Katalin Street

A story of three neighboring families, how they are tangled up in each other and how a tragedy has lasting repercussions. First I was really confused about who belongs to which family, then I wasn't that into the magical realism aspect of the novel, and ultimately I got a bit fed up with how these characters treated each other. Not nearly as good as [b:Abigail 43452825 Abigail Magda Szabó https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1579715045l/43452825.SY75.jpg 1845425] or [b:The Door 497499 The Door Magda Szabó https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1175252169l/497499.SY75.jpg 485644]. Still, somewhere in the middle, I was engaged.

“...no one had told them that the most frightening thing of all about the loss of youth is not what is taken away but what is granted in exchange. Not wisdom. Not security. Not sound judgment or tranquility. Only the awareness of universal disintegration.”

“...they had learned that is everyone's life there is only one person whose name can be cried out in the moment of death.”

Katalin Street has a enchanting start (though it is sort of confusing). With each subsequent chapter, the novel becomes slightly less mesmerizing and affecting (and less confusing). In the end, I cannot say that I really enjoyed or even fully appreciated this novel. It certainly has some powerful prose and a wonderfully conceived story, but it does grow a bit tiresome. A very solid effort from Magda Szabó, but I do wish it had been polished more.