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A review by bennought
The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell
4.0
A really, really interesting book. It's a novel written as a memoir of an SS officer. Littell presents an absolutely fascinating, intriguing, disgusting, confusing portrayal of the war from an entirely unique perspective. Dr. Aue, the memoirist, is highly educated, cerebral, introspective, and very, very disturbed. This is not a book for the feint of heart. Not just because of the highly descriptive scenes of einsatzgruppe actions and the concentration camps, but for the explicit, batshitcrazy sex scenes (both real and imagined). Even before the war, Aue is a highly unstable individual with a healthy set of demons. I often found it quite difficult to make it through these scenes, as much, if not more so, than many of the Holocaust scenes.
However, Littell has a gift for the written word. He is one of those writers capable of painting images, emotions, and senses. Which is quite possibly what makes the sex and Holocaust scenes so unbearable. It is absolutely beautiful throughout much of the book, especially many of the travel sequences. The descriptions of people, both in countenance and personality, are quick, thorough, and often quite hilarious. But there basically isn't really anything good that happens, nor a really happy moment, throughout the entire book. Anything happy is fleeting, and is always tinged with bitter regret, or the looming specter of terrible events past or soon to come. Mostly, though, Aue is haunted and obsessed with his one true (lost) love--who I won't go into detail on so as not to spoil it.
Moreover, the style is difficult to get used to. It's not stream of consciousness, but it's also not like your typical narrative. All conversation is not indented from line to line (i.e. characters' speech is split up "Hello, nice to see you."--"You as well."). Thoughts often flow fairly organically, and Aue often takes us into his dreams and fantasies. The line between what reality and his imagination is often blurred, both for him and for us. What it all amounts to is 900+ pages of nearly pure text. There is a certain rhythm and flow to the book, but it can be a bit intimidating, frustrating, and slow going.
Suffice it to say, this book is quite an undertaking. You will be disgusted and disturbed, but also awestruck by the beauty of the world through Aue's eyes, and sometimes even find yourself laughing out loud. It's like nothing I'd ever read before. And while I'm certainly glad to be done with the book, I will definitely be looking for more of Littell's works, and to see where he goes with his style and subject choices.
However, Littell has a gift for the written word. He is one of those writers capable of painting images, emotions, and senses. Which is quite possibly what makes the sex and Holocaust scenes so unbearable. It is absolutely beautiful throughout much of the book, especially many of the travel sequences. The descriptions of people, both in countenance and personality, are quick, thorough, and often quite hilarious. But there basically isn't really anything good that happens, nor a really happy moment, throughout the entire book. Anything happy is fleeting, and is always tinged with bitter regret, or the looming specter of terrible events past or soon to come. Mostly, though, Aue is haunted and obsessed with his one true (lost) love--who I won't go into detail on so as not to spoil it.
Moreover, the style is difficult to get used to. It's not stream of consciousness, but it's also not like your typical narrative. All conversation is not indented from line to line (i.e. characters' speech is split up "Hello, nice to see you."--"You as well."). Thoughts often flow fairly organically, and Aue often takes us into his dreams and fantasies. The line between what reality and his imagination is often blurred, both for him and for us. What it all amounts to is 900+ pages of nearly pure text. There is a certain rhythm and flow to the book, but it can be a bit intimidating, frustrating, and slow going.
Suffice it to say, this book is quite an undertaking. You will be disgusted and disturbed, but also awestruck by the beauty of the world through Aue's eyes, and sometimes even find yourself laughing out loud. It's like nothing I'd ever read before. And while I'm certainly glad to be done with the book, I will definitely be looking for more of Littell's works, and to see where he goes with his style and subject choices.