I usually stay away from War fiction or any other fiction that deals with war, displacement and the trauma caused by it. It feels like a fetish of sorts to sympathize with the characters when they are in so much pain. But I was drawn into the blurb of this book that promised both adventure and a good cry. After reading the translators note, I was sure that this isn't one of those books that fetishize pain for pleasure.


Set over six months, during the German occupation in Hungary, Abigail follows Gina Vitay, who is sent away from Budapest to a prison-like Protestant boarding school for girls out of nowhere, by her father, a general in the Hungarian army. She didn't understand why she's been sent away and tries to resist but in vain. At school, her refusal to take part in a childish tradition makes her public enemy number one to her class. She even tries to run away but stopped trying after her father made her promise that she won't do it again. Later, she is helped by Abigail, a legend who helps the girls in need, to stop her from being captured by the Nazi army. What ensues is a gripping tale of everything Gina thought she knew.


Abigail is a lovely mixture of war and domesticity that moves around in constant circles. When this domesticity of Matula clashes with the outside world, we have some remarkable writing. The girls of Matula are trained with iron fists. They have their schedule cut out for them and punishments were in order if they are strayed. This domesticity is broken when there was an air raid demo or when they witness some rebellious placards. The resulting confusion is something that's both amusing and tragic to read. 


These girls were 14 and they have to worry if they can see each other the next year. But, these girls even found a way to make the best out of their situation. Their naivety and pettiness are what gives life to this book. In some places, I was even reminded of my school days. Just when I thought the plot is dragging, there is always another surprise waiting. This often ends in an adventure or a revelation or an accident of sorts. What surprised me was how authentic teenage girls were written. There is always some maniac quality while writing about teenagers (especially in the fantasy) but here, there is the perfect moodiness, immaturity, haste in deciding things and of course, misinterpreting the adult lives and forming theories of their own.


All these characteristics make Abigail a fantastic coming of age story. Len Rix has mentioned in his preface that there are so many plot devices that are used to depict this transition of childhood to adulthood and I had a field day in interpreting them. The adults are present in this story in the background. We have no insights into their life. I would've loved a few chapters on Gina's father, General, who has to leave his daughter for his country. We are given snippets but that feels incomplete. He leaves his daughter in a prison-like school so that she won't be captured by Nazis and used as a tool to get his accomplices. Szabó in an interview with HLO says that she (and other members of New Moon) decided to not have children to avoid the same thing in the hands of the communist regime. I can feel that fear and anxiety whenever General makes his appearance. So I am not complaining about it.


Though the story is about Gina Vitay, Abigail plays a major role here. The legend is that the statue named Abigail will help the girls in need if they drop a letter in her pitcher. It is obvious that there is a person behind this but we are not brought into the heart of the mystery. I was guessing who Abigail might be and ecstatic when I was right. I also liked Kalmar, the handsome teacher of Matula (imagined Tom Hiddleston throughout) and Sussanna, the prefect in charge of Gina's class. Konig is portrayed as a cowardly teacher. Gedeon Tormar, the formiddable director. Mitsi Horn, a former pupil, is now the 'Grand Dame' of the town. They all will be with me for a long time.


This book bought me so many memories of my teenage years. The immaturity, hastiness, moody and anxiety all came in waves. I remembered the times when I was exactly like Gina and purposefully hurt people out of pettiness but realised it later. I am still immature but that is not the point. The immature teenager is under the control of the inner old lady. So I am managing these days. With all that said, don't go into this book expecting a great trauma story of the war that will make you cry buckets. This story makes you cry, laugh, frustrated and facepalm so hard that you get dizzy. Read this book for its simple and charismatic prose. And of course for the resilience of Szabó used her writing as a form of deviance against the oppressors.