Interesting stuff on the history of knights themselves, as well as asides on tournaments/jousting, chivalry, castles (and when cannons came along, howInteresting stuff on the history of knights themselves, as well as asides on tournaments/jousting, chivalry, castles (and when cannons came along, how they evolved into fortresses), heraldry, etc. But what was really interesting was all the specialized vocab—cuirass, basinet, barbute, sabatan, besagew, buffe, burgonet, gorget plates, plackart, pouldron and vambrace, cuisse and poleyn…and that's just the armor!* Weapons also had their own bits and pieces—sword blades had fullers, axes had langets, daggers had rondels, lancets had vamplates…
Couple of fun facts: the heavy pommel at the end of a sword grip served as a counterbalance to the weight of the blade so that it was easier to handle. And the reason castle staircases always spiral up to the left is that ascending attackers would have their swords blocked by the central column, whereas descending defenders had more room to swing. * And don't even get me started on horse armor, which was a different thing with a different vocabulary altogether....more
Read this together with The World War I Book, another DK book in their new and so-far-interesting series of "Big Ideas Simply Explained," (which I'll Read this together with The World War I Book, another DK book in their new and so-far-interesting series of "Big Ideas Simply Explained," (which I'll review separately when finished*). However, as that one is considerably longer (it's a wordy "grown-up" book, vs. these EYEWITNESS books which are much more graphic/pictorial and so probably aimed at young readers, although I also really like 'em), I got through this one much faster. In fact, this book was pretty much like spending an afternoon looking at the exhibits and reading the signs in a very well-done war museum, like any of the excellent WWI museums in Belgium, or any of the major Civil War museums not far from where I live now.
So five stars for the book itself, as I'm a sucker for both the DK style and anything WWI. However…this has got to be at least the third if not fourth major redesign of the EYEWITNESS books since I starting reading them in the early '90s, and must say I'm not really enamored of the new design. But like all such print makeovers - magazines, newspapers, etc. - it usually takes a while to get used to the changes, and so I'm sure I'll eventually like this new format as well. Still, a jarring change from the earlier cover.
*Meanwhile, just two of the astonishingly horrific facts I learned in this book: during just the first day of the battle of the Somme, Germany killed or injured two British soldiers along every 3 feet of the 16-mile front; and by mid-1917, the British were firing over a million artillery shells PER DAY. And this was just the FIRST world war; since then we’ve obviously had a second, and I increasingly worry that we’re on the brink of a third - i.e., final - one…...more
Eric Ambler is one of those "golden age" names you often hear in the same sentence as others like Deighton, Hall, Higgins, Innes, MacInnes, MacLean, eEric Ambler is one of those "golden age" names you often hear in the same sentence as others like Deighton, Hall, Higgins, Innes, MacInnes, MacLean, etc. - except that while I knew the name, I knew absolutely none of his books. However, after reading the wonderful Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang: The Boom in British Thrillers from Casino Royale to The Eagle Has Landed back in 2018, I started looking for him in the cavernous racks of McKays Used Books, and so found and read the enjoyable Passage of Arms a few years back...but then lost track of him until recently finding both this book and A Quiet Conspiracy,* (which I brought home for a grand total of $1.05).
So…fun story, and unique in that you don't actually learn what the "plot within the plot" is - is it a spy story, a heist, a political thriller? - until the last 40 pages.** And it also offers a nice change of scenery from the CIA-, KGB- and MI6-heavy plots that tend to dominate the genre, in that it focuses exclusively on the Turkish intelligence and police services. Anyway, will continue to watch for other Amblers if and as they land on the shelves, and of course still have Conspiracy to get to - but no rush; these books are generally light fillers best saved for when one needs a break between weightier readings. * For some reason, these are both old British editions of the books - no idea how they ended up in Manassas. But they were easily recognizable as such, since traditional British book design - much like traditional British cuisine, (and with apologies to my English friends) - is known more for its stodgy functionality than cutting-edge creativity.
** Unless, of course, you've ever seen or even heard of the 1964 movie (view spoiler)["Topkapi" (hide spoiler)], which is based on this book but basically gives away the WHOLE IDEA in not only the film's trailer, synopses, etc., but also the title itself…so, basically everything....more
Once past the bizarro cover - we get it, Belgium - you like mussels!* - this is a wonderful and, I daresay, essential book for anyone spending any reaOnce past the bizarro cover - we get it, Belgium - you like mussels!* - this is a wonderful and, I daresay, essential book for anyone spending any real amount of time in Brussels. While Grand-Place aside, Brussels isn't known for it's old world charm - unlike either Bruges or Ghent - it certainly has its hidden treasures, many of which are virtually unknown to local residents (much less tourists) but are well-documented here.
