I didn’t know what to expect of this book. I was intrigued by the description and I liked the cover. I’ve never heard of the author before, but his name sounded strange and lyrical.

As soon as I started reading Leland de la Durantaye’s debut novel Hannah versus the Tree, I felt excited. The story describes a great act of vengeance. Hannah, a brilliant, young woman with a very unusual nature and very unusual capacities, was wronged by a member of her wealthy and imperialist family. Her fight against them, is not only for personal reasons but also for ideological reasons. Hannah is fighting a power structure; in a way she represents all of those who fight an unjustifiable power.

This is a short, lyrical and impressive book. Sentence-by-sentence, it is beautiful and poetic. It might sound like an exaggeration, but to me this is a perfect book.