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Rating: 5 stars


I loved this book. It was the perfect way to spend a snow day. The narrator, an unnamed man, returns to his boyhood home in Slovenia after WWII and a 15 year absence. During his childhood, his family was very poor and the house was always filled with people. Only his aunt remains there upon his return. He wonders what happened to the young orphaned neighbor girl that his family was raising. He takes many strolls back down memory lane to various times in his boyhood. The book takes place during both WWI and WWII, occupying the time before he left and the time after he returns. Little is told about where he was or what he did during his 15 year absence, what is most important here is putting the distant past together with the present.

The language is gorgeously poetic and each word is a treat to the senses. His descriptions of the countryside with its sights and sounds are vividly painted. The character development is perfect, down to the strange speech patterns of some of the townsfolk. The author maintained a feeling of suspense as to how the story would unfold, making it difficult to put the book down.

Overall, a wonderful book. I would love to read more from this author, but, sadly, nothing else is translated and the other books seem rather obscure. Very few people seem to have even read this book. Sad that such a great author can go virtually unnoticed.

I read this book today, in December, in a cabin in rural Montreal in a hammock: so I know exactly what Diane means about this being a good snowy day book. I agree too that the lyrical quality and description in the book was lovely. As well, the kind of sense of mystery around much of it was interesting: as was the book's premise that being true to a matter is not always the same as being factual. I feel it also gave me a lovely sense of a Slovenian village as well. I also agree that it is a shame that not much of his other work is translated or accessible.

It didn't resonate so deeply with me that I gave it 5 stars, but I did enjoy it and gave it 3. It was a good pick for a winter evening.

A Day In Spring by Ciril Kosmac
4/5 stars

First and last sentence of the book, “It was a lovely day in spring, full of light and sound, as if cast in pure silver.�� As the seasons change they are mentioned in the story. The land, scenery and weather are all mentioned which made for a story I could visualize. The location was Solvene Littoral in the Eastern Alps near Yugoslavia. The area was occupied by Italians and Germans.

“A Day in Spring is the story of the writer's return after fifteen years in exile and unfolds the fate of a girl called Bozena who was born during World War I of an unhappy love between a Czech “cadet�� and a local girl. Twenty years later Bozena, now grown to womanhood, fell in love with a young Italian in somewhat similar circumstances. Events work out however rather differently.��

“Perhaps I shall write a story about her some day, in spite of all the coincidences that worry me so, because the leading part in it was played by two terrible coincidences �� the two World Wars.��

“We do love you in a way that's different from our love for the others...And perhaps we even like you better...And even if we do like you better it isn't just because you are more worthy of love than the others...But because you are more in need of love...��

I learned about a region I was not familiar with and a little Slovene history. I was engaged with the story and characters, even though it was during times of war I found the story optimistic. A little gem of a book.

I suspect it is the "shelter in place" orders that I am under but this spring is truly a glorious one in regards the flowers blooming.
I loved this book A Day in Spring for its wonderful level of detail, the love stories that seemed true without overbearing sentimentality, the Slovenia country characters and for referencing the art of writing the truth in novels without being heavy handed about it.
I also appreciated the fact that the book actually took place over only two days and that everything else is a memory of a different time.
I not only learned about Slovene history but about their customs and their love of country.
Quotes:

"Nostalgia is the emotional vision of home"

"Our native land is small, and as we can not sing of its greatness, we celebrate and sing of its details..."
4.5 stars