In 1992 I lived in Prague for three months, having visited the city many times before and after that, most recently last summer. As the city changes, nonetheless, the past seems always tenable, there to grab, but for ever just out of reach. Sylvie Germain's poetic novel seems to attempt to capture that aspect of Prague, in the form of a phantom, which appears in various places of the city. This phantom, or spirit, appears as a heavy-set woman, who limps uneasily through the streets, or appears in fog, like a shadow, an epiphany, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Knowledge of the city of Prague intensified my experience of the book, which contains some beautiful descriptions, and catches the spirit of the city. ( )