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A review by karieh13
The Hours Count by Jillian Cantor
5.0
In the Author’s note of “The Hours Count”, Jillian Cantor reflects, “I remember learning briefly about Ethel and Julius Rosenberg in a high school American History class. Years later, I had only the vague recollection that they were a married couple executed in the fifties for spying.”
That perfectly summarizes the extent of my knowledge of this part of our country’s history, which was one of the reasons I chose to read this book. It, however, has nothing to do with why I liked this book so much.
Because the greatest amount of detail I can now add to the facts I know about the Rosenberg case also came from the Author’s Note: “As it turns out, they were the only civilians ever executed in the U.S. for conspiring to commit espionage.”
But the story told in this novel is still a hauntingly tragic one – just one only tangentially about this now infamous couple. The main character is Millie – a woman whose incredibly isolated life intersects and is forever changed by her acquaintance (and later friendship) with Ethel Rosenberg. Millie has a young son, David, who does not speak – and a husband, Ed, who barely speaks to her and certainly does not listen.
Millie has been told that David’s condition is her fault – that she is “too cold”. That is wildly untrue. Millie is a very caring, loving person – desperate to find answers about her son, her husband, and her life – and the world she lives in – a world full of terrifying threats. She lives in post-World War II New York – with Red scares, smallpox scares, and the ever looming threat of more war and further nuclear bombs.
For so long, Millie accepts her life as is. She does not question her doctor’s diagnosis of David, she does not ask questions of Ed and she rarely ventures out of her small neighborhood.
But then things start to change. She meets Ethel one day and they bond over their sons. She starts paying more attention to her husband’s late night calls…and she meets Jake at a party the Rosenbergs throw. Jake seems very willing to help with David and to talk to her – a need that almost overwhelms Millie.
This book is about isolation, desperation, fear – and a time in our country’s history when all of those elements and more put us on the path that led to a dark time for those who were willing to question what the government was telling them. It’s also about fierce and unquestioning love – which is the reason I liked it so much. “The Hours Count” was a poignant, insightful and tragically lovely book.
That perfectly summarizes the extent of my knowledge of this part of our country’s history, which was one of the reasons I chose to read this book. It, however, has nothing to do with why I liked this book so much.
Because the greatest amount of detail I can now add to the facts I know about the Rosenberg case also came from the Author’s Note: “As it turns out, they were the only civilians ever executed in the U.S. for conspiring to commit espionage.”
But the story told in this novel is still a hauntingly tragic one – just one only tangentially about this now infamous couple. The main character is Millie – a woman whose incredibly isolated life intersects and is forever changed by her acquaintance (and later friendship) with Ethel Rosenberg. Millie has a young son, David, who does not speak – and a husband, Ed, who barely speaks to her and certainly does not listen.
Millie has been told that David’s condition is her fault – that she is “too cold”. That is wildly untrue. Millie is a very caring, loving person – desperate to find answers about her son, her husband, and her life – and the world she lives in – a world full of terrifying threats. She lives in post-World War II New York – with Red scares, smallpox scares, and the ever looming threat of more war and further nuclear bombs.
For so long, Millie accepts her life as is. She does not question her doctor’s diagnosis of David, she does not ask questions of Ed and she rarely ventures out of her small neighborhood.
But then things start to change. She meets Ethel one day and they bond over their sons. She starts paying more attention to her husband’s late night calls…and she meets Jake at a party the Rosenbergs throw. Jake seems very willing to help with David and to talk to her – a need that almost overwhelms Millie.
This book is about isolation, desperation, fear – and a time in our country’s history when all of those elements and more put us on the path that led to a dark time for those who were willing to question what the government was telling them. It’s also about fierce and unquestioning love – which is the reason I liked it so much. “The Hours Count” was a poignant, insightful and tragically lovely book.