bookbirder's review
5.0
This was a beautifully written book, taking a new-to-me perspective of World War II- that of Leningrad during the months of siege. The author had a great attention to detail, and the plot was also interesting and easy to follow.
stephanieg1992's review
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
amgraham's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
clarkekent_909's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
carmenere's review
4.0
I just finished Helen Dunmore's historical novel and I am spent. I have read novels of the siege of Leningrad before and have been touched by them but never more so than Dunmore's version.
The book begins with a Top Secret telegraph from Berlin to German armed forces:
"Re:The future of Leningrad
.....The Fuehrer has decided to have Leningrad wiped from the face of the earth. The further existence of this large town is of no interest once Soviet Russia is overthrown. Finland has also similarly declared no interest in the continued existence of the city directly on her new frontier."
By using a blockade to keep food, supplies and medicine out of Leningrad it's citizens slowly starve or freeze to death. Those who are able agree to things they never would have done in order to survive The elderly,young children and babies are the first to die. Those who survive the first winter of the blockade find innovative ways to bring food and supplies into Leningrad, still half the population has been wiped out and the siege will continue for another 600 some days. But for now, as this novel comes to an end there is hope amongst the sadness.
The characters Dunmore created are so very human, imperfect yet strong and willful, trying to believe there will be a tomorrow but knowing too, there may not be. Highly recommend!
The book begins with a Top Secret telegraph from Berlin to German armed forces:
"Re:The future of Leningrad
.....The Fuehrer has decided to have Leningrad wiped from the face of the earth. The further existence of this large town is of no interest once Soviet Russia is overthrown. Finland has also similarly declared no interest in the continued existence of the city directly on her new frontier."
By using a blockade to keep food, supplies and medicine out of Leningrad it's citizens slowly starve or freeze to death. Those who are able agree to things they never would have done in order to survive The elderly,young children and babies are the first to die. Those who survive the first winter of the blockade find innovative ways to bring food and supplies into Leningrad, still half the population has been wiped out and the siege will continue for another 600 some days. But for now, as this novel comes to an end there is hope amongst the sadness.
The characters Dunmore created are so very human, imperfect yet strong and willful, trying to believe there will be a tomorrow but knowing too, there may not be. Highly recommend!
thisotherbookaccount's review against another edition
3.0
World War II had a lot of crazy stories, but the Siege of Leningrad has to be one of the craziest ones of all. Instead of invading the city, the Nazis decided to surround the city of Leningrad and allow it to destroy itself. The premise of which inspired one of my favourite books of all time, City of Thieves by David Benioff. So when I heard about this book by Helen Dunmore, I wanted to read more.
Unfortunately, I don't think Dunmore brings a lot more to the table here. Going into the story, you know that it is going to be a cast of characters feeling hungry all the time, and the lengths to which they go to satiated that hunger — and you do get a whole lot of that. From boiling leather to peeling glue off of wallpaper, the characters go through a lot just to feel a tiny bit less hungry. Cold, too, is a real enemy, with temperatures plunging to 20 degrees below zero in some of the worst winters in Russian history.
Now, with that said, that is about all that you are going to get out of this book. First off, I dislike the way Dunmore strays away from the main cast of characters from time to time. You are introduced to the protagonist and her family at the beginning of the book, and the story is largely told from her perspective. However, without warning, you are given a dozen pages told from the perspective of a random neighbour, or a friend at work, or a general who's supposed to take care of food and supplies going in and out of the city. What is worse is that these side characters remain as cameos, so there's this constant schizophrenic structure to the story.
I also dislike how Dunmore doesn't give time for the crisis to sink in. In one chapter, everything is fine and dandy, then in the next chapter everybody is eating rotten bread and cabbage soup. Halfway through the book, just a month or two into the siege, and she's hinting at cannibalism and human meat being sold on the streets. Not to say that that did not happen in real life, but Dunmore doesn't seem to know how to build a sense of crisis and dread. The city descends into chaos in mere pages, as if she cannot wait to get to the end — and what a rushed ending, too. In one chapter, someone passes away in the family and, in the next chapter, winter has passed and everybody is strolling the streets again. Everything just feels very insular and narrow in this book, and I feel like everything is happening to this family and this family only. You hardly know what's happening to her neighbours, to the rest of the city, and what's happening with the Nazis. The perspective is strictly on the family and the family alone.
It also bothers me that the timeline is never properly fleshed out. I mean, the actual siege began in September 1941, and the characters have to survive the upcoming winter. However, by the end of the book, it is spring again and the winter is thawing, and even though half the city died, the other half resume their day-to-day lives — but what about the siege? What about the Nazis? What about the actual war that's going on? Historically, the siege actually lasted for more than two years, so what about the rest of the time? Do they survive the rest of the siege? It's all very wishy-washy, hand wavy to me.
At the end of the day, it is a readable book, but you are not going to find out more about the Siege of Leningrad than you already have. If you want a book that actually gives the premise a special yet harrowing twist, read the aforementioned City of Thieves by David Benioff.
Unfortunately, I don't think Dunmore brings a lot more to the table here. Going into the story, you know that it is going to be a cast of characters feeling hungry all the time, and the lengths to which they go to satiated that hunger — and you do get a whole lot of that. From boiling leather to peeling glue off of wallpaper, the characters go through a lot just to feel a tiny bit less hungry. Cold, too, is a real enemy, with temperatures plunging to 20 degrees below zero in some of the worst winters in Russian history.
Now, with that said, that is about all that you are going to get out of this book. First off, I dislike the way Dunmore strays away from the main cast of characters from time to time. You are introduced to the protagonist and her family at the beginning of the book, and the story is largely told from her perspective. However, without warning, you are given a dozen pages told from the perspective of a random neighbour, or a friend at work, or a general who's supposed to take care of food and supplies going in and out of the city. What is worse is that these side characters remain as cameos, so there's this constant schizophrenic structure to the story.
