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3.4 AVERAGE
3.4 AVERAGE
Some beautifully written passages, but overall there was this weird emotional distance so what could have been a very affecting story, was not.
An enjoyable read, although sad like any story of war. I would give it 3.5 if I could but since I can't, just a 3 star rating then. I enjoyed it but i just didn't feel connected to the characters. It could just be that they were so damaged that it was impossible to connect to them really, but I think it was more the writing style. It is worth a read though because it is a story that I know must have happened to many and it is presented well enough.
For a book who's sole purpose to is to feel something for characters who have been through the most horrific part of war only to find re-building their lives afterwards is just as hard, I actually felt the characters weren't drawn in particular depth. Its one thing talk about how these characters can't put the past behind them, but novels are most riveting when the author can do the showing instead of the telling. That said, though, I did enjoy the novel's structure that flipped back and forth from during the war to after it was over, and how that especially made the story's big reveal all the more poignant.
Beautiful story about the aftermath of war and what it does to people.
I was super stoked that I won this from the goodreads giveaway. It is a heartwarming story about a family who attempted to piece the last remnants of the "love" that they had for each other after being separated for 8 years by the war.
Every alternating chapter is broken down into an elaborate dichotomous structure that changes between different points of view (Janusz and Silvana) coupled with time (the past and present) and place (Poland and England). This gives an interesting flavor and unravels the painful memories each character went through during the war. After the war, the family is once again reunited physically, but their memories haunt their ability to rekindle their relationship. This is a beautiful novel that exhibits an amalgam of love, sacrifice, and acceptance. Also this is an excellent debut novel for Hodgkinson.
Every alternating chapter is broken down into an elaborate dichotomous structure that changes between different points of view (Janusz and Silvana) coupled with time (the past and present) and place (Poland and England). This gives an interesting flavor and unravels the painful memories each character went through during the war. After the war, the family is once again reunited physically, but their memories haunt their ability to rekindle their relationship. This is a beautiful novel that exhibits an amalgam of love, sacrifice, and acceptance. Also this is an excellent debut novel for Hodgkinson.
When I first started reading this novel I didn't really know what to expect. The tone is gloomy and depressing, which feels natural at first since it's a story dealing with a family that has been separated and changed by the war. However, one thing that bothered me was that I found all the characters utterly despicable.
Maybe I am too harsh but at some point it just annoyed me how miserable they constantly were. It seemed that when there could have been a possible moment of happiness, they ruined it themselves by looking for things to make it a less enjoyable moment.
I also think that the story lacks character development. At the end of the novel, Silvana is still pretty much the same as in the beginning (not considering her physical appearance). Same could be said about Janusz although he seems to undergo more of a change than her. Aurek was the most likeable and well-rounded character, which made the novel better in my eyes.
Moreover, I couldn't identify with any of the characters either because we literally learn nothing about them. We learn a little bit about the different characters but definitely not enough to feel for them and their fate. It is too bad, it could have been so much more.
Maybe I am too harsh but at some point it just annoyed me how miserable they constantly were. It seemed that when there could have been a possible moment of happiness, they ruined it themselves by looking for things to make it a less enjoyable moment.
I also think that the story lacks character development. At the end of the novel, Silvana is still pretty much the same as in the beginning (not considering her physical appearance). Same could be said about Janusz although he seems to undergo more of a change than her. Aurek was the most likeable and well-rounded character, which made the novel better in my eyes.
Moreover, I couldn't identify with any of the characters either because we literally learn nothing about them. We learn a little bit about the different characters but definitely not enough to feel for them and their fate. It is too bad, it could have been so much more.
The characters in this book were frustrating, but that was sort of the point. They had been through things that made them so closed off. To that end, I would have liked to know more details about Tony's experiences.
The events in this novel are well well traveled literary territory (post-WW II Europe) and the themes are just so much better developed in other novels. It was not badly written but I felt the book was not served by the flashback structure. Basically this book has been written before and written in a more moving way by other authors. There's also a very depressing/bleak outlook throughout with only a little redemption at the very end. It makes it difficult to finish the book despite the fact that it is short and not complex at all.
Dit boek gaat wel over de Tweede Wereldoorlog, maar is een heel ander boek dan de meeste andere boeken over dit tijdperk. Het boek gaat eigenlijk vooral over de periode na de oorlog, en hoe het is om zo iets ingrijpends apart van elkaar mee te maken en vervolgens samen verder te moeten leven. Het boek gaat ook, voor een deel, over de Tweede Wereldoorlog in Polen. Dat is een mooie invalshoek omdat de oorlog in het oosten, m.i., te weinig wordt besproken in westerse media.
De manier waarop het verhaal is opgebouwd sprak mij heel erg aan. Het springt steeds tussen het 'nu' van de personages en het verleden. Hierdoor blijft het verhaal spannend. Net als je denkt iets te gaan ontdekken spring je naar een andere tijd of persoon. Wat ik minder vond, is dat het verhaal uit het 'heden' verteld worden in tegenwoordige tijd. Dit vindt ik altijd minder fijn lezen dan verhalen in de verleden tijd. Ook hadden de stukken uit het verleden, het gedeelte dat echt over de oorlog gaat, van mij wel langer mogen zijn, de stukken maakte mij erg nieuwsgierig en ik had er graag meer over willen weten.
Alles bij elkaar een mooi en origineel boek over een periode waarover al zo veel is geschreven maar die toch erg boeiend blijft.
De manier waarop het verhaal is opgebouwd sprak mij heel erg aan. Het springt steeds tussen het 'nu' van de personages en het verleden. Hierdoor blijft het verhaal spannend. Net als je denkt iets te gaan ontdekken spring je naar een andere tijd of persoon. Wat ik minder vond, is dat het verhaal uit het 'heden' verteld worden in tegenwoordige tijd. Dit vindt ik altijd minder fijn lezen dan verhalen in de verleden tijd. Ook hadden de stukken uit het verleden, het gedeelte dat echt over de oorlog gaat, van mij wel langer mogen zijn, de stukken maakte mij erg nieuwsgierig en ik had er graag meer over willen weten.
Alles bij elkaar een mooi en origineel boek over een periode waarover al zo veel is geschreven maar die toch erg boeiend blijft.