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novel_nomad's review against another edition
5.0
I read this book over two days. It held me under a fierce spell, keeping me reading into the wee hours. I cried and even became distressed for the characters and the horrific experiences they were witness or made to endure. Not many books have been able to enchant me with such swift ferocity, as Kate Forsyth’s Beast’s Garden, and not many have been able to inform me and touch my heart so profoundly.
I have had a long fascination with the war and have studied the memoirs of many survivors who were witness to the atrocities of WWII. The Beast’s Garden once again gave a life and vivacity to the people who you can normally find in history textbooks, as they interacted with Kate Forsyth’s characters it was as if she was honouring their strength and sacrifice.
The story follows the basic outline of the Beauty and the Beast but having a stronger impression of the Grimm’s tale ‘The Singing, Springing Lark’. It moves away from the original tales to take a form of its own, not wanting to stress the importance of devotion to arranged marriage (as the French version) rather the courage, independence and individuality that Ava, Leo and all the resistance fighters held in the face of social conformity and government brutality.
I wholeheartedly recommend this book, even if you have no background knowledge of WWII and the internal power of the Nazi party, read the Beast’s Garden to find the courage to be your own person in the face of social pressures.
I have had a long fascination with the war and have studied the memoirs of many survivors who were witness to the atrocities of WWII. The Beast’s Garden once again gave a life and vivacity to the people who you can normally find in history textbooks, as they interacted with Kate Forsyth’s characters it was as if she was honouring their strength and sacrifice.
The story follows the basic outline of the Beauty and the Beast but having a stronger impression of the Grimm’s tale ‘The Singing, Springing Lark’. It moves away from the original tales to take a form of its own, not wanting to stress the importance of devotion to arranged marriage (as the French version) rather the courage, independence and individuality that Ava, Leo and all the resistance fighters held in the face of social conformity and government brutality.
I wholeheartedly recommend this book, even if you have no background knowledge of WWII and the internal power of the Nazi party, read the Beast’s Garden to find the courage to be your own person in the face of social pressures.
twistinthetale's review against another edition
4.0
Inspired by the Grimm brothers' tale 'Singing, springing lark', this novel joins Ava, a young girl whose best friends and influences have predominantly been Jewish, with Leo, a Nazi officer and spy. The beauty and the beast type relationship proved very engaging and was developed in such a way as to feel entirely probable. The well researched novel is gripping and portrays the changing alliances well in an environment where tensions ebb and wane, following the rise and fall of the Nazi party. Loved all the major and minor characters and enjoyed watching the drama unfold amongst the landmarks around Berlin. Very satisfying read.
girlfriday4's review against another edition
3.0
I didn't love everything about this book, but I think that in retelling the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale as behind-the-lines resistance to the Nazi regime, it's a story for our time. With racism and intolerance currently driving forces in politics throughout the western world, we really need books like this to remind us not only of the consequences of hatred, but also of the importance of seeing the human being behind the mask of the 'beast', and of resisting injustice with integrity.
[SPOILERS]
I was also really pleased that there was a gay character whose story has a happy ending. While the main focus of the story is on anti-semitism, this character, another with Down syndrome, and several political activists, are all important reminders of the people targeted by Nazism that history often forgets. WWII may seem remote for most 21st century readers, but we can still learn a lot from revisiting it through fiction.
Aside from those serious themes, the evocation of sophisticated, bohemian youth culture in pre-war Berlin is fascinating, and I love how the book diverges from the traditional romantic trope in that the women get to save their men, instead of the other way around :)
The bits I didn't love? Well, I'm not a huge fan of romance novels, especially the love-at-first-sight genre, which I find a bit unconvincing. Also although the writing is good, I felt it was fairly conventional in style. Forsyth does bring her characters and settings vividly to life but there were not enough 'wow, what a sentence!' moments for me. (I guess I've been spoiled by [a:Alexis Wright|341920|Alexis Wright|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1457286347p2/341920.jpg]). But the provocative themes and gripping plot more than made up for these minor shortcomings. Now I'm eager to get on to Forsyth's next book.
[SPOILERS]
I was also really pleased that there was a gay character whose story has a happy ending. While the main focus of the story is on anti-semitism, this character, another with Down syndrome, and several political activists, are all important reminders of the people targeted by Nazism that history often forgets. WWII may seem remote for most 21st century readers, but we can still learn a lot from revisiting it through fiction.
Aside from those serious themes, the evocation of sophisticated, bohemian youth culture in pre-war Berlin is fascinating, and I love how the book diverges from the traditional romantic trope in that the women get to save their men, instead of the other way around :)
The bits I didn't love? Well, I'm not a huge fan of romance novels, especially the love-at-first-sight genre, which I find a bit unconvincing. Also although the writing is good, I felt it was fairly conventional in style. Forsyth does bring her characters and settings vividly to life but there were not enough 'wow, what a sentence!' moments for me. (I guess I've been spoiled by [a:Alexis Wright|341920|Alexis Wright|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1457286347p2/341920.jpg]). But the provocative themes and gripping plot more than made up for these minor shortcomings. Now I'm eager to get on to Forsyth's next book.
quiche12's review against another edition
3.0
I've only read one other Kate Forsyth book (The Wild Girl) but enjoyed it immensely. I had high hopes for this book, especially given the subject matter. It's very rare to come across a WWII novel written from the German point of view. It also dealt with the German resistance against the Nazis which made it all the more intriguing.
