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A review by thebobsphere
Birds Without Wings by Louis de Bernières
3.0
Let’s face it. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin is a tough act to follow up. The 1994 novel was popular then and is considered a classic now. Once you have a tome like that in your repertoire it’s difficult to write another hit. In fact it took almost ten years for Birds Without Wings to be published (although 2001’s novella Red Dog could be seen as a breather)
Thankfully, for the most part, Birds Without Wings is not Captain Corelli’s Mandolin part 2. There are some similarities, which are common in de Bernières novel but, for the most part he approaches this BWW differently.
The novel takes place in a tiny village in Turkey. There’s a small cast of characters and a lot of page space is given to establishing each protagonist, their. background, job and how other villagers view them and how they interact. Some of the stories are anecdotal, some are serious but the main point is that this village consists of Muslims and Christians and for the most part they get along with each other.
The problem starts when World War I hits and the destinies of the townspeople disperse. Some become soldiers, some stay and some are herded out of the village. This is where some religious conflict occurs but it’s still quite civil. Later on in the book there are the exodus of certain religious sectors, which is serious.
The main focus on the book is the friendship between two boys, who are separated during the war and their destinies take extreme paths. One becomes a part of the Turkish army and the other becomes a renegade soldier.
By the end of the book everything is tied up in a slightly melancholic way. It works though.
Without a doubt this is an ambitious novel. Not only is there a sizeable cast of characters, there’s also many side chapters dedicated to the major historical events of the period, the rise of Mustapha Kemal, the death of King Alexander and various invasions and political moves which shaped modern day Turkey (and the cause of the dissent which still happens today)
However Captain Corelli’s Mandolin had charm. There were moments where I laughed and I loved how all the details in the book had an integral role to play in the plot (which occurs in Birds Without Wings final chapter and epilogue)
Although de Bernières did not want to create a carbon copy of CCM, and I’m glad he didn’t, all the charm and cleverness of that novel was chucked in the wayside. Birds Without Wings has many dull moments and sometimes there’s too much of an emphasis on battle plans and political maneuvers which gets boring after reading about them for the umpteenth time.
The characters are ok and are memorable but definitely not a patch on the protagonists of his past books.
The book is not a complete write off. The writing is fantastic, as always and I did not abandon it as I wanted to see how the story would develop and one cannot deny that the last chapter and epilogue will move you. If the rest of the book was like that I would have liked it more.
I see Birds Without Wings as a failure, albeit a noble one.
Thankfully, for the most part, Birds Without Wings is not Captain Corelli’s Mandolin part 2. There are some similarities, which are common in de Bernières novel but, for the most part he approaches this BWW differently.
The novel takes place in a tiny village in Turkey. There’s a small cast of characters and a lot of page space is given to establishing each protagonist, their. background, job and how other villagers view them and how they interact. Some of the stories are anecdotal, some are serious but the main point is that this village consists of Muslims and Christians and for the most part they get along with each other.
The problem starts when World War I hits and the destinies of the townspeople disperse. Some become soldiers, some stay and some are herded out of the village. This is where some religious conflict occurs but it’s still quite civil. Later on in the book there are the exodus of certain religious sectors, which is serious.
The main focus on the book is the friendship between two boys, who are separated during the war and their destinies take extreme paths. One becomes a part of the Turkish army and the other becomes a renegade soldier.
By the end of the book everything is tied up in a slightly melancholic way. It works though.
Without a doubt this is an ambitious novel. Not only is there a sizeable cast of characters, there’s also many side chapters dedicated to the major historical events of the period, the rise of Mustapha Kemal, the death of King Alexander and various invasions and political moves which shaped modern day Turkey (and the cause of the dissent which still happens today)
However Captain Corelli’s Mandolin had charm. There were moments where I laughed and I loved how all the details in the book had an integral role to play in the plot (which occurs in Birds Without Wings final chapter and epilogue)
Although de Bernières did not want to create a carbon copy of CCM, and I’m glad he didn’t, all the charm and cleverness of that novel was chucked in the wayside. Birds Without Wings has many dull moments and sometimes there’s too much of an emphasis on battle plans and political maneuvers which gets boring after reading about them for the umpteenth time.
The characters are ok and are memorable but definitely not a patch on the protagonists of his past books.
The book is not a complete write off. The writing is fantastic, as always and I did not abandon it as I wanted to see how the story would develop and one cannot deny that the last chapter and epilogue will move you. If the rest of the book was like that I would have liked it more.
I see Birds Without Wings as a failure, albeit a noble one.