This book has such a complex story that I don’t think anyone can really sum up the story in a few sentences. So I am going to try to shorten the summary without going overboard a little=) This novel is the story of a book entitled, The History of Love, written by 20-year old Leo Gursky, inspired by the love of his life, Alma Mereminski. Years later, Leo Gursky, worried that he might die just any day soon, is keen on making sure he will not be forgotten in this world.
On another side of New York, is a fifteen-year old Alma, who was named after a character from her mother’s favorite book. Her mother, being a translator, receives several letters from a complete stranger, asking her to translate a Spanish book called The History of Love into english. Alma, intrigued and inspired by the man’s letters of requests, decide to write letters back to the man to find out who he is. And also, as she reads the book by Leo Gursky, is inspired to find the real Alma.
To tell you the truth, I had a really hard time trying to come up with that summary. Like I said, this book is extremely complex and there are so many stories and plots in this one that it’s hard to put them all together. Needless to say, I loved this book. I enjoyed it so much, I actually read it again the following week.
It also takes a good, skilled, artistic writer to be able to write two completely different narratives with their own very different voices and yet connect them just like she did. Wonderfully written prose, and beautiful story. Fast read too. What more can you ask?
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