Reviews

Madensky Square by Laura Wood, Eva Ibbotson

fionak's review against another edition

5.0

Such a wonderful sense of time and place, and I do love how Ibbotson delivers such a pretty ending for all but the most beautiful thing about this book is the narrator's connections to other human beings. This is historical fiction that captures the time and doesn't project modern mores on the characters.

sennenrose's review against another edition

3.0

This was really different to what I was expecting and I don’t know if I necessarily loved it but no one is as good as Eva at intricate subplots - I particularly loved the story of the Schumachers, and Edith and Herr Huber! Oh, and Nini the anarchist. It’s amazing how you think all the events that happen episodically are unrelated (like Sigi’s story and Nini’s) and then it turns out they’re entwined! The only other author I can think of who does that in the same way is LM Montgomery? Vibe wise, I mean. I’m glad this is my first book of the year.

suzanne99's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

jamiedrew's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

helenbronj's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I quite enjoyed this book. It was a bit different from Ibbotson's young adult books, though written in much the same style. I thought it got better as it went along, for it began a bit slowly.

libs's review against another edition

emotional slow-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I love Eva Ibbotson, so when I found out through an episode of Sentimental Garbage that there was a reissued novel by her that I hadn't read, I was beyond excited. I'm obsessed with five other novels by her that are technically adult novels, but when I came across them in the early 2010s, had been rebranded as young adult. This book? It's definitely an adult novel. It has everything I love about her other books (European city settings, love of culture, very tender descriptions of eggs or leaves or dresses!) but without the charm. Maybe it's because the protagonist is old enough to have a daughter the age of Ibbotson's usual heroes, maybe it's the adultery that doesn't end in marriage, maybe it's historical awareness that a world war is imminent. It just felt a  bit bleaker - not to a huge degree, probably not for anyone who isn't obsessed with her other books for their fantasy and comfort, but - not what I was expecting.

ambero's review against another edition

funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Fits the bill if you’re looking for some light hearted escapism 

rhodered's review against another edition

5.0

This is a book tinged with a certain bittersweet, calm middle European melancholia that I enjoy, but suspect some Americans might not like the flavor of. It is romantic and thoughtful, with a marvelous sense of place and history. And the characters are all so well drawn, people who make you (or at least me) smile in passing. It's an intelligent book, written by a woman who herself came originally from the city it's written about. She knows and clearly deeply loves these places and people, although the story takes place in what would have been her mother or grandmother's era.

Her other books are either quirky children's fare or quirky adult romances in which the humble, young adult heroine is often celebrated for her extraordinary kindheartedness.

This is not one of those books. In fact, this is the author's only published venture into what I would call true literary fiction. The heroine is a true adult woman who owns her own small business in a time when being a single woman alone was not normal or easy. She is not wide-eyed naive. She will save herself if she needs saving, rather than requiring the deuce ex machina of a conveniently timed romance. There is a romance, but it's icing, not the cake.

I don't know if you can tell from this description, but it is one of my favorite books of all time. Top 10 probably.

wyvernfriend's review against another edition

4.0

A story about Susanna Weber, who is a dressmaker, set in 1911, before the world was consumed by World War I but where sabre rattling was already starting to be heard. Anarchism is seen as an interesting hobby and life is interesting. Susanna has carved herself a life in Madensky Square, knows the people there and where she works and lives.

This is an interesting time in her life a time of love and sorrow; of change and trials but overall a story of a life well lived. It's not quite a romance, it's a light book that shines with a love for the location and the characters and a gentle humour for what's going on in people's lives. I really did like the read and look forward to hunting up more by this author.

singinglight's review against another edition

2.0

This is not quite in Ibbotson’s usual line, and I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much. Susanne is a clothing designer with a store in Madensky Square. She records life in the square, as well as her thoughts and struggles in a diary. I finished mostly because I was on an Ibbotson kick and wanted to get through it. [Mar.2011]