Farewell Leicester Square

[Karen]

Has anyone else started this book yet? I started it last night. It was a little tough at first but now I'm really enjoying it. It's very different from what I expected.

[Gina]

I actually have this book! I'm starting it tonight.

[Gina]

Has anyone finished the book? I just got done with it yesterday. There were definitely some interesting themes. One of the most obvious ones was Alec's Jewish background...I found it hard as a modern reader to understand the prejudice he felt because I haven't seen much Antisemitism first-hand. How bad was it really? Did he see it everywhere just because he was looking for it? I ran across a couple of parts that suggested it, but that could have been just Catherine's viewpoint - one was on pg 201, where she was thinking "that barriers exist only when we recognize them; that there are two sides to every question; that your world is what you make it..."
The other one was on page 227, when she was describing her relationship with Alec with her brother, and saying that she had to be careful about how she reacted to other Jews. It's interesting that the fact he was a Jew did ultimately interfere with their relationship.
What did you think of Alec as a character?

[Karen]

I felt like I missed out on a lot his character since the book jumped forward in time -- I really wished we had learned about his rise in the film industry and what happened to him there.