Last Butterfly

by Michael Jacot

The Last Beautiful and heartbreaking ... It is in the changing of one man ... that one finds the most moving movements of the novel, as Antonin, the hasbeen clown, becomes a kind of hero of the human spirit. (Publisher's Weekly)There is a deftness and economy in Mr. Jacot's characterizations, and a sense of dread of such immediacy as to render the novel all too memorable. (Saturday Review/World).A simple unforgettable film unrolls before you as you read The Last Butterfly ... the horrors are implicit but hidden ... The happiness, the laughter, is as real as the despair. Ane more lasting. (Atlantic Monthly)

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction

190 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1974

Reviews

[Crizzle]

Man, I hate Nazis!
I loved the character development of Antonin, who is a washed-up performer, depressed with life, hopeless, and - when taken by Nazis - cowardly and only thinks of himself. Being quaranteed with children on a path to Auschwitz changes him completely. He is joyful, even when close to death. His life has meaning again, and he is brave and as selfless as can be, because he loves.

Note: I wouldn't recommend to teenage readers because of one chapter, chapter 45.

[Tom Calvard]

A relatively short, spare, sad novel about a clown/mime who gets caught up in the Holocaust in Czechoslovakia. The horror of what is happening - what historically did happen - is explored through a variety of scenes involving the Terezin ghetto, and various character perspectives, including Nazis and Polish children. The deeper theme of the novel is perhaps how Antonin helps people, including himself, to laugh and find courage and solidarity in the face of trauma and suffering. This gives his life purpose and pride, while at the same time his sense of meaning and existence as a human being is being threatened.