A review by lizzyzo
The Vanishing Sky by L. Annette Binder
2.0
The Vanishing Sky is an ambitious book. How else can you describe a book written about WWII about a German family where both sons and the father are fighting for the Third Reich? Binder works hard to give the characters depth and stir empathy for them, but all of them are pitiful creatures in their own rights. I find the idea of writing a story about Germany during WWII and only alluding to the Nazi atrocities to be insulting, at best. Yes, Mutti and Josef and Georg and Max refer to people who are taken away, but not acknowledging where they were going--and continuing the facade that the German people didn't know what was going on--is a slap in the face to the 6 million people who died during the Holocaust.
I think the book had potential. I understand Binder's goal was to write about an average German family just trying to survive WWII, but basically ignoring the overarching issues around WWII is ridiculous. The writing was lovely, and Binder was able to really flesh out the characters and the misery of living in a war-torn country with great detail. While I enjoyed Binder's prose, I can't give it more stars because the lack of discussion about the social, political, economic, issues that were overwhelmingly prevalent at the time, and continue to be relevant today.
I received an early copy from Net Galley.
I think the book had potential. I understand Binder's goal was to write about an average German family just trying to survive WWII, but basically ignoring the overarching issues around WWII is ridiculous. The writing was lovely, and Binder was able to really flesh out the characters and the misery of living in a war-torn country with great detail. While I enjoyed Binder's prose, I can't give it more stars because the lack of discussion about the social, political, economic, issues that were overwhelmingly prevalent at the time, and continue to be relevant today.
I received an early copy from Net Galley.