The only criticisms I have is that the device of trying to craft it into a version of Beauty and The Beast was a bit clunky at times and made it a little melodramatic which detracted from the more serious themes of the book.
But a good read nonetheless and I certainly learnt a lot.
The only criticisms I have is that the device of trying to craft it into a version of Beauty and The Beast was a bit clunky at times and made it a little melodramatic which detracted from the more serious themes of the book.
But a good read nonetheless and I certainly learnt a lot.
polyhy_14's review against another edition
3.0
Kate Forsyth's books are well-researched (this is my 3rd) and I learned a lot about life in Berlin during WW2, as well as the German resistance. She has the ability to tell a gripping tale, but there were times when I found the writing unpolished and naive. I didn't find this one as satisfying as Bitter Greens.
shelleyrae's review against another edition
5.0
Inspired by the Grimm Brothers fairytales, most notably ‘The Singing, Springing Lark', a variant of Beauty and the Beast, Kate Forsyth weaves a compelling tale of romance, war, heartbreak and courage in The Beast's Garden.
The Beast's Garden opens in 1938 as Hitler begins to persecute the Jewish population of Berlin. Nineteen year old songstress Ava Falkenhorst is stunned by the violence, and horrified when close family friends, the Feidlers are targeted simply for being Jewish. When Ava's childhood friend Rupert is transported to Buchenwald, and her father threatened with arrest, Ava permits the attentions of Leo von Lowenstein, a high ranking handsome Nazi officer torn between duty and honour. Though their marriage secures Ava's father's safety, Ava, who is determined to help the Feidlers and others like them, can't trust that Leo will not betray her and hides her subversive activities, unaware that her husband is also working against the regime he serves.
With authentic and compelling detail Forsyth explores life under the Nazi regime in the lead up and during World War Two. The terrible suffering of the Jewish population and their attempts to defy Hitler are exhaustively documented, but rarely is mention made of the Germans who rebelled against the Gestapo in both small and significant ways. Forsyth acknowledges the efforts of the German people who risked their own lives to mitigate the attrition, and real historical figures, such as Admiral Canaris, and Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen of the Red Orchestra Resistance, who actively worked to disrupt Hitler's rule.
Not that Forsyth shies away from illustrating the experience of Nazi rule for the Jewish. Threads of the story illustrate the harrowing experiences of Rupert, imprisoned in Buchenwald, a concentration camp ruled by Karl-Otto Koch and his sadistic wife known as The Witch of Buchenwald; and life for Rupert's sister, Jutta, in Berlin as she becomes involved in the resistance and struggles to stay one step ahead of the SS.
It is the relationship between Ava and Leo that echoes the fairytales we are familiar with. Ava, the innocent, brave beauty, Leo the 'Beast'; an unlikely love, besieged by tragedy, that blooms, like the roses that feature in their courtship. Rich characterisation ensures neither Ava nor Leo are mere cliches, and though there is a happy ending, it is hard won.
Skillfully crafted, The Beast's Garden is another magnificent historical novel seamlessly melding truth and fiction, from Kate Forsyth. A wonderful tale of daring and courage, of struggle and survival, of love and loyalt, this is a 'must read'.
mountie9's review against another edition
4.0
3.5/5
The premise of this story is brilliant, but I think it would have worked better with some more editing. As someone who spent a lot of time with my German next door neighbor I learned early on that not all Germans were Nazi's and that most Germans, including many in the military, fought against Hitler. It was interesting to read about many of these brave men and women who risked their lives to help others and to take down the Nazi's. I learned a lot from this novel and you can definitely see the authors passion for the subject. What I didn't really buy was the love between the two main characters, it just felt forced. That being said, still an excellent effort and the authors listing of her research is a nice bonus.
Favourite Quotes
“Nothing opens up the mind and the heart like books do, and so they have the power to change the whole world. That's why the are burning books, Ava. To stop us thinking, and feeling, and imagining...”
“' 'But isn't that what being brave is all about? Being afraid, but doing it anyway?”
The premise of this story is brilliant, but I think it would have worked better with some more editing. As someone who spent a lot of time with my German next door neighbor I learned early on that not all Germans were Nazi's and that most Germans, including many in the military, fought against Hitler. It was interesting to read about many of these brave men and women who risked their lives to help others and to take down the Nazi's. I learned a lot from this novel and you can definitely see the authors passion for the subject. What I didn't really buy was the love between the two main characters, it just felt forced. That being said, still an excellent effort and the authors listing of her research is a nice bonus.
Favourite Quotes
“Nothing opens up the mind and the heart like books do, and so they have the power to change the whole world. That's why the are burning books, Ava. To stop us thinking, and feeling, and imagining...”
“' 'But isn't that what being brave is all about? Being afraid, but doing it anyway?”
tangerineteeth's review against another edition
5.0
Read in October 2021: https://hollograms.blogspot.com/2021/11/books-read-in-october-2021.html