review :: The Historian

The Historian

Elizabeth Kostova

Intriguing. Compelling. Intricate. All three words describe The Historian. Elizabeth Kostova has created a fascinating blend of fact and fantasy, weaving the (true) historical roots of the living, breathing Vlad Dracula and the mythical persistent existence of the vampire legend.

There were some telling indications that this was a debut novel. I thought there were a few character flaws where some of the characters made some choices or actions that didn't quite seem to match up with who they really were. For example, the main female character, Helen, is a stiff, aloof, austere Eastern European. It seemed her warming up to Paul (the main male character), her receipt of his affections, and the return of her own was a bit abrupt for her reserved personality.

That aside, the complexity of the story was impressive. This is good storytelling, and it goes deep, layer after layer. I was interested to see how Kostova would draft a modern vampire story, and she did it well. It is not quite terrifying and graphic like Dracula, but nor is it trite, and there are definite moments to make one hold their breath.

Kostova packed this full-length novel with an amazing trail of history and travel across Eastern Europe, and she pulls it off without being too academic.

Overall, a great read, especially for anyone who finds the Dracula legend interesting. There were moments in the writing that I felt a real kinship with Kostova; I think our styles are similar, and that makes me want to read more of her. I'll definitely be picking up a copy of The Swan Thieves at some point in the near future.

review :: A Woman in Berlin

A Woman in Berlin

Anonymous

Admittedly, I usually do not read the front matter of a book, even though I know it is there for a perfectly good reason--to enhance the reading experience!

A Woman in Berlin is prefaced by a foreword, an introduction, and a translator's note. I read all three before diving into the book itself, and I'm really glad I did. Without having done so I would have missed out on some of the social and cultural context surrounding the events. I did not know, for example, that German women were not supposed to discuss the reality of rape--it was seen as shameful.  

I purchased this book while going through a World War II reading phase, during which I read The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman (a graphic novel) and Stones from the River by Ursula Hegi, both of which I would recommend.

Stones from the River was the first World War II book I had read that was written from the point of view of a German. While I of course knew that not every German followed and believed in Hitler's regime, it had never occurred to me to sympathize for them. They were victims too.  That realization is what made me really want to read more from that perspective about this epic event in world history.

A Woman in Berlin is not a gripping tale. It is a diary of eight weeks in the Russian-conquered city of Berlin during the spring of 1945, and as such, it is brutal and honest and personal. The author was a journalist, pre- and post-war. Her powers of observation come shining through in her accounts of what transpired to her and her neighbors during the Russian occupation. Full of courage and intellect, this is a poignant and personal portrayal of the effects of war and defeat, a stunning glimpse of what humanity is capable of surviving.

There are some heartbreakingly vulnerable comments in the diary, as well as evident moments of gumption, so that you truly do get a feel for who this woman was and what she was like. I did find myself wondering, after I reached the end, what happened to her  and in her life after the diary. That sense of mystery is just one of the alluring threads that keeps this story alive in your mind long after you've closed the cover.

currently reading :: A Woman in Berlin

A Woman in Berlin
Anonymous

I ordered A Woman in Berlin last year while going through an unintentional World War II kick. I did decide I needed a break from the world of Nazis and the Holocaust, so here I am, many months later, finally picking it up to read.

Summary: For eight weeks in 1945, as Berlin fell to the Russian army, a young woman, alone in the city, kept a daily record of her and her neighbors' experiences, determined to describe the common lot of millions. Purged of all self-pity but with laser-sharp observation and bracing humor, the anonymous author conjures up a ravaged apartment building and its little group of residents struggling to get by in the rubble without food, heat, or water. Clear-eyed and unsentimental, she depicts her fellow Berliners in all their humanity as well as their cravenness, corrupted first by hunger and then by the Russians. And with shocking and vivid detail, she tells of the shameful indignities to which women in a conquered city are always subject: the mass rape suffered by all, regardless of age or infirmity. Through this ordeal, she maintains her resilience, decency, and fierce will to come through her city's trial, until normalcy and safety return. (Summary from the book jacket.)

When A Woman in Berlin was published the author requested to remain anonymous for her protection. For a long time it was only known that Anonymous was a young woman at the time of the fall of Berlin and a journalist and editor after the war. It was not until after her death in 2001 that we learned the true identity of Anonymous--Marta Hillers. 

review :: The Birth of Venus

The Birth of Venus

Sarah Dunant

The Birth of Venus takes place in 15th-century Florence and begins just at the fall of the Medici reign of power. This novel is not magnificently-written and there are some character flaws. I mostly enjoyed the story because of the time period and the profusion of art history.

The book has nothing to do with the Botticelli painting for which it is named--although it is mentioned in the story. Rather, it is metaphorical as the story follows the coming-of-age of a14-year-old Alessandra Cecchi during a time of great unrest and transformation in the lavish city.

I appreciated the blending of historical characters and event with the fictional characters and plot created by Dunant. The appearances of such recognizable people as Lorenzo de Medici,  Sandro Botticelli, and Michelangelo are subtle and appropriate.

There are several surprise turning points throughout that keep the plot unpredictable and it's not overwhelmingly feministic--which I was wary of once I started getting to know Alessandra's character. Overall, this was a satisfying read, and I would recommend it for people who are interested in the time period and enjoy art history.

from J. D.

"Among other things, you'll find that you're not the first person who was ever confused and frightened and even sickened by human behavior. You're by no means alone on that score, you'll be excited and stimulated to know. Many, many men have been just as troubled morally and spiritually as you are right now. Happily, some of them kept records of their troubles. You'll learn from them--if you want to. Just as some day, if you have something to offer, someone will learn something from you. It's a beautiful reciprocal arrangement. And it isn't education. It's history. It's poetry."

~ J. D. Salinger ~