Sure, there are the requisite art, history and science museums - a lot of them; and very good, with two of the best being (A) the outstanding Royal Army and History Military Museum (https://klm-mra.be/en), objectively one the largest and subjectively (at least IMO) one of the best military museums in the world, with an insanely large hall full or aircraft, a parking lot full of tanks, row after row of various artillery, and a towering wall of spiked German helmets - all different! - and (B) the Museum of Natural Sciences, which contains the largest display of iguanodons in the world (discovered in "nearby"** Bernissart - view it here: https://artsandculture.google.com/sto...).
But it's the oddball venues that are the most fun. The Fencing Museum, Museum of Musical Instruments, Clockarium Museum, Chicory Museum, Brussels Gueuze Museum (one of three beer-centric museums; we get it Belgium - you love beer!), Belgian Center for Comic Strip Art, and - one of my favorites - the Confederate Museum, as in the "fought Lincoln's damn Yankees" Confederates, so…whaa?
The "Contents" page is broken down by geography - not particularly helpful - but the theme-based index in the back gives you a more useful categorical breakout.
Anyhow - a great find (if you can find it!) for any future Bruxellois!
* Oddly enough, there is no mussels museum - so the cover is not only unattractive, but also pointless. Just sayin'.
** Because EVERYTHING in Brussels is pretty much "nearby."...more
This is the main guidebook we used for the big cities of Belgium during our time there (2006-08). Like all DK books this was beautifully produced and This is the main guidebook we used for the big cities of Belgium during our time there (2006-08). Like all DK books this was beautifully produced and also helped us get the most of our too-short time there. Bruges and particularly Ghent could have used bigger sections, but otherwise - a great guide, (although do buy one of the more recent edition)....more
Have read a half dozen or so other "Quiller" books, so when I saw that Hoopla had this first story, I figured I should give it a listen to see how QuiHave read a half dozen or so other "Quiller" books, so when I saw that Hoopla had this first story, I figured I should give it a listen to see how Quiller got started.
Well, this wasn't bad, but it was a very different Quiller. First, it is not a Cold War story, but is one of the earlier "let's round up those remaining Nazi" books like, say, Marathon Man. As such, it's not really a spy story, but almost a detective story, with Quiller working together with the German police. There were some common Quiller elements here - in particular, a LOT of car and foot surveillance (including the obligatory car chase that ends in flames) - but otherwise, I have to say this was just very different from Hall's subsequent books, and as such not really much of an indicator of what was to come.
I also realized here that, much like James Bond, Quiller is apparently immortal. This story is set in 1965, and has Quiller remembering his experiences during WWII. So assuming we was a young 18 in 1945 (although he was probably older), he was already at least 35 in this story - which would put him in his late-60s by his final book in 1996. I haven't read any of the last few books, so not sure if Hall was writing in real time, but I do believe Quiller Bamboo (1991) takes place in a post-Tiananmen China - i.e., after 1989 - and so Quiller would have been at least late-50s by then. I therefore found it mildly amusing that this book ends with Quiller's rumination that "I must be getting old. Getting old." Because, well…apparently not.
Back to the whole Nazis thing - this takes place a full 20 years after the end of the war, and yet the West was apparently still worried that surviving Nazi elements might somehow rise back into power. I therefore couldn't help mentally comparing this to our current situation here in the U.S., where it is all-too-depressingly feasible that our own far-right, proto-Fascist fringe that continues to worship at the alter of Donald Trump might continue to be a threat to American democracy two decades hence...a most unsettling thought...
FINAL NOTE: This book was also the basis of the one and only Quiller movie, 1965's "The Quiller Memorandum." It is available in full on Youtube, but PLEASE don't waste your time - it is just awful. No action, Quiller is an American no less, and rather than being introspective, intense and deadly, he is just kind of smarmy and feckless. Two big thumbs down!!...more
Beautifully photographed book featuring one of Europe's most beautiful towns and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in an oxbow of the Vltana River Beautifully photographed book featuring one of Europe's most beautiful towns and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in an oxbow of the Vltana River just two hours from Prague, one of Europe's most beautiful , (granted, I need to see more of Europe).
When we visited (2007), they still featured regular jousts, and you could buy mead on the street. Coolest of all, the dry moat surrounding the Český Krumlov Castle is stocked with bears!
