I didn't think any book could move me as much as Christy Lefteri's The Beekeeper of Aleppo, but I was wrong. Her new one, The Songbirds, has left me feeling terribly guilty that I hadn't often considered the plight of female domestic servants in our modern, enlightened times.
Nisha, the Sri Lankan nanny/maid/housekeeper works long, but not unhappy hours, for a middleclass Cypriot mother & daughter. She keeps in touch with her own daughter back in Sri Lanka by using her friend/lover's tech & sends her wages home to her family.
When Nisha disappears without warning, Petra her employer, & Yiannis her lover, are the only people interested in finding out what has happened to her.
Petra feels guilt that she cared so little about Nisha's life, and Yiannis struggles to justify the cruel way he earns his living as a poacher.
As their investigation develops we learn more about the exploitation of immigrant servants in Cyprus & throughout the Western world.
The Songbirds is a beautifully written book I would recommend to everyone.
Nisha, the Sri Lankan nanny/maid/housekeeper works long, but not unhappy hours, for a middleclass Cypriot mother & daughter. She keeps in touch with her own daughter back in Sri Lanka by using her friend/lover's tech & sends her wages home to her family.
When Nisha disappears without warning, Petra her employer, & Yiannis her lover, are the only people interested in finding out what has happened to her.
Petra feels guilt that she cared so little about Nisha's life, and Yiannis struggles to justify the cruel way he earns his living as a poacher.
As their investigation develops we learn more about the exploitation of immigrant servants in Cyprus & throughout the Western world.
The Songbirds is a beautifully written book I would recommend to everyone.