Review: The Swallows' Flight
Gaby Meares
[b:The Skylarks’ War|39903894|The Skylarks’ War|Hilary McKay|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1530694826l/39903894.SY75.jpg|61748760] is an outstanding novel (see my 5 star review). So I was super excited to see that Hilary McKay had written a companion story. The Swallows’ Flight follows alternating story lines, until they inevitably cross paths. We meet Erik and Hans in Berlin in 1931 as boys who love to watch the swallows fly, and who will eventually become pilots for Germany, fighting in a war they want no part of. Without sermonising, McKay shows her reader how ‘soldiers’ on both sides were more often than not unwilling participants. We also follow Ruby and Kate, and the story of ‘Dog’ an ill-treated dog in London.
Unfortunately, I found myself confused by all the different characters, and kept referring to the family tree at the back of the book to make sense of what I was reading. These trees should be positioned at the front, so readers can find them easily. Because there were so many characters, it was hard to form a bond with any of them, unlike the bond I felt with Clarry in The Skylarks’ War, which is such a pity.
Even with these faults, McKay is a wonderful author, who always writes with a sense of hope, which is so important, particularly in these dark times.