Scenes of the Edward Norton film "The Illusionist" were filmed there, so it was fun watching with my sons when his carriage rounded a corner and have them exclaim "that's where we bought souvenirs!"...more
This was one of Remarque's final books, published in 1962 a full 33 years after his most famous work, All Quiet on the Western Front. Unlike Quiet, itThis was one of Remarque's final books, published in 1962 a full 33 years after his most famous work, All Quiet on the Western Front. Unlike Quiet, it is not truly a war story but more a just-before-the-war story, telling the tales of several "good Germans" (and probable Jews, although he never specifically says) trying to escape first Germany and then Europe altogether as the Nazi poison spread across the continent.
Unfortunately, I found the book just too "European" for me - too much sitting around discussing the meaning of life over coffee or cognac, compared to too little real action or plot. However, I did find an eerie similarity between the early pages of the book and our own current, increasingly nationalistic situation,* especially in this description of a crowd listening to a propaganda speech, (although blaring from speakers rather than delivered from the White House balcony):
"The faces of the listeners were concentrated and transfigured. They believed what the automaton was screaming at them; in a strange state of hypnosis, they applauded this disembodied voice as if it were a human being. The scene struck me as typical of the sinister, demonic mob spirit of our times, of all the frightened, hysterical crowds who follow slogans. It makes no difference whether the slogans come from the right or the left, as long as they relieve the masses of the hard work of thinking and the need to take responsibility..."
(* Hopefully by the time most future readers find this review, it will be post-November 2020, and then whole Era of Trump will be a distant and fading nightmare.)...more
Wow, this was not at all what I expected - and then it did not at all go where I though it was headed. So kudos for blindsiding me at the end there!
LoWow, this was not at all what I expected - and then it did not at all go where I though it was headed. So kudos for blindsiding me at the end there!
Looking at other reviews, this seems to be one of those love-it-or-hate-it books, and I can kinda see both sides. It took me quite a long time to get into it, and while I eventually got the hang of Boyne's rhythm - oft-repeated phrases, a simplified writing style as if aimed at a considerably younger readership than the material lends itself too - the friction between style and story continued to jar right up to the real gut-punch of a finale.
I ended up kinda thinking of this as almost a fable or fairy tale. With chapter names like "Out Of Bounds At All Times And No Exceptions" and "The Dot That Became a Speck That Became a Blob That Became a Figure That Became a Boy," there was a sense of playful "once upon a time" fantasy that made it otherwise difficult to take the story too seriously - which then made it all the more jarring when it ultimately did turn very serious. And the fact that so many things were never really named but merely alluded to - not just the whole "Nazis" and "concentration camp" thing, but also whatever violence was committed against Pavel and just what the heck the creepy relationship between Bruno's mom and Lieutenant Kotler was all about - also gives the whole thing a filter of unreality and almost dreaminess.
Other than using the word "unsettled," I still don't know how I ultimately feel about this book - hence the non-committal 3 stars. I'm therefore writing this review like I read the book - quickly and without pausing to really think, straight through from beginning to end. And when I'm done, then maybe I'll stop and reflect on what the hell just happened here.
ONE FINAL THOUGHT, on one the problems in writing in the voice of "foreigners:" I understand Boynes' purpose in having his young narrator mispronounce things in a way that gave them a deeper hidden meaning - calling the Führer "the Fury," or pronouncing Auschwitz as "Out-With" - but those obviously only work in English, not in German which all his characters were obviously supposed to be speaking. So...weird, and - again - kind of unsettling when you really think about it.
UPDATE: And bumping this up a star based on the movie version - didn't realize they HAD made a movie, but found it on HBO Max and it was very good, if equally shocking at the end. REGARDING HBO Max, if you get your cable TV or mobile service through Verizon, Cox, DIrectTV or many others (you can find the full list here: https://play.hbomax.com/login?reenter...), you may well have HBO Max included free with your service. I was surprised to learn that I had this through Verizon, and have watched a number of good films - both old ones like this as well as some very new releases - for free, a real boon during the ongoing quasi-quarantine. Check it out!...more
1) England was just consistently and absolutely HORRIBLE in their treatment of Ireland over the years, treating them as less tTwo points to make here:
1) England was just consistently and absolutely HORRIBLE in their treatment of Ireland over the years, treating them as less than human, and intentionally keeping them in a state of perpetual poverty - or else trying to drive them off the land so that they could take their farmland and use it for grazing. The famine - or famines, as there were a number of them over the years - were bad enough, generally occurred during otherwise times of plenty; the potatoes on which the native Irish barely subsisted may have been stricken, but their English overlords were still shipping the rest of Ireland's bounty to Europe and/or the British colonies while the Irish starved. But along with the famine came disease - dysentery, smallpox, typhus and tuberculosis. And then came the evictions, when the mainly English landlords turned out all starving peasants that couldn't pay their meager rents. The end result was a drop in Ireland's population from a high of 8.5 million 6.5 million by 1850 - and that continued to drop, largely through death and emigration to just 4.5 million by 1911. I could go on, but you get the picture - the English disdain for Ireland and the "moral evil of the selfish, perverse and turbulent character of its people" resulted in a genocide equivalent of that being conducted simultaneously against the native Americans here in the U.S. Indeed, when asked how they felt about their indigenous tenants dying from starvation, English landlords generally replied that they were "DELIGHTED TO BE RID OF THEM!"
