YMMV / The Grandmother

• Aluminum Christmas Trees: The idea that someone drafted into the Austrian army would be bound to serve for a whopping 14 years is a jarring notion. This was indeed a cruel practice, but it should be made clear that in the early 19th century, compulsory military service in the Austrian army was not universal. It concerned the lower social classes and was selective; the selection was not necessarily always unbiased and at one point, those who were selected had indeed to serve for 14 years (later shortened to 8 years; by that time in practice, a soldier could typically be sent on peacetime furlough after 3 years of training and it was also possible for those who could afford it to pay to be excused from military service or to send someone to serve in their place).
• Tear Jerker: Quite a few, given the sentimentality of the book. In particular -
  • The scene where Kristla finds out that her fiance Míla has been drafted into the army.
  • The death of Viktorka, after which we find out how much the locals loved her in spite of her outcast and reclusive nature.
  • Learning that the kind, gentle teenage Countess Hortensie died shortly after she gave birth to her first child.
  • The Grandmother's death at the end of the novel.