I also dislike how Dunmore doesn't give time for the crisis to sink in. In one chapter, everything is fine and dandy, then in the next chapter everybody is eating rotten bread and cabbage soup. Halfway through the book, just a month or two into the siege, and she's hinting at cannibalism and human meat being sold on the streets. Not to say that that did not happen in real life, but Dunmore doesn't seem to know how to build a sense of crisis and dread. The city descends into chaos in mere pages, as if she cannot wait to get to the end — and what a rushed ending, too. In one chapter, someone passes away in the family and, in the next chapter, winter has passed and everybody is strolling the streets again. Everything just feels very insular and narrow in this book, and I feel like everything is happening to this family and this family only. You hardly know what's happening to her neighbours, to the rest of the city, and what's happening with the Nazis. The perspective is strictly on the family and the family alone.
It also bothers me that the timeline is never properly fleshed out. I mean, the actual siege began in September 1941, and the characters have to survive the upcoming winter. However, by the end of the book, it is spring again and the winter is thawing, and even though half the city died, the other half resume their day-to-day lives — but what about the siege? What about the Nazis? What about the actual war that's going on? Historically, the siege actually lasted for more than two years, so what about the rest of the time? Do they survive the rest of the siege? It's all very wishy-washy, hand wavy to me.
At the end of the day, it is a readable book, but you are not going to find out more about the Siege of Leningrad than you already have. If you want a book that actually gives the premise a special yet harrowing twist, read the aforementioned City of Thieves by David Benioff.
zeljana's review
3.0
If there is one word that describes this novel, it is "cold". Not only because of the harsh realities of the Russian winter in the midst of the German occupation of Leningrad. Cold here comes from the lack of emotion in a novel that is set up for much more.
As it is to be expected, there are some great depictions of hunger, sickness and struggle. Some of the descriptions are really beautiful and the language is nice.
But, this book fails in character development. For a background story of such epic magnitude, there is remarkably little emotion here. I was so disappointed in this respect.
There is also an attempt to expand the plot with a family story before the war, but it never comes alive for me.
One other detail I didn't like was that the city never felt like St. Petersburg. It could've been any other city. It really doesn't do it justice.
The thing is, I feel bad to give this book a low rating cause it's honourable to write books that give a name to all the brave people who went through such horrors. But, in a literary sense, this book doesn't come even close to the snippets of praise on its blurb.
2.5 stars
As it is to be expected, there are some great depictions of hunger, sickness and struggle. Some of the descriptions are really beautiful and the language is nice.
But, this book fails in character development. For a background story of such epic magnitude, there is remarkably little emotion here. I was so disappointed in this respect.
There is also an attempt to expand the plot with a family story before the war, but it never comes alive for me.
One other detail I didn't like was that the city never felt like St. Petersburg. It could've been any other city. It really doesn't do it justice.
The thing is, I feel bad to give this book a low rating cause it's honourable to write books that give a name to all the brave people who went through such horrors. But, in a literary sense, this book doesn't come even close to the snippets of praise on its blurb.
2.5 stars
brannigan's review
3.0
Another one I probably shouldn’t have read during covid quarantine, as I’m feeling claustrophobic enough and the temperatures are dropping.
I’m disappointed by this one. I see it often appears on lists of “top 100 novels of the 21st century”, “best historical fiction novels” and the like. I also wanted to learn more about the siege of Leningrad, because I’ve read quite a bit about Stalingrad but not its northern counterpart. However, Dunmore doesn’t quite live up to the hype - yes, her descriptions of starvation and desperation are bleak and vivid, but her characters are cookie-cutter heroic/stoic types and the Andrei-Anna romance seems unconvincing and forced. I am not quite sure why it’s considered a “literary” novel.
2.5 stars, because although it was mostly misery-porn, it did manage to effectively convey the plight of those unfortunate Leningraders and persuade me to read further into the topic.
I’m disappointed by this one. I see it often appears on lists of “top 100 novels of the 21st century”, “best historical fiction novels” and the like. I also wanted to learn more about the siege of Leningrad, because I’ve read quite a bit about Stalingrad but not its northern counterpart. However, Dunmore doesn’t quite live up to the hype - yes, her descriptions of starvation and desperation are bleak and vivid, but her characters are cookie-cutter heroic/stoic types and the Andrei-Anna romance seems unconvincing and forced. I am not quite sure why it’s considered a “literary” novel.
2.5 stars, because although it was mostly misery-porn, it did manage to effectively convey the plight of those unfortunate Leningraders and persuade me to read further into the topic.
gabe_reads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
The siege of Leningrad was such a phenomenally awful experience that I first came across when I read Leningrad by Anna Reid. The siege lasted from September 1941 until early 1944 and 1/4 of the cities population, 3/4 of a million people died of starvation; most during that first winter. I was recommended this by a couple of people based on that and I slept on it for 4 years. What a mistake!
It tells a really compelling story about a woman living in Leningrad, trying to survive and help her family survive. It told a really visceral story about how your life slowly narrows until all it is about is surviving the next day, or even the next 15 minutes. About how the twin horrors of hunger and cold wreaked devastation on the people of Leningrad in the winter of 1941/2. And what people had to do and go through to survive. I really liked the characters, and the slightly odd, complex, never-quite-right relationship between Marina and Anna. And obviously I loved Evgenia and her Deus ex Machinas.
It was also really easy to read, going at a good pace. It skipped along at times which I felt was mostly good, as it let you have deeper snapshots across the winter. It also has a perfect balance of time dedicated to pre-war compared to war.