Translate My Heart

Napoleon won Waterloo and that changed history. Jenny Davidson’s novel starts off in turmoilous 1930s Scotland. Fifteen year old Sophie is in school when a bomb goes off nearby nearing killing her and her teacher. Then, a medium who brought Sophie a message from a spirit beyond is found with her throat slashed. Drawn into the mystery of the bombs and the murder, Sophie and her friend, Mikael, must navigate politics, spiritualism, ethics and Sophie’s crush on her chemistry teacher.A wonderfully crafted alternate historical tale. While starting off the story, the world which Sophie lives in is unfamiliar to us and it was uncomfortable (at least to me) until I got more into the story. Sophie’s world does seem bizarre, but at the same time, intriguing. Reading about spirits and spiritualism was fascinating especially since science also is prevalent in the story. The characters are unique - there’s Sophie’s great-aunt who objects to a project she started years ago but not enough to end the program, her friend Mikael from Sweden who might or might not be a love interest and her chemistry teacher, Mr. Petersen, who’s not all that he seems. It’s not only just a great story but raises questions about moral ethics and the role of government. Suspenseful, fun and overall a great story. My only issue with this book is that the sequel (which might answer some of the unanswered questions in this book) might not be out until 2010 (which is a long time to wait, sigh).