The description on the back and the cover art of The Clothes on Their Backs by Linda Grant led me to believe that this book would be very different than it turned out to be.
That's not necessarily a bad thing, because the book actually turned out to be better than I imagined it would be.
Vivien Kovacs is the bookish daughter of Hungarian-refugee parents in London. Her parents live a quiet, secluded life as if they are afraid that they will be found out. Vivien longs for more and goes off to college and has a short marriage, at which point she returns to her childhood bedroom.
Depressed and lost, Vivien remembers a tumultuous visit from an uncle who her father would not let into the house. He continued to refuse to talk about this mysterious Uncle even as he is all over the papers durning a high-profile trial where he is accused of being a slumlord.
Years later, Vivien sets out to meet Sandor but is not fully honest about who she is. Through her involvement with Sandor, she is exposed to new people and new experiences and she learns much more about her parents and their lives in Hungary.
A fine story, but nothing amazing.
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