Teaser Tuesdays: Stay Where You Are and Then Leave

For this teaser, I am highlighting a small conversation that comes up between 5-year old Alfie (the protagonist of this novel) and his parents. His friend Kalena (a girl) has just informed him that she would like to be the Prime Minister of England.

I’m going to be Prime Minister, said Kalena.

Alfie didn’t know what to say to that but it sounded impressive. When he told his parents over tea that night, they burst out laughing.

Kalena Janacek? The Prime Minister? said Georgie, shaking his head. I’ve heard everything now. Pass me the carrots, love.

A Prime Minister’s wife, more like, said Margie, reaching for the dish.

Well, I’d vote for her, said Alfie, defending his friend. He didn’t like the way they thought this was so funny.

You’d be the only one, said Georgie. She wouldn’t even be able to vote for herself, so how she thinks she can get the top job is beyond me.

~ Stay Where You Are and Then Leave by John Boyne

It’s saying something about how far women have come, that I needed to read it a second time to get the context. I first thought the parents were laughing at the idea of a Czech girl wanting to become Prime Minister of England.

I then remembered the time period of this book is the early 1900s just before World War 1 when women couldn’t vote, and the idea of a lady being Prime Minister must have been hilarity-inducing.

Thank goodness, I live in this time and age.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!