I almost hate to pick up the book now - like y'all I cannot stop - Chapter 13 the fairy tale became lost - it quickly felt more like a sharing of an old memory with certain people with various jobs turned into characters that express the feelings and fears they presented. I'm betting most of us have life experiences remembered but not talked about - oh and yes, the gut wrenching that comes with a large loss when you doubt yourself and are no longer sure of who you are - beyond ouch - a deep dark place of futility.
I sure like the mother's urging that education is not dependent on classes at a University - My father was a firm believer that only boys should be educated - ah so, however, I remember the disappointment, even found an inexpensive way that I could have paid for myself - but it was not to be - and so I did not attend collage till my children were 6, 11 and 12 - in the meantime I remember reading and reading and learning about artists, listening to music, attending the symphony, studying piano when my children started their piano lessons, even sat in a couple of evening lectures with a neighbor. As I attempted to broaden my children's learning experiences I was learning myself so that when I finally enrolled in collage, I tested out of so many classes I had the equivalent of 38 hours completed. And so the mother shared my own belief about education.
Not sure I remember what happened to Sasha - I think he just left and Vera was caught in the world of self-preservation with her mother and sister. Surprise that even the grandmother worked and that they both smoked.
Reading just this much made me realize how fortunate our lives are more than the harshness of a state controlled society, living in poverty, crammed into a small space with the only real break from the stale air, cold and earning in a system of workers is a brief summer of gardening. Granted the garden was for food supply but it was in the fresh air and you were in control of what you planted as well as, enjoying the harvest dependent on no one but 'mother-nature'.
Finally, the colloidal silver has made a large dent in my infections - no pain and swelling about gone - the problem was the new bottle of colloidal silver was a brand I never used - only after feeling so bad, for some reason I looked at the label and low and behold they were using a protein based colloidal mixture and the protein was floated in casein, which is another one of my allergies (never could drink milk) - no wonder no improvement - I was actually building a secondary infection. Found a bottle of the brand I've used for years and taking a couple of doses yesterday evening and last night and again this morning, along with other herbal combinations I successfully use for infections I am on the mend and I have a large bottle of pure nano size particle colloidal silver arriving tomorrow.
Bellamarie glad your husband is doing well and can tolerate the antibiotics prescribed. And thanks for your concern
Pat - the issue for me is, not being able to tolerate any from the penicillin family, and starting about 12 or so years ago, probably because of multiple and different antibiotics within two months I ended up with the Temporal Arteritis, now I can not tolerate the Cephalosporins, the Quinolones, or the Tetracyclines families leaving me with the Macrolides that includes Erythromycin. And now, that family line is slowly being shelved and Erythromycin is no longer in mass production - it has to be special ordered at a great cost and even the few capsules the pharmacy could get from anther location, that I took the first day, I was already experiencing the severe pain in the veins in my head that is the Temporal Arteritis - there is no cure for the Arteritis and the pain is so severe, almost, if not as bad as the pain of the abscess.
And so, my daughter-in-law, who for a time worked in her uncle's surgical office chatted then Dr. Widner, who then called me and told me the best was for me to use the colloidal silver - I could not understand why it was not having a positive outcome till I finally looked more closely at the information and there it was.
All I keep thinking is thank goodness I am not experiencing the ill health that many go through at my age because the medicines would have killed me by now. After finding the protein base for the silver I am now wondering if that is maybe at the bottom of many meds I have trouble with - they usually have some sort of filler and now I'm wondering what those fillers are and if that is what I am reacting to rather than the chemical combination.
OK enough with health - I'm on my way and that is all that matters -
Frybabe 
been having my own mystery to solve never mind reading one for entertainment - but thanks for sharing the title and author - I think I may download that on my kindle - sounds like a good follow up - the cover looks like it is depicting this Fairy-tale told by Anya - So far this year we sure have been reading Russia Russia Russia... I have a feeling we are going to simply read this story till we have a stopping point that we can then talk and talk about what happened and why and how and fill each other in on what we know that would make the story even richer as we better understand.
Oh yes, agree PTSD for sure...
