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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
Really well developed characters. I appreciated that the author let me know in the first few pages that the main character is recalling this story from his youth as an old man. Lessened the tension enough so that I could enjoy the storytelling and fine writing.
Honestly, I really enjoyed reading this book. It was very easy to read and went by in the blink of an eye. While it had, in my opinion, too much talk of sex, it was still very enjoyable. It really isn't heavy onto the history and more so into this fictional story of a teenager who's trying to live in a warzone with an eccentric new friend. They are given a task which seems impossible and they have to run around a city and outside of it, behind enemy lines, putting themselves in danger to complete.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
An excellent work of fiction centered around the Siege of Leningrad, relationships and a hunt for a dozen eggs.
This is a page turner, with two unlikely characters thrown together in curious, and often horrifying, adventure during the Nazi siege of Leningrad. It kept me awake in my tent at night. It ends with a cinematic flourish, which seemed a bit trite, but hey, after the brutal path to get there, it was a small respite.
Two young boys looking for chicken eggs during WW2? This book sounds horrible. I was wrong! I regret not reading this book sooner, is engaging and keeps you on the edge of your seat from cover to cover. Highly recommended.
Leningrad is under seige by the Naizs and conditions are horrendous. A teenager and a Red Army deserter are arrested. To escape death they accept an odd task: find a dozen eggs for the Colonel's daughter's wedding. Lev and Kolya set off, narrowly escape a cannibal couple and fall in with partisans who aim to execute a vicious German officer. At times the novel reminded me of Catch 22, and then it would veer in dangerous directions illustrating the treatment of civilians. Its a nicely paced book with memorable characters.
I did really enjoy this book. The one thing that I think the author could have left out however, were the many details about sex. I was hoping to teach this to my high school students, but it would take a lot for this book to get approved as part of the curriculum. I felt that at times the author chose this writing style for the reaction that he would receive from his readers. I understand that one of the main protagonists was a teenage boy, but I truly think that it was unnecessary to include so many intimate details. Other than that, the book was a decent read, and enlightened me with a different take on World War II. The Russian perspective was something that readers of Holocaust materials should definitely consider finding more information about.
