The book "Sonia" is by the author Ignacy Karpovich. It is an ironic and thrilling tale about the impact of art on human relations.
The novel centers on Igor, a young and successful playwright who finds himself isolated in a small village between Poland and Belarus. He meets Sońka there, an old woman who owns only a cow, and goes to live with her. Sońka tells him a tragic story – a tale of lost love in one of the world’s most terrible wars, of hatred and exploitation and suffering, but also of desire and forbidden love. This touching and moving narrative uncovers the themes of personal power, rejection and the struggle for freedom in the course of Igor’s life. Igor remembers what he had read before and realizes this story could be a great source of inspiration for his own plays.
With each new chapter, the reader is immersed into these characters and their stories, while being kept aware of the real motivations behind their actions. At first the reader assumes Sońka is the narrator, as she tells the story to Igor. Over time however the reader becomes aware that Igor is really the "narrator" as he writes notes on how to modify the story and even fragments of his plays to suit some perceived needs of the public. These notes disabuse the reader of the idea of Sońka narrating Igor's tale, and set the reader on guard with the awareness of deceptions and lies.
Karpowicz explores these artistic ambitions, opportunities, covert manipulations and deceits in the realm of fiction. He brings the audience to introspect this with his stunning prose. But then again, is fiction all that we have to tell the truth?
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