26 - The Absolutist, by John Boyne, 309 pages, Doubleday Canada, 2011
WHY I PICKED IT: Recommended by a teacher from Australia that I met on the Waterloo Express from Heathrow
ELAPSED TIME: 3 days
RATING: Very Good
ELAPSED TIME: 3 days
RATING: Very Good
Twenty year old Tristan Sadler having returned from WWII pays a visit Marian, his best friend's sister, ostensibly to return the letters that she had written to Will, her brother. Will had been killed by firing squad as a conscientious objector after he laid down his gun. Despite the official reason for his visit, Tristan is really there to tell Marian the details of what happened "over there," and unburden himself of a terrible secret.
Boyne, who came to critical acclaim for The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, has written a melancholic tale that is easy to read with interesting characters, and calls into question the definition of coward.
This book is very good, but I hope to not carry these characters with me.
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