Musser has a captivating storytelling style. We are party to Emile’s thoughts as he tries to make sense of the mysterious pieces of his father’s life, understand why his father abandoned him and gain the courage to embrace adult life in spite of the disappointments of childhood. During this coming-of-age process Musser always manages to be appropriate to Emile’s changing maturity level. Introspection interspersed with action give the story depth -- as in this bit of conversation between Eternity and Emile from his first months in Atlanta. Eternity begins:

'I’ve never felt homesick for a place I’ve known ... but sometimes I feel homesick for something I’ll know in the future. Sometimes I can almost see it or feel it. A place where children are happy and grownups get along and there is respect and order and sunshine and I’ll never run out of books to read!'

It was a new idea, being homesick for the future, but I understood and smiled. 'Like a gigantic safe room.'

…I sat on the steps trying to make this ambush of strange feelings go away. I missed Lyon, missed Mamie Madeleine….Part of me longed to get on a plane a fly straight back to Lyon. But the other part of me ached for Eternity Jones and her family. And I wondered how it could hurt so much to be thinking about people I had known for less than three weeks.

Musser handles the growing relationship between Emile and Eternity with an ever-so-deft touch, making it believable and sweet but never saccharine. Additionally, her familiarity with the French language and culture as well as the city of Lyon makes the book a rich and convincing read.

In the theme department the story explores love in various guises including the love of fathers for sons and sons for fathers, parents for children, extended family and friends for each other, the love of sweethearts, and the love of God for us all. Bullying, from schoolyard bullying to the behavior of abusive parents and war criminals, is another thread that winds through the story. Eternity’s journalistic interest in the civil rights movement focuses our attention on the racial bullying that society sometimes sanctions. Betrayal, revenge and forgiveness also play big parts in Emile’s narrative.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed Searching for Eternity. It opened my eyes to an element of World War II -- the French Resistance -- that I had heard of only in passing. Its double-edged title had me guessing till the finish. And its ending left me with a sense of hope. If you’re looking for a book to liven up the cold, dull days of winter, Searching for Eternity is an excellent choice.