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A review by meezcarrie
Six Days in Leningrad by Paullina Simons
3.0
Six Days in Leningrad is a (somewhat) fascinating look at the inspiration behind Paullina Simons’ book The Bronze Horseman. It’s a love letter to a country – and to a father.
Accompanying some common-to-all-of-us emotions involving returning to one's childhood home, Simons also faces disillusionment (Leningrad… Russia … have not changed. They are stuck in stagnation) as well as a growing awareness of what her life would have been like had her father not gotten them out of Russia when he did. And with that awareness comes a war within her own spirit – is she Russian? is she American? how to reconcile the two together?
Bottom Line: I found Six Days in Leningrad to be captivating in parts, while other sections of the book lost my interest. I was expecting less of an account of every detail of those six days in Leningrad and more of an overall summary of her experiences. Yet, the author frequently incorporates an abundance of superfluous details, mainly in relating conversations that don’t really move the memoir forward at all. And the bathroom breaks. I think I see what she was doing … the comparison between something so simple as a toilet in Russia vs a toilet in Texas … but reading about every toilet she used – and why she used it – and how she used it – got old quickly. Needless to say, this book could have been significantly shorter and still very moving, maybe even more so. BUT, if you are a fan of The Bronze Horseman, you will no doubt find this “story behind the story” a must read!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.)
See my full review at Reading Is My SuperPower
Accompanying some common-to-all-of-us emotions involving returning to one's childhood home, Simons also faces disillusionment (Leningrad… Russia … have not changed. They are stuck in stagnation) as well as a growing awareness of what her life would have been like had her father not gotten them out of Russia when he did. And with that awareness comes a war within her own spirit – is she Russian? is she American? how to reconcile the two together?
Bottom Line: I found Six Days in Leningrad to be captivating in parts, while other sections of the book lost my interest. I was expecting less of an account of every detail of those six days in Leningrad and more of an overall summary of her experiences. Yet, the author frequently incorporates an abundance of superfluous details, mainly in relating conversations that don’t really move the memoir forward at all. And the bathroom breaks. I think I see what she was doing … the comparison between something so simple as a toilet in Russia vs a toilet in Texas … but reading about every toilet she used – and why she used it – and how she used it – got old quickly. Needless to say, this book could have been significantly shorter and still very moving, maybe even more so. BUT, if you are a fan of The Bronze Horseman, you will no doubt find this “story behind the story” a must read!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.)
See my full review at Reading Is My SuperPower