“The Great Luck” by Olivia Manning: book review

Land people never really know each other. What, at the beginning, appears evident then fades over time because more faces are masked. It is therefore difficult to recognize them on the basis of what they initially showed themselves to be. They shape themselves according to the circumstances, places and people they frequent. They can be everything and the opposite of everything. They seem to be shrouded in mystery as to how they manage to navigate difficult, extreme and dangerous situations.

Sometimes, the thread of their nature is lost. They are a constant surprise, in a negative way. Such subjects think they are stirring up lies in order to stay afloat under the inquiring eyes of those who question their words. They become actors, thespians, so that life presents them with a cheaper bill than what they could risk. They know they have nothing and exchange everything in exchange for a piece of existence without too much effort. The benevolence of others, a godsend especially in lean times, catches these people always ready to receive, perhaps, what they would never have. Sharpening your gaze to better see who is next to you is a bit like starting to read a new story.

In The large family Of Olivia Manning you know the story of a newly married couple, Guy and Harriet, who moves from England to Bucharest. He teaches at university, she is unemployed. It is 1939. It is a difficult period, the Nazi advance becomes, day after day, more and more concrete. The daily life of the Pringle couple is uncertain. They are different: Guy is sociable, Harriet is introverted. She will get to know her husband. She had underestimated him, believing that he was a simple man. She discovers, however, that he has a complex nature and keeping up with him is not easy.

The novel is particular. The narrative proceeds a little tiredly as if it lacked the right bite to make it a captivating story.

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“The great fortune” by Olivia Manning, Fazi editions. Dream Book.