And love in the heart

Prague, 1938 – Eva and Máňa are running down the street, returning from the last Sokol meeting before the war. She accidentally collides with a man full of rage, inadvertently knocking his hat out of his hand… His hatred and the coming war turns everything they know upside down. Máňa must pack her whole life into a brown suitcase and save herself by emigrating to the unknown…

Prague, 1980 – Ten-year-old Ludek can be invisible. He is constantly running, jumping and can squeeze through the grey clouds low over the city. Ludek is single. And he sees everything. Let the world do as it pleases. May the whole world go to hell, because his grandmother is waiting for him at home in the warmth. His whole world.

Melbourne, 1980 – A little fox holds his grandmother's hand as they climb the stairs to their third-floor apartment. Inside, they are greeted by the smell of tobacco from their grandfather's pipe and freshly baked cookies. Here is the home that Czech immigrants Máňa and Bill built for their granddaughter. A home imbued with the spirit of distant Prague and the loved ones they left behind.

Is life easier anywhere? Is it easier to stay or leave? Is it possible to see colours even in the midst of the greatest darkness?
Favel Parrett's fragile story is a tribute to strong women who can bear anything and maintain family ties at all times. It is a sweet and often funny memory of the second half of the last century, told from the perspective of a happy child surrounded by love. It is the author's confession to her own grandparents who created a home for her. The book is also a tribute to Jiří Srnec's Black Theatre, which brought colour to the pitch-black darkness not only during totalitarianism.