoned theatre amidst the rubble of Berlin.
'A wonderful new talent' Nick Hornby
Germany, 1939. Sieglinde lives in the affluent ignorance of middle-class Berlin. Erich is an only child living a lush rural life, aware that he is shadowed by strange, unanswered questions. Both children watch as their parents become immersed in the puzzling mechanisms of power.
Drawn together as Germany’s hope for a glorious future begins to collapse, the children find temporary refuge in an abandoned theatre amidst the rubble of Berlin. The days they spend there together will shape the rest of their lives.
Winner of the New Zealand Book Award for Fiction
A remarkable book with a stunningly original twist. * The Times *
An intriguing read -- Fanny Blake * Woman & Home *
An incredible piece of writing...takes us inside the minds of the children and their families with such tenderness, humanity and psychological astuteness that it creates an understanding of why they loved and followed Hitler. * New Zealand Listener *
Compellingly gentle and empathetic...one of our 'must read' novelists. It is a book difficult to put down and deserving of more than one reading. * Otago Daily Times (NZ) *
A brilliant novel, with a cohesive and persuasive vision of human beings under stress, a subtle prose-style and a major grasp of things that really matter. * Reid's Reader blog (NZ) *
I love this book... I love the way, at this critical point in the world, when fundamental human values are violated, The Wish Child reminds us with grace and understated wisdom of a need to strive for universal good. I ached as I read. This novel is unmissable. * Stuff (NZ) *
This novel is remarkable for its authenticity, this is a fiercely determined act of imagining... Heart-rending. * North and South (NZ) *
ISBN: 9781784704339
Dimensions: 198mm x 129mm x 23mm
Weight: 305g
384 pages