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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
I really wish there was a half star option, because this was a 4.5 star book for me.
First of all, I LOVED the complexity of this book, the historic background, the fact that it seems so well-researched (I'm not a historian)... the only reason I took off a half star was the fact that it was a bit unrealistic. I mean, what a coincidence that the characters meet all the time! But if the storylines didn't cross at all, the novel would be boring, so I guess it was necessary to have them meet all the time.
I never really paid attention to WW1 in history class, which is why I'm so happy I picked up this book. It's just an entertaining way to learn about our past.
I'm definitely going to pick up the second book in the trilogy, but I'm going to read some shorter books before diving into the next one.
First of all, I LOVED the complexity of this book, the historic background, the fact that it seems so well-researched (I'm not a historian)... the only reason I took off a half star was the fact that it was a bit unrealistic. I mean, what a coincidence that the characters meet all the time! But if the storylines didn't cross at all, the novel would be boring, so I guess it was necessary to have them meet all the time.
I never really paid attention to WW1 in history class, which is why I'm so happy I picked up this book. It's just an entertaining way to learn about our past.
I'm definitely going to pick up the second book in the trilogy, but I'm going to read some shorter books before diving into the next one.
Loved it!!
Loved the book; characters Ethel, Billy Twice and Grigori were my favorite. If you like WWI era you will enjoy this read. This is the third book that I have read by Ken Follett. Pillars of the Earth remains my favorite. Fall of the Giants is a very close second.
Loved the book; characters Ethel, Billy Twice and Grigori were my favorite. If you like WWI era you will enjoy this read. This is the third book that I have read by Ken Follett. Pillars of the Earth remains my favorite. Fall of the Giants is a very close second.
I learned a lot about this period in time. Characters are good, but the way they are put in historic situations sometimes felt a bit forced to me. It took me some time to finish this book.
This is a Ken Follett novel so it probably goes without saying that it is an easy read. The historical background seems convincing if perhaps a little shallow and 1 dimensional, but then this is not meant to be a history book. It did, however, prompt me to read some more about some of the events, particularly the complex causes of WW1; historians have written many books covering that in much more depth than in this book but that is not why this was written. You can certainly argue that the characters are somewhat cliched; the entitled aristocracy, the naturally intelligent but poorly educated and plucky working-class heroes, the gangster with a heart that loves his family, etc. but that all works towards making the story move quickly along. This is the sort of book that I like to read on vacation, as indeed I did with this one. Having just finished this at the end of my vacation and back to a regular schedule I do not feel the urgent need to get into the next book in the series..but when I am preparing for my next week of downtime, it will certainly be on my list of potentials.
Fall of Giants is a really slow book with lots of characters based in Russia, England and Germany during the first world war. It talks about the futility of the war and the struggle during that period. It's a good book and I am glad I made it to the end but I won't be continuing the series.
When my husband suggested we read this together I told him “good luck with that.” Then I listened to the beginning with him on audio and was hooked. Historical fiction always seems hit or miss for me but this book was captivating from the beginning. The character’s individual and collective stories are so detailed and I found this book hard to put down because I wanted to find out what happened next. The women’s stories were what I found most interesting. The historical aspects seemed very accurate and the ending was perfect in my opinion!
The characters were interesting, and the story flowed so well it was often hard to tell you knocked out a 50 or 80 pages while reading this enjoyable beast of a book - I look forward to books 2 and 3
adventurous
emotional
informative
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Wow! The term “sweeping epic” truly applies to this extraordinary novel.
Ken Follett presents a story of, well, the WORLD, right before, during and just after the Great War, now called World War I. Follett introduces us to a diverse, yet very plausibly inter-connected, group of characters, and we get to know and like them all and find it difficult not to sympathize with EVERYONE when the war breaks out.
In January 1914, we meet a family from a small village in South Wales whose father and son work in the coal mine which is on property owned by an English earl. The daughter of this family works for the earl as a housekeeper. The earl and his wife, a Russian princess, host a party at which the King and Queen are the guests of honor and other guests include an American diplomat and a German military attaché (who happens to be in love with the earl’s sister). So now we have connections between citizens of England, Wales, Germany, Russia and the United States as well as privileged and working-class people.
Follett wove the compelling stories of these few people together and then expanded these individual threads to include other key players connected to each of them around the world. These narratives illuminated all sides of the conflict from very intimate perspectives. After you get to know each of these characters, none of whom shared their government’s desire to go to war, you can’t help but think that all sides were victims. The most poignant aspiration that was expressed by EVERY main character – Russian, German, British, American, rich or poor - in this story was “I just want my children to live in a country where they have freedom and in a world there is no more war.”
I am eagerly awaiting Book Two “Winter of the World”.
Format note: At first I had a problem with John Lee’s narration because he tends to do a “drag queen” voice whenever he reads for women (which always annoys me). However, he did all the other numerous accents exceedingly well and eventually I hardly noticed the narrator at all.
Ken Follett presents a story of, well, the WORLD, right before, during and just after the Great War, now called World War I. Follett introduces us to a diverse, yet very plausibly inter-connected, group of characters, and we get to know and like them all and find it difficult not to sympathize with EVERYONE when the war breaks out.
In January 1914, we meet a family from a small village in South Wales whose father and son work in the coal mine which is on property owned by an English earl. The daughter of this family works for the earl as a housekeeper. The earl and his wife, a Russian princess, host a party at which the King and Queen are the guests of honor and other guests include an American diplomat and a German military attaché (who happens to be in love with the earl’s sister). So now we have connections between citizens of England, Wales, Germany, Russia and the United States as well as privileged and working-class people.
Follett wove the compelling stories of these few people together and then expanded these individual threads to include other key players connected to each of them around the world. These narratives illuminated all sides of the conflict from very intimate perspectives. After you get to know each of these characters, none of whom shared their government’s desire to go to war, you can’t help but think that all sides were victims. The most poignant aspiration that was expressed by EVERY main character – Russian, German, British, American, rich or poor - in this story was “I just want my children to live in a country where they have freedom and in a world there is no more war.”
I am eagerly awaiting Book Two “Winter of the World”.
Format note: At first I had a problem with John Lee’s narration because he tends to do a “drag queen” voice whenever he reads for women (which always annoys me). However, he did all the other numerous accents exceedingly well and eventually I hardly noticed the narrator at all.