keepreadingbooks's review
4.0
”But their deaths were somehow easier to understand, and were in the nature of grown-up losses. They were not the sort you cry over – rather, they came to you during sleepless nights as you stared with dry eyes up at the ceiling of a Parisian flat, or at the roof of your dug-out, or at the naked sky over your shattered, retreating detachment.”
This is not a happy book. After all, it takes place in a rather unhappy time period. But it is a powerful one – and it does not mean there isn’t happiness in it. It is an epic story, spanning decades and relating the lives and fates of three Odessan families during perhaps the most devastating period in Russian history.
Ratushinskaya alternates between emotional descriptions of tragic events, like a death of a character (I don’t count this as a spoiler, because with such a big cast there is no way all of them will be alive at the end – remember where we are), or short, detached accounts of the same. Which is probably a good thing – rationing your emotions. Writing emotionally about every single horrible thing would quickly drain any reader and consequently make them numb to the rest. Quite the opposite, by alternating in this fashion, she manages to make every event seem even more tragic and brutal; the detached manner somewhat disgusts you, but also makes you aware of just how much tragedy there is, and the emotional one makes you feel the pain of it all.
When I turned the last page, I felt a sense of regret that I was leaving these characters – a feeling that was probably heightened by the unresolved ending – which I always take as a sign that the book got to me. It did suffer slightly from being a translation, resulting in some phrases that seemed a little out of place (of course, this could just be the author, but I usually suspect the translator, having worked with a few myself), and the introductory part of the book - roughly the first 1/4 - could seem a little fragmented and rushed, as if some necessary elements needed to be put in, in order to tell the more important story later. But it is exactly the later story that becomes powerful and worth it.
One thing I need to mention, though, is that I knew a fairly good deal about what transpired in this time period before reading this book, and this no doubt helped my understanding. There were many things mentioned without any explanation, e.g. Rasputin; I suspect this is because it would already be somewhat familiar to a Russian reader (and it is a translated book). I would recommend getting to know the country’s 20th century history (if you don’t already), at least superficially, before going in. Much of my knowledge comes from reading the non-fiction book [b:Former People: The Final Days of the Russian Aristocracy|13538689|Former People The Final Days of the Russian Aristocracy|Douglas Smith|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1344317997s/13538689.jpg|19101039] by Douglas Smith, which I highly recommend if you have any interest in learning more, and also [b:The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra|18404173|The Romanov Sisters The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra|Helen Rappaport|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1396818138s/18404173.jpg|26038032] and [b:The Last Days of the Romanovs: Tragedy at Ekaterinburg|4769909|The Last Days of the Romanovs Tragedy at Ekaterinburg|Helen Rappaport|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1317065904s/4769909.jpg|56839633] by Helen Rappaport, for more detailed knowledge on the last tsar and his family, who are also mentioned a fair few times (and who were, of course, crucial to the way events unfolded before, during, and after the revolution).
I hope you feel inclined to pick this up!
/NK
This is not a happy book. After all, it takes place in a rather unhappy time period. But it is a powerful one – and it does not mean there isn’t happiness in it. It is an epic story, spanning decades and relating the lives and fates of three Odessan families during perhaps the most devastating period in Russian history.
Ratushinskaya alternates between emotional descriptions of tragic events, like a death of a character (I don’t count this as a spoiler, because with such a big cast there is no way all of them will be alive at the end – remember where we are), or short, detached accounts of the same. Which is probably a good thing – rationing your emotions. Writing emotionally about every single horrible thing would quickly drain any reader and consequently make them numb to the rest. Quite the opposite, by alternating in this fashion, she manages to make every event seem even more tragic and brutal; the detached manner somewhat disgusts you, but also makes you aware of just how much tragedy there is, and the emotional one makes you feel the pain of it all.
When I turned the last page, I felt a sense of regret that I was leaving these characters – a feeling that was probably heightened by the unresolved ending – which I always take as a sign that the book got to me. It did suffer slightly from being a translation, resulting in some phrases that seemed a little out of place (of course, this could just be the author, but I usually suspect the translator, having worked with a few myself), and the introductory part of the book - roughly the first 1/4 - could seem a little fragmented and rushed, as if some necessary elements needed to be put in, in order to tell the more important story later. But it is exactly the later story that becomes powerful and worth it.
One thing I need to mention, though, is that I knew a fairly good deal about what transpired in this time period before reading this book, and this no doubt helped my understanding. There were many things mentioned without any explanation, e.g. Rasputin; I suspect this is because it would already be somewhat familiar to a Russian reader (and it is a translated book). I would recommend getting to know the country’s 20th century history (if you don’t already), at least superficially, before going in. Much of my knowledge comes from reading the non-fiction book [b:Former People: The Final Days of the Russian Aristocracy|13538689|Former People The Final Days of the Russian Aristocracy|Douglas Smith|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1344317997s/13538689.jpg|19101039] by Douglas Smith, which I highly recommend if you have any interest in learning more, and also [b:The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra|18404173|The Romanov Sisters The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra|Helen Rappaport|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1396818138s/18404173.jpg|26038032] and [b:The Last Days of the Romanovs: Tragedy at Ekaterinburg|4769909|The Last Days of the Romanovs Tragedy at Ekaterinburg|Helen Rappaport|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1317065904s/4769909.jpg|56839633] by Helen Rappaport, for more detailed knowledge on the last tsar and his family, who are also mentioned a fair few times (and who were, of course, crucial to the way events unfolded before, during, and after the revolution).
I hope you feel inclined to pick this up!
/NK
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