Luisa lives in a small town in Germany. One day when she is ten she finds out that her Grandmother, Selma, has dreamed about an Okapi during the night. Based on previous experience that means that someone in the village will die within the next day. This leaves each of the villagers wondering if they are facing death. In turn that means that secrets and ideas become exposed. The book initially follows the news of the possible death as it moves around the village.

After that the book focusses on Luisa's life more directly and those close to her for whatever reason. It also looks at the aftermath of that day on peoples lives. We get to know a number of the villagers quite well particularly Luisa's direct family. Her parents have troubles and Selma, together with Selma's friend the optician, loom large in Luisa life as she grows into adulthood and her twenties.

Although I finished this a few days back I am still not quite sure exactly what I make of this book. I can understand the comments that this is rather slow and that is the case in the earlier part of the book. I did wonder briefly if I would finish it. However as the book progress it did draw me steadily into Luisa's story. I realise that mine is an advance copy but I did find the language rather strange at times. It is possible that this is a translation issue and I can't honestly say it diminished the book for me.

What I did get from the book as I read was something that started to enchant me. It can be whimsical and gentle. It can be off the wall and amusing. It can touch your heart at times too. There is a line (& I paraphrase) along the lines of "Don't try and see things - they are easier to find that way" and that says something about this book. There is something of a Zen like quality sometimes. There is humanity and love too. This is a story that will not work for everyone however for those it does it will reward you. If you like to find tales that are not mainstream this one might just be for you. 3.5/5

Note - I received an advance digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review

I found this book a bit tricky to get into, which is a shame as I was truly looking forward to reading it.

Maybe I would have found it better had i read it in German.

I did enjoy mentions of Mon Cheri, Rudi Carroll, I have great memories of watching him on German TV as a Kid. Die Verflixte 7 and so on. A true legend of his time. I used to watch Tatort too.

The story is a pleasant one that never really grabs you but it carries you through gently to the end.

I liked the characters and enjoyed the journey but it wasn’t groundbreaking. It was well written.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

Sweet, quirky + feel good – though outstays its welcome, being a bit too winsome 3.5

Set in a small village community somewhere in Western Germany, the always eccentric characters are woven deeply into each others lives. Good people, pretty well all, everyone is of good heart.

The central character, Luise, is a ten year old at the story’s start. Her grandmother, Selma, is a wise and wonderful woman who has a history of prophetic dreams about death. Everyone knows that if Selma dreams of an okapi, death will happen to someone in the community within a day.

And it does.

Selma, a rock for the whole village, not just Luise is the woman who brings Selma up as both her mother and her father have their own dreams and ideas to follow and are not able to be what Selma needs. Fast forward a couple of decades and it seems that that almost everyone is unable to ask for, or get, the soulmate they want. Luise, with an absent father and mother, falls headlong for someone completely unobtainable. There is much discussion of Buddhism, when a group of Buddhist monks enter the story (as they do) Meanwhile Luise simultaneously wants to see places she has never seen and yet stay protected by Selma’s warmth

The book is very sweet, kind, reflective, amusing. It deals with death and with love, but after about two thirds of the way through I began to find it just a little cloying missing a bit of edge to leaven its charm

Translated from the German by Tess Lewis. I received this as a digital Arc from the publisher’s via NetGalley

A story of loss and how this not only affects individuals but the wider community.A moving story with very like able characters. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I'm afraid that this book was just not for me. I gave given it one star which is barely above a DNF but it was a close call.

I found it annoyingly over-quaint and almost like a children book..

A quirky book with some similarities to to Yann Martel’s writing.

It is the story of a family and their small community. There is an unusual collection of characters and we follow and reminisce about their lives and relationships and how certain events affect them all, entwining them together. It is a very positive book despite being in the large part about death.

As other reviewers say it meanders it’s way through, taking tangents at times, and then surprising us with the occasional unexpected shock.

I would definitely recommend this book. I found it to be an easy, enjoyable read which leaves you with a good feeling about people. That said it may be a bit too quirky for some.

