Hiding in a coffin beneath barn floorboards, a sixteen-year-old Roma boy named Gabriel evades Bulgarian and German marauders in wartime Greece. Phoebe, a Greek girl his age, keeps him alive by bringing him provisions, and the two inevitably fall in love. Their union is opposed by her family--especially by her father, who works in the Greek underground resistance. Although they are caught in the violent currents of war and history, Gabriel and Phoebe remain enchanted by the small miracles around them and the possibilities of love and redemption. SIRENS is Gabriel's diary of his days in hiding and the weeks after. It is an indelible, deeply moving story of youth, love, and loss.
About the Author :
Joseph Kertes escaped from Hungary with his family as a child during the Hungarian Revolution. He founded Humber Polytechnic's creative writing and comedy programs, where he served as Dean of Creative and Performing Arts for many years and received numerous awards for teaching and innovation.His novels, among them Winter Tulips, Gratitude, and Last Impressions, have won or been finalists for a number of literary awards. His novel, The Afterlife of Stars, was a New York Times Book Review Editor's Pick. Kertes received the 2017 Harbourfront Festival Prize for his contribution to literature and the literary community.
Review :
"What if Romeo and Juliet were set in Greece during the German occupation in the Second World War? Original and moving, SIRENS looks into dark corners and examines the resilience of the human spirit. Kertes illuminates a chapter of history that echoes our own troubled times. Generous and human and masterful."
--Don Gillmor, Winner of the Governor General's Literary Award and author of Breaking and Entering
"This powerfully moving novel understands that, in the darkest times, tenderness can be a profound defiance."
--Anne Michaels, author of the Booker Prize shortlisted novel, Held
"SIRENS--is that rarest of gifts--a novel that holds the whole world. It brought home to me the glory of art, of being human, of love. It made me grateful I can read."
--Alyssa York, author of Far Cry
"The love story at the heart of this novel is all the more heartbreaking and beautiful because, at every turn, it seems doomed. SIRENS is a love story for the ages."
--Anna Porter, celebrated publisher and author of 12 fiction and non-fiction books
