Summary of Abigail
“Abigail” tells the story of Gina, a 14-year-old girl who is sent to an austere boarding school in eastern Hungary during the Second World War. She struggles to make friends, rebels against her teachers, and runs away. When she is brought back, she receives a mysterious note signed by ‘Abigail’ – a statue in the school garden believed by the other girls to possess magical powers. Gina realises that someone is using the legend of Abigail to help her and to protect the school’s Jewish students from the Nazis.
Reasons to read Abigail
“Abigail” is a hard-to-put-down novel (some call it a young adult novel) that portrays boarding school life in Hungary against the backdrop of the Second World War. The story is told through the eyes of 14-year-old Gina, who knows less about the world and the war’s outcome than we do. It is one of the most popular works of fiction in Hungary. Magda Szabó is the most translated Hungarian author. Other notable works of Magda Szabo include “The Door” and “Katalin Street”. She was awarded the prestigious Kossuth Prize in 1978.
Setting: Debrecen (Hungary)
Book set in Hungary: An unnamed town in eastern Hungary – most likely Debrecen. Magda Szabó studied and later taught at Dóczy Girls’ School in Debrecen, which likely inspired the fictional Matula Institute in the novel.
Original title: Abigél
Year of publication: 1970
Nr of pages: 448
