1836, Prussia. Hanne is nearly fifteen and the domestic world of womanhood is quickly closing in on her. A child of nature, she yearns instead for the rush of the river, the wind dancing around her. Hanne finds little comfort in the local girls and friendship doesn’t come easily, until she meets Thea and she finds in her, a kindred spirit and finally, acceptance.
Hanne’s family are Old Lutherans, and in her small village hushed worship is done secretly – this is a community under threat. But when they are granted safe passage to Australia, the community rejoices: at last, a place they can pray without fear, a permanent home. Freedom.
It’s a promise of freedom that will have devastating consequences for Hanne and Thea, but, on that long and brutal journey, their bond proves too strong for even nature to break . . .
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Thea, there is no line in your palm I have not traced, no knuckle cracked unheard, and the blue of your eyes is the coffin-lining of the world.
– MY HEART IS A HAND REACHING
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(@picadorbooks, 3 February 2022, e-book, 432 pages, copy from the publisher via @NetGalley)
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My face is wet with tears as I write this. Oh, this is a beautiful, heart-breaking, gut-wrenching corker of a book. I have been so connected, so moved by something in ages. I loved this book so much. I loved the way the author brings the era to life; the time, the people and the sense of place. The book is beautifully written. I loved Hanne and Thea and the bond, the love they share. It was a joy to read. There is also a twist (though that’s not quite the right word) that I didn’t see coming. This is a devastating book.
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