2) But second - and perhaps not more important, but certainly more relevant: there are just way too many similarities between Ireland's an Gorta Mór and our own current situation facing the COVID-19 crisis. Especially here in the U.S., where our political leadership has been slow in recognizing the severity of the problem, basically trying to "wish it away," and then bringing too little too late when the situation didn't just "miraculously" (as our feckless President opined) go away. Meanwhile, people continued to die unnecessarily in the (then) hundreds and (now) tens of thousands.
UNRELATED MUSINGS, (feel free to skip): We do not, as a race, really learn from our mistakes, and so history has a nasty habit of repeating itself, (or at least rhyming with itself, as Mark Twain more accurately put it). And while human evolution is a painfully slow process, our technological revolution makes our failings infinitely more dangerous, like giving machine guns to monkeys. However...call me naive, but I'm hoping that this time, maybe we come out of this coronavirus a little smarter, a little better. I just read today that people in India can now see the Himalayas for the first time in decades, and fish are coming back to Venice. Maybe the world will never really go back to the way it was...but maybe it will start getting a little closer to where it should be....more
Don't know how this wasn't already listed on Goodreads, but it's a beautiful book and a nice companion piece to Ireland: The Emerald Isle, which I fouDon't know how this wasn't already listed on Goodreads, but it's a beautiful book and a nice companion piece to Ireland: The Emerald Isle, which I found together on Barnes & Noble's bargain shelf. There are a few others in the apparent series - Scotland and...okay, I don't remember what else - but the two I*eland books are the ones I bought, because those are the last two countries I've traveled to - although again, I hope not the last two countries I travel to; as I remain guardedly optimistic that someday this too shall pass, planes will once again take to the skies, and "we few, we happy few, we band of survivors" will once more be able to visit the rest of the world in person.
But...Iceland. Really good book; not quite coffee-table size but comparable production values. Still, nothing can do justice to this incredible island itself. My wife enjoyed our trip but doesn't care to ever go again - but I would move there in a heartbeat, (although probably kill myself by the first mid-winter). Also, they make the best candy in the WORLD, little drops of licorice covered in powdered chocolate called (of course) Super Boltar...
[image]
...and which are not only insanely good, but are also totally badass because after eating a bag of these bad boys every day for a week, they totally healed a nagging cough and sore throat that I'd had for over a year, and so should absolutely be the next Asgardian superhero:
Looks like all of my travel will be via armchair for the foreseeable future, but this is not a bad place to start. Beautiful book of mostly full-page Looks like all of my travel will be via armchair for the foreseeable future, but this is not a bad place to start. Beautiful book of mostly full-page photos with helpful but minimal captions, combined with a very reasonable price off of Barnes & Noble's bargain shelf. The only thing missing is a map or two that shows where the pictures (especially the landscapes and castles/monsteries) were taken, because it didn't take long for me to get lost in all the Donegals and Dingles and Ballybunions and Ballynacreggas.
Ireland was our last trip (October 2019), but we're hoping that it's not our last trip, if you know what I mean. Still, it's a day-to-day world right now, so who knows?
But in the meantime - pretty pictures and nice memories, and with Guinness in hand it's a far better way to pass an evening than watching the news......more
Another purchase during our recent trip to Ireland, this small book does a yeoman's job in tying together many of the historical bits and pieces we piAnother purchase during our recent trip to Ireland, this small book does a yeoman's job in tying together many of the historical bits and pieces we picked up along the way, (it also helped us get a lot more out of the movie Michael Collins,* which we watched as soon as we got home).
