Alouette Voland is the daughter of a Gobelin Tapestry Works dyer in 1660's France. Alouette dreams of creating her own blue dye, but it is forbidden. After Alouette's father is imprisoned for attempting to keep his own red dye a secret, Alouette breaks into the Works to save him and is sent to Salpêtrière asylum. At Salpêtrière, Alouette endures terrible conditions and cruel medical practices, but she also finds companionship in a group of women who help her look beyond Salpêtrière's walls.
Kristof Larson begins his psychiatric residency in 1939 Paris as the Nazis begin to descend upon the city. Kristoff notices the treatment conditions are diminishing and soon learns this is purposeful. He finds respite with his friend, Alesander who shows him around Paris's underground. Soon after, the Nazis removed Kristof's neighbors, the Brodskys. Their teenage daughter, Sasha comes to Kristof for help along with some other teens. Kristof knows that he must help and brings them underground.
Skylark is an emotional story of survival and resilience. The dual stories in 1664 and 1939 are equally intriguing and feature well-developed characters about whom I cared equally. The stories connect only through Paris's underground and the characters' emotional burdens. Even with two vastly different stories, I was captured by the characters' journeys. Alouette is extremely passionate about finding her own dye and the injustices that exist within the dye works. This passion serves her well at Salpêtrière where she can transform that energy into survival and eventually escape. I enjoyed Alouette and Etienne's relationship; they find strength in one another. Etienne's point of view on excavating the underground tunnels was also interesting for showing their importance, history and uses through time. Kristoff's story focuses on realizing the injustices around him and wanting to be part of the solution. Kristoff's and Sasha's stories show the real time impacts on people as the Nazis rounded up Jewish people and disposed of the disabled. The parallel stories of courage, hope and determination echo throughout time.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
