A review by carmenere
The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean
4.0
I'll give The Madonnas of Leningrad a big thumbs up for its sad yet realistic depiction of The Siege of Leningrad and one of its survivors, Marina, an elderly woman, now suffering from another type of siege, an assault on her short term memory.
Prior to the siege, Marina was a tour guide at The Hermitage. In preparation for an attack by the Germans she then assisted in the removal of the art work she had come to love and know so well, storing it in a safe haven.
Marina was once an art student, then a tour guide at the The Hermitage in Leningrad but now, long after the horrors of The Siege, when her and her husband can enjoy life as empty nesters in Seattle and enjoy celebrations with their grandchildren, Marina begins to battle dementia. She can not recall her daughter, her husband must help her dress and cook for her but she does remember Leningrad. The suffering, the cold, the lack of food, the family and friends who did not survive and she remembers the paintings. She remembers the grand staircase, the statues, the murals on the ceiling but most of all, she remembers the Madonnas and the artists who painted them and the back stories involved with each painting.
I have read a few books concerning Alzheimer's and a couple of books regarding the siege but nothing like this novel which takes an horrendous period of time and gives it back to a survivor to live over again in her waning days. Yet, the beauty of this story lies in the memories of Art and how in the most dire of days the remembrance of what is beautiful and the ability to imagine it all again seems to act as an armor from what is bad.
Well written, mesmerizing and, of course, sad yet through the acts of people like Marina we are, once again, able to enjoy the Madonnas and so much more.
Prior to the siege, Marina was a tour guide at The Hermitage. In preparation for an attack by the Germans she then assisted in the removal of the art work she had come to love and know so well, storing it in a safe haven.
Marina was once an art student, then a tour guide at the The Hermitage in Leningrad but now, long after the horrors of The Siege, when her and her husband can enjoy life as empty nesters in Seattle and enjoy celebrations with their grandchildren, Marina begins to battle dementia. She can not recall her daughter, her husband must help her dress and cook for her but she does remember Leningrad. The suffering, the cold, the lack of food, the family and friends who did not survive and she remembers the paintings. She remembers the grand staircase, the statues, the murals on the ceiling but most of all, she remembers the Madonnas and the artists who painted them and the back stories involved with each painting.
I have read a few books concerning Alzheimer's and a couple of books regarding the siege but nothing like this novel which takes an horrendous period of time and gives it back to a survivor to live over again in her waning days. Yet, the beauty of this story lies in the memories of Art and how in the most dire of days the remembrance of what is beautiful and the ability to imagine it all again seems to act as an armor from what is bad.
Well written, mesmerizing and, of course, sad yet through the acts of people like Marina we are, once again, able to enjoy the Madonnas and so much more.