The Cafe Toscanini in Fremolia: A review

So, I've finally finished reading the book by Mika Oehling: The Cafe Toscanini in Fremolia. Ms. Oehling graduated from Queen's University, and then went on to do a Master's degree in Contemporary history at the Université de Savoie in France.

The story takes place in the town of Fremolia, up high the mountains, where one finds artists and philosophers. There are painters, sculptors, writers, philosophers, dancers etc. in this town, and like in any other town, there are scandals of all sorts.

However, the biggest scandal of them all was the war that was approaching this innocent town, and the citizens who were not prepared for the harsh realities of the war, one that involved initially 13 countries, then 14, and then 12. This war would forever change the lives of the small-town citizens of Fremolia. This story narrates in detail the harsh realities of war, and gives the reader a reminder of what war was like, and that we should not take our liberty for granted.

Ms. Oehling's writing is very intricate, and there is a lot of storytelling that has occurred in the first 40 pages or so. And in this first 40 pages, she has laid enough ground work into unravelling the story, it is completely and utterly unbelievable. As well, we never find out the name of the protagonist in this story, the narrator, whom we only knows as tender. Mika really weaves two literature styles into one: The post-modern (nouveau romancier) with some of the earlier authors.

This book is a very good example of Ms. Oehling applying the knowledge that she learned from her knowledge of history. This is not a light read, but it is a good read. The storytelling is clear, crisp and you never know what to expect with the turn of every page.

In my opinion, Ms. Oehling has a bright future ahead of her in her writing career.