2017 Reading Challenge discussion

I was not planning to read this at all, but I book club I just joined is reading it. It is easy to understand why this book got the Pulitzer prize. I will not waste the time of the reader in going in detail about this book. That has been done by thousands (over 300 thousand) now. I will say at first I resisted reading this book because of the time period and the theme. I do not like the type of "Nazis did xyz awful things" - I have read too much of those.However this book is very different from most Nazi themed books. It is very human and touches the issues of the conflicts of the war beautifully. Though it does show how conflict can bring out the worst in people, it also shows how the same conflicts bring out the best. It develops too young people on both sides who come together briefly. The development is done with a delicate yet suspenseful touch. The minor characters are also loving developed and the scenes are described in such ways that I could also see them. The scenes are in real places and with real events. Apparently it took the author ten years to write it. His precision and dedication show up in a beautiful book. Apparently there was a lot of backlash about this book because it was overhyped. For me it rated a 5 because it is very memorable, the effect will stay with me. Also the prose is amazing, he developed realistic characters and he resisted making it sentimental.

Lovely review, Margo. I tend to avoid stories about the Nazi period, as it is too often too heartbreaking. I need to be in a specially strong frame of mind to cope with these stories, but they are also often, unforgettable. One if those for me was Shopie's choice, but as I say, I need to feel strong beforehand in order to tackle one of those. I have had this in my TBR and my kindle for ages, but not feeling brave enough yet. I'm glad to hear that it touched you.

Teresa wrote: "Lovely review, Margo. I tend to avoid stories about the Nazi period, as it is too often too heartbreaking.

I agree - I avoid those types of books, but read it because of a book club. So glad I got over that hesitation.

Great review, this was my favorite book I read last year!