A review by library_kb
Enemies in the Orchard: A World War 2 Novel in Verse by Dana VanderLugt, Dana VanderLugt
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
I listened to this audiobook via @Libro.fm's ALC program for Educators. I had a lot of issues with this historical fiction novel in verse. I had some issues with how it implied most Germans during WWII whose names weren't Hitler and his cabinet were just caught up without any way to escape the horrors they caused. It somewhat felt like excusing the German soldier for what he had done in the war because he didn't want to be a soldier. I also found the relationship between the two main characters to be weird in an weird age power dynamic way, and the author was leading to a more problematic conclusion if the ending didn't happen the way it did (which felt a little like a cop out from dealing with the issues written into the story earlier). With so many other great WWII stories out there, I would skip this one.