Many Thanks to the author and to Netgalley for the ARC.

A beautiful and poignant read about a close village community who involve themselves in each other's lives for the betterment of all. The characters are all very believable and you become very attached to them - mostly joy and a little sorrow (tears were shed). Highly recommended.

Residents in a small village in Western Germany are worried someone will die after Selma dreamt she saw an okapi. So many wonderful characters that you become so involved in.
Their Hope, dreams and daily lives are just wonderful. There is death but also love and life.
Highly recommend.

Unfortunately this was not my sort of book but I stuck with it right to the end. The story ambled along at a leisurely pace and, at times, was pleasant enough, at other times it was very strange! Although I found it hard to persevere with the tale I realise that we all have different tastes and this could be right up someone else's street. If you are a fan of the offbeat this may be for you.

I'm sorry but after reading 20% of this book, I gave up.
I couldn't make out what it was about. No story as such.

Such a strange story, I’ve not read anything like it.
I found the first third a bit boring in places probably because I don’t
normally read books like this, but then it grew on me and I enjoyed it.
It did make we feel profoundly sad and weepy towards the end though.

A slow starter with an eclectic mix of characters which suddenly pokes you in the guts to check you’re paying attention. And boy, did I start paying attention. I laughed and then I cried. Where else would you find a story that encompasses the lives of a Buddhist, an optician, best friends, the best grandmother in the world and various other eccentric characters, well right here of course. It is a strange book, that is for sure, but nevertheless one that makes you think, laugh and cry. The book borders on being other worldly at times and has a mystical air about it, being a translation probably adds to that.
This book is a little gem.
Thank you #netgalley

Somewhere, anywhere, in a small village surrounded by meadow and on the edge of a forest live Luisa and Martin, ten years old and best friends since forever.
They live alongside Selma and the Optician and Luisa’s dad, but who these people are and what they mean to each other can wait, because Selma has had a dream about an okapi, so someone is going to die.
What You Can See From Here by Mariana Levy, newly translated by Tess Lewis, is a charming rambling tale of love, loss and destiny. Beautifully written and translated, it is peppered with little motifs, sometimes the same but often the opposite of the originals and concealed truths which can kill or cure. From the red x’s marking the weak spots on the floor of the apartment, to Selma who invented the world and carried Luisa until she woke up, to the Optician’s suitcase full of started letters and the lovely Alaska and the best love story imaginable, I loved every word of this book and wanted to stay in the company of these characters and be non-interventionist forever.

I LOVE this book. The story follows Luise from childhood to adulthood, seeing how her life is affected by everything that happens to her – from her loving but distant parents to her adoring, ever-present grandmother, from the idiosyncrasies of her village neighbours to the sudden appearance of her one true love. A beautiful, flowing diary of a life where everything and nothing happens. Completely unputdownable, it will grip you gently but firmly, keeping you reading deep into the night.

A different and strange novel in which Selma dreams of an okapi meaning a death is due to happen in a close community.
Sorry to say I didn’t really appreciate the format, although I am aware other readers may do so.

This is such an unusual and charming novel, full of quirky characters. It is set in a small village in Germany which has a close community. Luisa's father has gone off on his travels but everyone else seems to be content to remain and to continue with their lives as they always have been. Death and change do, of course, visit the people and this is the story of how they all cope in their various ways. A delightfully original read.

This book is a story of a group of people living in a village who are bought together by the loves and losses that they experience.
I read it quickly because I got sucked in almost immediately . It's quite a deep read though, it really makes you think. I wondered how the characters would have lived their lives if the events had unfolded differently, if they had just been a little braver, a little more honest. I really felt as though they were really there, living their lives in that village.

A sweet book that deals with life and death with child-like innocence. "What you can see from here" by Mariana Leky has echoes of "Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time". The characters are just delightful.

What can I say about this book that hasn't already been said? It's heartwarming, sad, funny, weird (Brussel sprouts stew) and peopled with incredibly eccentric characters. It's impossible to not be charmed by this book that will please all of the people all of the time. Just fabulous storytelling.