When She Sleeps

By Leora Krygier

Book Overview

Teenage sisters, worlds apart, meet in the world of their dreams. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1453686347
• ISBN13: 9781453686348
• Release Date: January 2011
• Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 232 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Dreaming in Fiction

No one is immune from war, no matter the outcome. Countries may shake hands, sign treaties and make peace, but human beings are left with scars, harsh memories and frail emotions-complicated legacies of war that settle into bodies, hearts and souls and are often passed down through the generations. Such is the case in Leora Krygier's stunning new novel. When She Sleeps, where each character is touched by war in ways that change who they are and who they become. As a therapist, I am fascinated by the way Krygier lets the reader into the psyches of her characters, especially the two 15 year old half sisters, Mai in Vietnam and Lucy in Los Angeles. The story, of their lives and families and how they eventually find each other, speaks in the voices of these two young women. Peripherally, we enter the minds of the other family members, especially Linh, the mother of Mai, a beautiful and brillant linguist whose life and love blossomed in the sixties only to have it yanked away from under her feet. Her once steady mind, takes a downward spiral not unlike the fall of Saigon. But juxtaposed to this fall, is Mai's hope and strength and resolve to find her American father. We pull for Mai and for Lucy, her half-sister and we are not disappointed in the real outcome of a journey that began with a dream. When She Sleeps is a beautifully written and compelling story, one thaat leaves an indelible mark, not only in the world of good literature, but in this reader's mind as well.

Wonderful Book

We often hear of the macro consequences of the Vietnam War, but rarely get a glimpse, as we do here, into the micro or the personal. In this brilliant new novel, Leora Krygier transports the reader into the hearts and minds ˆ both conscious and subconscious ˆ of an American family and a Vietnamese family in 1977 as they live with and live through the consequences of war. The language is rich with symbols, metaphors and cinematic descriptions that enhance the story, allowing the reader to see and hear what they are reading. When She Sleeps is a beautifully crafted novel, with each diverse character a story unto his or her self. I couldn‚t put this book down; it kept me awake all night. I recommend When She Sleeps for people of all ages, from mid-teens on up. It is the best book I‚ve read this year.

Captivating

This beautiful novel is a reminder that the sad legacy of the Vietnam War continues to haunt us and remains a part of our national consciousness. The real-life stories of the offspring of American soldiers and Vietnamese women are often forgotten, but not in this gem of a book which reveals the painful aftermath of family secrets. The rich language gives the story a magical feel, restoring hope that time will heal these wounds as well.

'WHEN SHE SLEEPS' IS A DREAM OF A BOOK

This is no ordinary novel. After only a few haunting pages, I jotted down: The author's words hover between heaven and earth. They are flesh and spirit. This book soars on gossamer wings. It is the language that separates this book from many another novel as well. Leora Krygier obviously loves language and chooses her words carefully. She writes with surgical precision and poetic sensibility. She cuts away to the clean, clear, economic essence of things. Krygier provides fascinating cultural glimpses of Vietnam, past and present, including myths and legends, as they bear on this story. As the narrative shifts to Paris, the author gives us an informed, tangible sense of the city's significant, applicable details. Los Angeles and its surroundings, too, come vividly alive, observed, selectively, with keen insight and fine descriptive powers. "When She Sleeps" is a gem of writing, story-telling and human insight. It's about damaged lives. It's about secrets and suffering. It's about abandonment and betrayal. It's about the presence and absence, the distortions and aberrations of love. It's about coping. It's about despair and hope. It's a profoundly moving story. Rolf Gompertz Author of "Abraham, The Dreamer, An Erotic and Sacred Love Story"

Seductive and Gripping

A beautiful book. This novel of two half-sisters, children of the Vietnam war, struggling to find each other, pulled me into their lives from the the first page to the last. Krygier has a perfect sense of place, relationships, and emotions. I could hear the noises and smell the smells of Saigon, Thailand, Paris, and Los Angeles, while I lived the girls' journey. Read it and give it to someone you love.