Overview

We are in Spain as we follow the life and thoughts of Mara, a Romanian beggar who sits, day after day, on the pavement outside a bank in Madrid. Little by little her past takes shape, her tragic past, as she reflects on the members of her family, as she describes the village of her childhood, the hardships of Ceausescu's Romania, her relationships - one of which was her downfall. She takes the reader through her happy but troubled youth, her dysfunctional family, her loves and follies, an unwanted pregnancy, the sordid kidnapping of her baby by the Romanian authorities and the fruitless search for the infant in the Bucharest orphanages. We experience her flight from Romania, abuse as a refugee and illegal immigrant throws her life into a sad downward spiral. After years of begging and loneliness fate offers her a chance and rescues her through a 'flu epidemic, landing comatose in the caring environment of a small Madrid hospital. After all this, can she find the strength to escape from the depths into which she has fallen? Mara's is a tale of sadness, of a woeful start to life and an ambiguous ending.

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9780987521255

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Reviews

A beautifully written story of Mara a Romanian girl's life on the streets of Madrid as a beggar. Anyone reading this story will think twice when passing a beggar on the street, and wonder what circumstances brought them to this stage in their life. This novel is of exceptional literary merit. The hopes and dreams of the Romanian girl, Mara, from a scenically beautiful country yet one oppressed by the evil dictator, Ceausescu, are shattered and influenced by family tragedy and those wider circumstances.

"""A beautifully written story of Mara a Romanian girl's life on the streets of Madrid as a beggar. Anyone reading this story will think twice when passing a beggar on the street, and wonder what circumstances brought them to this stage in their life."" ""This novel is of exceptional literary merit. The hopes and dreams of the Romanian girl, Mara, from a scenically beautiful country yet one oppressed by the evil dictator, Ceausescu, are shattered and influenced by family tragedy and those wider circumstances."""

A beautifully written story of Mara a Romanian girl's life on the streets of Madrid as a beggar. Anyone reading this story will think twice when passing a beggar on the street, and wonder what circumstances brought them to this stage in their life. This novel is of exceptional literary merit. The hopes and dreams of the Romanian girl, Mara, from a scenically beautiful country yet one oppressed by the evil dictator, Ceausescu, are shattered and influenced by family tragedy and those wider circumstances.

Author Information

Diana Hutton lives in Madrid, Spain and has spent most of her career as a professional translator but has devoted the last few years to writing full-time. She has written two novels, ""A Grave above Ground"" and ""Don't Call Me Lebohang"" which is also available on Amazon.She is currently revising another novel written some years ago and entitled ""Sisterly Love"". It delves into the intricacies of the sister relationship in old age, treating the subject with remarkable humour and sensitivity. She is also in the process of working on a new novel.Although born in Southampton, in the United Kingdom at the end of the Second World War, Diana spent the first ten years of her life in London, then moved with her family to Sydney, Australia. She was educated there and dabbled in acting and contemporary ballet in Sydney on leaving school, then worked at the Australian Broadcasting Commission. As a young woman, she returned to London, but shortly afterwards moved to live in Paris where she met her Spanish husband to be whilst working in the Australian Permanent Delegation to UNESCO. She married in Madrid and has two grown up children.She has lived there on and off since 1970 and has found life in Spain to be a deeply enriching experience.

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