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A Thousand Sisters: The Heroic Airwomen of the Soviet Union in World War II by Elizabeth Wein
roseleaf24's review against another edition
4.0
I love Wein's historical fiction. This book reflects the same amazing research and ease of language, though it did end up feeling a bit long to me, and I felt the language was a little simple for the intended age range to begin with. This might have been primarily because I've recently read were a bit of Soviet World War II. The gender disparity in aviation, combat or not, and the fact that we seem to have moved backwards in this since World War II, is obviously and understandably a passion of the author's.
bookwrm526's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
4.0
oceanwriter's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
3.0
I'm a huge fan of Elizabeth Wein's fiction books and I've been looking forward to reading this nonfiction work of hers.
The charm I've come to love from this author was surely there, however, for a nonfiction book, I felt like so much was missing and that there was a lack of cohesion. I had trouble keeping up with which woman of the prominent three featured was being discussed as the narration jumped back and forth between them with little rhyme or reason. The book was short, too, and I managed it in one sitting. I would have loved a lengthier dive into such a fascinating area of history.
Elizabeth Wein's passion for the subject is evident and makes for an enjoyable read, but ultimately, I felt like I hadn't learned as much on the topic as I would have from a couple of Google searches. I would love to see her make a novel adaption showing the live of these brave ladies.
The charm I've come to love from this author was surely there, however, for a nonfiction book, I felt like so much was missing and that there was a lack of cohesion. I had trouble keeping up with which woman of the prominent three featured was being discussed as the narration jumped back and forth between them with little rhyme or reason. The book was short, too, and I managed it in one sitting. I would have loved a lengthier dive into such a fascinating area of history.
Elizabeth Wein's passion for the subject is evident and makes for an enjoyable read, but ultimately, I felt like I hadn't learned as much on the topic as I would have from a couple of Google searches. I would love to see her make a novel adaption showing the live of these brave ladies.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Death
Minor: Sexual harassment
CW: plane crashkirstinisnt's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
4.5
brendan_e_m's review against another edition
3.0
The history of Soviet women pilots fighting against Germany's eastern front is fascinating, and even more of an anachronism given Stalin's sharp decision post-war to ban women veterans from speaking about their flying experiences or participating in aviation in any way. Unfortunately, Wein's writing was drier than the topic might suggest.
aoosterwyk's review against another edition
4.0
This author continues to do the research and bring out the interesting stories of women in history.
I can’t begin to imagine the grueling conditions of Soviet Russia during WWII, the deprivation and harsh weather, lack of sleep, and terror of crashing and burning. Yet these women chose that life.
Such strength and grace.
I can’t begin to imagine the grueling conditions of Soviet Russia during WWII, the deprivation and harsh weather, lack of sleep, and terror of crashing and burning. Yet these women chose that life.
Such strength and grace.
brandypainter's review against another edition
3.0
This contains a lot of interesting information, but it is lacking in cohesion. I feel like it could have used longer time in the editing process. However, it is definitely still worth the read.
caitcoy's review against another edition
4.0
"War is war, and life is life."
A Thousand Sisters follows the creation and the adventures and exploits of the three Soviet regiments of female pilots created by famed pilot Marina Raskova in 1941, shortly after the start of World War II. Russia was the only country to allow women to fly in combat and it took no small amount of convincing and political clout on the part of Raskova to convince Stalin to try out the idea. Thanks to the military training undertaken by many of the young Soviet women who grew up expecting to need to defend their country against a "future war," there was no shortage of recruits who desperately wanted to help on the front lines. Almost a thousand of them would join Raskova at the training grounds in Engels, where they would be split into three regiments: the 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment, the 587th Bomber Regiment and the 588th Night Bomber Aviation Regiment (the last of whom would become better known as the "Night Witches"). Throughout the next four years of the war, these women would fly hundreds of combat missions, fighting and dying to protect their Motherland from German invasion and eventually pushing back into Germany itself. A Thousand Sisters is the story not only of the regiments but of many of the combatants themselves, with stories taken from personal accounts as well as histories.
As a history geek, I absolutely loved this book. As a librarian, I want very much to recommend it but also can recognize that it isn't going to be for everyone. A Thousand Sisters is aimed at teens, particularly girls, with stories of women who made a name for themselves in a time in which many were not allowed to participate. It's full of heroism and tragedy and friendship but it's also a ton of information and names packed into an amazing history. Wein tells personal stories to help not only empathize with the women but to remember the difference between Galya Dokutovich and Galya Dzhunkovskaya. I do think the book would have benefited from some sort of index of names as reminders because while I don't usually struggle to remember character names, I had some trouble remembering who was who sometimes while I was reading.
Overall, A Thousand Sisters is a fantastic history that needed to be brought to light and makes for fascinating reading. It never feels dry or boring, but the sheer amount of information can sometimes feel overwhelming. I'd certainly recommend it to any history geek interested in the time period and in the Russian experience of World War II.
A Thousand Sisters follows the creation and the adventures and exploits of the three Soviet regiments of female pilots created by famed pilot Marina Raskova in 1941, shortly after the start of World War II. Russia was the only country to allow women to fly in combat and it took no small amount of convincing and political clout on the part of Raskova to convince Stalin to try out the idea. Thanks to the military training undertaken by many of the young Soviet women who grew up expecting to need to defend their country against a "future war," there was no shortage of recruits who desperately wanted to help on the front lines. Almost a thousand of them would join Raskova at the training grounds in Engels, where they would be split into three regiments: the 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment, the 587th Bomber Regiment and the 588th Night Bomber Aviation Regiment (the last of whom would become better known as the "Night Witches"). Throughout the next four years of the war, these women would fly hundreds of combat missions, fighting and dying to protect their Motherland from German invasion and eventually pushing back into Germany itself. A Thousand Sisters is the story not only of the regiments but of many of the combatants themselves, with stories taken from personal accounts as well as histories.
As a history geek, I absolutely loved this book. As a librarian, I want very much to recommend it but also can recognize that it isn't going to be for everyone. A Thousand Sisters is aimed at teens, particularly girls, with stories of women who made a name for themselves in a time in which many were not allowed to participate. It's full of heroism and tragedy and friendship but it's also a ton of information and names packed into an amazing history. Wein tells personal stories to help not only empathize with the women but to remember the difference between Galya Dokutovich and Galya Dzhunkovskaya. I do think the book would have benefited from some sort of index of names as reminders because while I don't usually struggle to remember character names, I had some trouble remembering who was who sometimes while I was reading.
Overall, A Thousand Sisters is a fantastic history that needed to be brought to light and makes for fascinating reading. It never feels dry or boring, but the sheer amount of information can sometimes feel overwhelming. I'd certainly recommend it to any history geek interested in the time period and in the Russian experience of World War II.
librariandest's review against another edition
3.0
It is stunning to me that I found this boring, but I kinda did. I almost quit part way through. Maybe it's because I listened to the audiobook. I couldn't keep the characters straight except for two (Marina and Lilya) and when they died I was ready to be done. I love learning about unsung heroes, but this didn't hold together as a story. It felt more like a really well written textbook.
Even though I can't say I enjoyed this, I learned a lot from it.
Even though I can't say I enjoyed this, I learned a lot from it.