Gramich's meticulous prose captures images and experiences in a detail that gives the early part of the novel an almost dream-like quality. The reader watches on, as each finely-wrought character seeks to make sense of a seemingly unreal reality. Time is marked by the steady passage of the seasons. Constancy and permanence are sought in the few things that remain ... Read morethe same and in faith in a better future. Carefully avoiding melodrama and sentimentality, Gramich evokes personal and collective tragedies in a slow-paced, understated narrative that has a powerful subliminal effect. At a time when many of us in the West like to perceive ourselves as masters of our own destiny (a belief that begins to smack of naivety or arrogance in the current global climate), it is humbling to view the world through the eyes of Gramich's main character, Lynette, whose experiences lead her to the conclusion that she 'was pushed about by something people called fate. All humans were ruled by it but did not admit it and pretended that they were able to choose which path to follow.' The Bridge Over the River is a beautiful, poignant book filled with quiet wisdom and perceptiveness. I was sorry to reach the last page. Suzy Ceulan Hughes Reviews also appeared in the Literary Times Supplement, The Western Mail, Cambria-Magazin and Planet The novel The Bridge over the River is very sensitively written and the narrative is compelling. The reversal of stereotypes in the displacement of the German family and Lynette's chronicling makes it ring like a mirror image of Anne Frank. Lynette's innocence of political pressures comes through strongly. The family's eventual sufferings are somehow signalled in the forebodings in the early passages, but they are still shocking when they occur. The book would make a good basis for a film script in the right hands. A reader's response Show Less