A great novel about family, love, friendship, and loss. If You Could Go Anywhere is a wonderful opportunity to travel the world without leaving the place you are snuggled up while reading it. The power of the pictures the author creates in your mind is fantastic. I enjoyed every minute with the protagonist while she discovered the places she always wanted to see in person. I could literally hear the water splash or the pizza smell. Or hear the noise a typical Italian town makes during the day. Or during the night. If you don´t know the author´s books yet, this novel is the best way to get started.
Du Schenkst Mir Die Welt
by Paige ToonTranslation Andrea Fischer
Original Title If You Could Go Anywhere*
Publisher Fischer Krüger on June 29, 2022
Genre Novel
Pages 435
Format Paperback
Source Publisher
Goodreads
✶✶✶✶½
All roads lead to you.Angie always wanted to travel the world. But she's stuck in her tiny Australian hometown: her mother is dead, she doesn't know her father and she's the only one who can take care of her grandmother, who has dementia. When she dies, Angie makes a discovery: her father lives, in Rome! But why has no one ever told her about him? Angie embarks on an Italian adventure to find out the truth about her unknown family. Can the charming daredevil Alessandro, who also harbors a secret, accompany her on her way?
Story
After the death of her beloved Grandmother, Angie finds out that she has a father and that her grannie had some secrets. With the help of her friends, she calls him and discovers that he would love to meet her. In Italy Angie discovers not only a totally strange world, but also a family she never knew she had.
Style
The light, no-frills style of wording and writing makes it easy for the reader to engage with the somber background theme without being dragged down by its darkness. The story is easy to read and contains many emotions that are presented in a wonderful way. The author stages Angie's trip in a visually stunning way and intersperses it with wonderful anecdotes from her childhood.
Characters
Paige Toon shows the most diverse characters here, who couldn't be more different in their behavior and who fit together in a wonderful way. On the one hand Angie is a bit naïve, on the other hand she has years of self-sacrificing care behind her that have shaped her. It was sometimes very enjoyable to see how she dared to venture out into the world and learn new things. Just the scene of her sitting on the plane and thinking about various things like buckling up or the sound of the turbines was just delicious.
Conclusion
A beautiful and often very moving novel that entertained me wonderfully and at the same time deeply touched. I often had to smile when Angie went out into the world, and it welcomed her with open arms. Here, the dark side of a deadly disease is addressed in a stylish and open way, while still showing that life is worth living and has meaning.
Happy reading
*This book was kindly provided to me by Fischer Krüger in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Thank you. Therefore, the cover of the German edition is shown first in this review.
Deutsche Rezension
Stil
Der leichte, schnörkellose Wort- und Schreibstil macht es dem Leser leicht, sich mit dem düsteren Hintergrundthema zu befassen, ohne dabei von dessen Dunkelheit hinabgezogen zu werden. Die Geschichte ist zügig lesbar und beinhaltet viele Emotionen, die auf wundervolle Art dargestellt sind. Angies Reise wird von der Autorin bildgewaltig in Szene gesetzt und mit wunderschönen Anekdoten aus deren Kindheit durchzogen.
Charaktere
Paige Toon zeigt hier die unterschiedlichsten Charaktere, die in ihrem Verhalten nicht verschiedener sein könnten und dabei auf herrliche Weise zusammenpassen. Einerseits ist Angie etwas naiv, auf der anderen hat sie Jahre der aufopferungsvollen Pflege hinter sich, die sie geprägt haben. Es war zum Teil sehr vergnüglich mitzuerleben, wie sie sich in die Welt hinaus traute und neue Dinge kennenlernte. Allein die Szene, als sie im Flugzeug sitzt und sich da so ihre Gedanken über diverse Dinge wie das Anschnallen oder das Geräusch der Turbinen machte, war einfach köstlich.
Resultat
Ein wunderschöner und oftmals sehr ergreifender Roman, der mich herrlich unterhalten und zugleich tief berührte. Ich musste oft schmunzeln, als Angie hinaus in die Welt zog und diese sie mit offenen Armen in Empfang nahm. Hier wird die Schattenseite einer tödlichen Krankheit auf stilvolle und offene Weise zum Thema gemacht und trotzdem gezeigt, dass das Leben lebenswert ist und einen Sinn hat.
*The title was published by Simon & Schuster UK on May 16, 2019
Paige Toon
Paige Toon was born in 1975 and grew up between England, Australia, and America. A philosophy graduate, she worked at teen, film, and women´s magazines, before ending up a reviews editor at Heat magazine. Paige is married, has two small children, and lives in Cambridge.
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