5 posts tagged “war”
I can't remember the last time I was so gripped by a novel. I loved the way this story was told. There are basically three sections and each section is one day in the storyline. The first part is told from various points-of-view. Sometimes we go forward in the day and sometimes we reverse a bit. The second and third sections are told from the viewpoint of a single, but different, character.
There is so much you could talk about with this book. I am not sure what the main theme is. Crime? Love? Time? One might think from the title that it would be atonement itself?
As a statement about life starting out at one point and ending up somewhere else completely unimagined, it's a wonderful analogy. We never really know what another person might be thinking or his/her true motives. Even friends. Even family. And there is a certain amount of danger in that. And loneliness.
There is so much you could talk about with this book. I am not sure what the main theme is. Crime? Love? Time? One might think from the title that it would be atonement itself?
As a statement about life starting out at one point and ending up somewhere else completely unimagined, it's a wonderful analogy. We never really know what another person might be thinking or his/her true motives. Even friends. Even family. And there is a certain amount of danger in that. And loneliness.
What can be said about this book that hasn't been already?
Chilling. The most disturbing thing to me personally was the idea that the way to kill humanity is to attack the structure and vocabulary of language.
Orwell's novel is the most complete vision of dystopia that I've ever read. It's a masterpiece.
Everyone should read it...preferably after high school.
Chilling. The most disturbing thing to me personally was the idea that the way to kill humanity is to attack the structure and vocabulary of language.
Orwell's novel is the most complete vision of dystopia that I've ever read. It's a masterpiece.
Everyone should read it...preferably after high school.
I remember reading some of e.e.cummings' poetry in high school. All I remember is being unsure of why he didn't want to capitalize his initials. That's all I knew about him when I found this book. It is his memoir of his accidental four month stay at a French concentration camp during World War I. And just like his poetry and his stance on capitalization, I'm not sure I get this book.
At the beginning of the book he and his friend are taken away from their job as ambulance drivers and taken on a string on interrogations and temporary prisons. They are separated but eventually end up together in La Ferte.
The strange part is that Cummings seems to find amusement, even glee, at the situation instead of being fearful, confused, or even wanting to know why they are being held by the French government. (It turns out to be some anti-war sentiment in Cummings' friend's letters he wrote home that a censor did not like and Cummings is guilty by association).
But after the amusement comes acceptance which is followed by bitterness. It just wasn't the flow of emotions one would expect for such a situation.
Even though the book was mostly character sketches of the other prisoners Cummings encounters, it was worth it for illustrating why soldiers and prisoners of war often feel such a comradeship. They never seem to forget one another or feel less tied together--even if they never see one another again. They do not stay imprisoned in the enormous room forever, but an enormous room exists in their minds forever.
As a note: this particular edition was horrendous in its handling of the plethora of French in the book. The cover is great but it would be better to use another edition if possible.
At the beginning of the book he and his friend are taken away from their job as ambulance drivers and taken on a string on interrogations and temporary prisons. They are separated but eventually end up together in La Ferte.
The strange part is that Cummings seems to find amusement, even glee, at the situation instead of being fearful, confused, or even wanting to know why they are being held by the French government. (It turns out to be some anti-war sentiment in Cummings' friend's letters he wrote home that a censor did not like and Cummings is guilty by association).
But after the amusement comes acceptance which is followed by bitterness. It just wasn't the flow of emotions one would expect for such a situation.
Even though the book was mostly character sketches of the other prisoners Cummings encounters, it was worth it for illustrating why soldiers and prisoners of war often feel such a comradeship. They never seem to forget one another or feel less tied together--even if they never see one another again. They do not stay imprisoned in the enormous room forever, but an enormous room exists in their minds forever.
As a note: this particular edition was horrendous in its handling of the plethora of French in the book. The cover is great but it would be better to use another edition if possible.
The Book Thief is by no means a feel-good book. It's hard to imagine a book about Nazi Germany could be anything but depressing. Throw in the fact that the book is narrated by Death, and you can understand why so many people say they cried their way through the last part of this book.
When I think about books and movies about the Holocaust I think of the stories being told from the point of view of the Jewish citizens mostly. It makes sense, as they were obviously the ones who suffered the most. But this book made me question that assumption a bit.
The family in this this story are not those in the concentration camps, not those hiding in an attic, not the Nazis themselves. They are just ordinary, average citizens living in Nazi Germany.
I have often wondered what it would have been like to see people being marched to death camps and others being whipped in the streets. How could those people have gone along with it all? Take a pinch of conformity, a dash of fear, and bake it really slowly. That's how it can happen.
Some have said Death as narrator is a bit hokey or pretentious, but really it's rather inspired. Who else could be an objective narrator of such a tale?
When I think about books and movies about the Holocaust I think of the stories being told from the point of view of the Jewish citizens mostly. It makes sense, as they were obviously the ones who suffered the most. But this book made me question that assumption a bit.
The family in this this story are not those in the concentration camps, not those hiding in an attic, not the Nazis themselves. They are just ordinary, average citizens living in Nazi Germany.
I have often wondered what it would have been like to see people being marched to death camps and others being whipped in the streets. How could those people have gone along with it all? Take a pinch of conformity, a dash of fear, and bake it really slowly. That's how it can happen.
Some have said Death as narrator is a bit hokey or pretentious, but really it's rather inspired. Who else could be an objective narrator of such a tale?
This book is pretty short at 130 pages. I read it today while waiting between appointments.
Bizarre stuff about politics, and ultimately, God.
Some have been offended by the ending, but personally that was the only thing that kind of grabbed my attention in this book. I've always been a sucker for a retro Twilight Zone ending.
A great book for anyone interested in allegory or politics or post-modern writing. If you happen to be into post-modern, allegorical political stories, you'll absolutely love it. For anyone else, it probably won't make much of an impression on you.
Bizarre stuff about politics, and ultimately, God.
Some have been offended by the ending, but personally that was the only thing that kind of grabbed my attention in this book. I've always been a sucker for a retro Twilight Zone ending.
A great book for anyone interested in allegory or politics or post-modern writing. If you happen to be into post-modern, allegorical political stories, you'll absolutely love it. For anyone else, it probably won't make much of an impression on you.
