Book Review: The Little Liar by Mitch Albom

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BOOK review

Started on: 18 October 2024
Finished on: 16 November 2024

 

The Little Liar by Mitch Albom

 

Title: The Little Liar

Author: Mitch Albom

Publisher: Harper

Pages: 352 pages / 350 pages (e-book)
Year of Publication: 2023
Price: Rp 335,000 (https://www.periplus.com/)

Rating: 5/5

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"You can trust the story you are about to hear. You can trust it because I am telling it to you, and I am the only thing in this world you can trust."

Until he was eleven years old, Nico Krispis never told a lie. On the day the Nazis invaded his home in Salonika, Greece, a German officer found Nico and offered him a chance to save his family. Nico was supposed to convince his fellow Jewish residents to board the trains heading to their new homes. Unaware of this cruel ruse, Nico goes to the station platform and reassures the passengers that the journey is safe. Nico even sees his family loaded into a large boxcar with their neighbors. When Nico realizes he helped send the people he loved to their doom in Auschwitz, it's all too late. Since that day, Nico never tells the truth again.

"When we finish this story, you may say, "That was impossible." But here is the funny thing about truth: the less real something seems, the more people want to believe it."

"People say many things. Some are true. Some are lies. Sometimes, if you say a lie long enough, people believe it's the truth."

As a fan of Mitch Albom's writing, I was intrigued by this book from the first page. How he described the setting and introduced the characters instantly piqued my interest and made me want to know more. Even though this is not the first time I read a book set during the World War II era, it's still difficult for me to imagine that many people had to suffer such cruelty in their lives. The way Mitch Albom described the horror of the Holocaust made me feel like I was there witnessing it in front of my eyes. This beautifully written story of four people with their lives intertwined successfully tugged at my heartstrings multiple times.

"In a world full of lies, honesty glimmers like silver foil reflecting the sun."

"Sometimes, it is the truths we don't speak that echo the loudest."

The book begins by introducing the four main characters: Nico Krispis—the boy who never told a lie; his brother, Sebastian Krispis; Fannie—a family friend who had a crush on Nico; and Udo Graf—a German officer who will change their lives forever. The story spans decades, beginning with the time when the Nazis invaded Salonika and ushered Jewish residents to board trains heading to Auschwitz. Udo Graf took advantage of Nico—who never told a lie, by asking him to reassure his fellow Jews they would have new homes and jobs. When Nico discovered that he'd been lying to everyone—including his own family, he decided to live a life full of lies. The four main characters of this book will be going through ups and downs as they try to survive the war. I can't summarize the story further than that without spoiling too much.

 

As I read this book, I continued to be amazed by how well Mitch Albom depicted the horror of the Holocaust. The historical aspect of the story, combined with the relationships between all the characters, successfully broke my heart multiple times. I also enjoyed the various perspectives that allowed readers to follow the characters' lives separately before their stories intertwined. Even though Udo Graf's story didn't make me sympathize with his character, it's interesting to see what he had to experience as a German officer during that period. The book also gave me a satisfying ending because it concluded in the place where the story began. Despite all the miseries they suffered for many years, I'm glad the characters managed to find 'peace' at the end.

"Never be ashamed of a scar. In the end, scars tell the story of our lives, everything that hurt us, and everything that healed us."

"To keep harmony, there are things you might not say, even if you know them to be accurate. It is, technically, an act of deceit. It is also an act of love. The two are more connected than you think."

Among other World War II books that I've read, The Little Liar has successfully become one of my favorites. I will always remember how Nico's character transformed from a boy who never lies to someone who suffers from pathological lying due to the trauma he experienced. The story is intriguing from start to finish and made me root for the characters to survive. I highly recommend this book to readers who love historical fiction and want a story that will make their hearts ache.

"A voice that could warn you how a lie told once is easy to expose, but a lie told a thousand times can look like the truth.

And destroy the world."

by.stefaniesugia♥ .