The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! đ
drugob1tch's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
libraryrobin's review against another edition
2.0
Depressing look back at a narcissist in WWII Norway.
emilienygaardberg's review against another edition
I read this book a school. We had the âread to this pageâ every week and thatâs why it took us/me three months to read it. It was also about 400 pages long and not something I would pick out for myself. Interesting book. A lot of back and forth between dates and characters. I had to make a family tree to keep up. I took notes to remember everything. Good book if youâre into World War 2 in Norway. I read this book in Norwegian too.
lfs's review against another edition
3.0
I found this a bit hard to get through. The story itself is a quite fascinating, though gruesome, chapter of WW2 that I was not familiar with, but I haaaaated the format of this book. Stranger take us on an alphabetical tour through history, jumping back and forth between storylines involving 4 different groups of people; some presented as traditional third person fiction narrative, one as a second person tribute and then a first person, autobiographic narrative underpinning the whole thing. I had a hard time keeping track of the characters and their various connections, and the piecemeal doling out of information and frequent time leaps made for an at times disorienting experience. Although I appreciate the ambition--and certainly the heartfelt intention behind the book, clearly personal for the author--for me, it's a mess. :(
josethi's review against another edition
2.0
Here are some of my thoughts.
I read a lot of ww2 books (being from Poland the topic was fed to us from an early age) but never from Norway. I always welcome new perspectives. Not to mention I usually enjoy Scandinavian literature.
The book is very... experimental for lack of a better. Parts in the second-person narrative that took me out of the story - provided brackets for it; a stream of consciousness feel in the third person that wasn't really it; the title that sort of make sense at the beginning but at the end is repeated (again-bracket function) that for me, totally lost the attachment to the story; not to mention why are we going through the alphabet? I guess it helped me judge how long it will take for the book to end. I could go on...
Maybe audiobook wasn't the best medium to get it. I don't mind the style experiments in poetry but I prefer direct prose.
All that is to say this book was not for me.
I gave the 2nd star for the topic and a very unusual main perspective. I would love to read this story in a more straightforward book.
I read a lot of ww2 books (being from Poland the topic was fed to us from an early age) but never from Norway. I always welcome new perspectives. Not to mention I usually enjoy Scandinavian literature.
The book is very... experimental for lack of a better. Parts in the second-person narrative that took me out of the story - provided brackets for it; a stream of consciousness feel in the third person that wasn't really it; the title that sort of make sense at the beginning but at the end is repeated (again-bracket function) that for me, totally lost the attachment to the story; not to mention why are we going through the alphabet? I guess it helped me judge how long it will take for the book to end. I could go on...
Maybe audiobook wasn't the best medium to get it. I don't mind the style experiments in poetry but I prefer direct prose.
All that is to say this book was not for me.
I gave the 2nd star for the topic and a very unusual main perspective. I would love to read this story in a more straightforward book.
liridona's review
5.0
Fantastisk roman. En perfekt blanding av virkelighetens mørke og skjønnlitteraturens evne til ü se det lyse.
ingvildleser's review
5.0
Har for første gang pü veldig lenge lest ut en bok pü bare en uke! Veldig sterk og grusom historie, med et forsøk pü ü se det lyse i det mørke, og dessuten var den godt skrevet!
canadianbookworm's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
https://cdnbookworm.blogspot.com/2021/12/keep-saying-their-names.html
abookishtype's review against another edition
4.0
In a narrative that strongly reminded me of HhHH, by Laurent Binet, author and narrator Simon Stranger dives into the history of his Jewish Norwegian family and into the story of traitor Henry Oliver Rinnan. Stranger dramatizes conversations and scenes that are based on actual history. The title of the book, Keep Saying Their Names, comes from an old Jewish saying that the dead are only truly gone from us when we forget them. By recounting the stories of the dead, we ensure that they live on in some fashion. But what does it mean when saying the names of long-gone family members also means saying the name of the person who killed them?
Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss, for review consideration.
Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss, for review consideration.