Fittingly, sadly, I bought this book at Kilmainham Jail, where 13 of the Rising's leaders were executed by firing squad. As per the title, Gallagher focuses about half his book on the Easter Rising itself, but he also does a great job providing the necessary "before and after." The first section is all background, beginning in 1789 when the earliest Irish republicans were first inspired by our own Revolution, and taking us right up through WWI. And then the last part deals with everything after that bloody week, from the Anglo-Irish Treaty through the North-South partition (which I never really understood before), and on up through the 2010s, (so that technically, this book will be out of date in just three days). But the whole middle of the book is a day-by-day and nearly blow-by-blow account of a history-making event that I'm embarrassed to say I'd never really even heard or before, but which is now impossible to forget.
One minor difficulty: while I enjoy history, I am generally shite at remembering dates and names and such, and so I found it difficult keeping straight all the various organizations and political parties involved - the IRB, ICA, IRA, Provisional IRA, Real IRA; the Fenians, Sinn Féin, Fianna Fáil, Na Fianna Éireann...you get the idea. And then the personal names, to my uneducated Yankee ear, sounded like a roster of stereotypical Irish first-name/last-name combinations: James Connell, Daniel O'Connor, Elizabeth O'Farrell, Thomas MacDonagh, Tom Clarke, Sean MacDermott, John MacBride, and many more. I apologize to any Irish 7-year-old who probably knows all these names by heart, but I found myself at times wishing for an Abraham Lincoln or Ulysses S. Grant that I could latch onto; and was thankful for the occasional Cathal Brugha or Pádraig Pearse, because even though I can't pronounce either one, I would at least recognize those names each time I ran across them.
Overall, a fascinating, informative book - alternatively depressing and infuriating, but ultimately ending on a hopeful note. And apparently part of a fascinating series as well. I also bought A Pocket History of the Irish Famine, which promises to be even more of a downer; but Gill Books also publishes other titles such as A Pocket History of the Irish Revolution, A Pocket Guide to Irish Castles, a general Pocket Guide to Irish History, and several others - I should have bought more!
*Michael Collins was a fascinating movie, IMHO. While various websites discuss its historical accuracy (or lack thereof), I found it largely consistent with the story in this book. My main complaint was having the 26-year-old Collins played by the 44-year-old Neeson, so that instead of looking like a young man recruiting his peers, he looked more like an impending geezer getting young boys to do his dirty work. I also found it rather insulting that they showed Tom Clark being blindfolded during his execution, when in fact he refused the blindfold and faced the firing squad with eyes wide open, proud and stubborn to the end. Which is to say, quintessentially Irish....more
16 JUNE 2020...AND AS OF TODAY, DEATHS IN THE UNITED STATES FROM COVID-19 HAVE OFFICIALLY SURPASSED THE TOTAL NUMBER OF U.S. MILITARY-RELATED FATALITI16 JUNE 2020...AND AS OF TODAY, DEATHS IN THE UNITED STATES FROM COVID-19 HAVE OFFICIALLY SURPASSED THE TOTAL NUMBER OF U.S. MILITARY-RELATED FATALITIES IN WORLD WAR I, (FROM BOTH COMBAT AND DISEASE). PLEASE CONTINUE TO DO YOUR PART IN FIGHTING THIS LATEST GLOBAL CONFLICT - WEAR A MASK, MAINTAIN DISTANCING...PERHAPS JUST STAY INSIDE AND READ. AND THEN COME NOVEMBER, VOTE.
Not a fan of 600-page books in general, and have little interest in Shaara's endless trilogies on the Civil War and World War II. However, I really enjoyed his stand-alone on the Mexican War, Gone For Soldiers (which is basically a Civil War prequel), and as I've been reading a lot about World War I these past few years, I thought I'd finally give this a go, since it's been sitting on my nightstand for over a year.
PARTS 1-3: The first 2/3s of the book focus on the air war, which is what mainly attracted me to this story in the first place. I've been fascinated by WWI aircraft since I was a kid, making all the Revell plastic models (as well as a few balsa and paper ones), taking multiple trips to the amazing and nearby Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome (which included a flight on an actual 1941 Tiger Moth), even playing the old "Dogfight" board game:
[image]
And so I probably found this part of the book more interesting than it really is - because frankly, not a lot happens. Planes go up, (some) planes come home, the surviving pilots mourn and/or drink. But this isn't a fault of the book so much as the war itself, which was bogged down for literal years at a time, with few major battles and little overall movement other than the sad ebb and flow of trench warfare. Still, for the biplane/triplane-loving kid in me, I found it fascinating to follow the introduction of new aircraft as technology and the war progressed - from Eindecker to Albatross to Fokker D-7 and ultimately the infamous DR-7 triplane on the German side; and from Nieuport to Sopwith Camel (with its own lesser-known triplane) to SPAD (which I finally learned stood for "Societe pour Aviation et ses Derives") for the Allies.
Which reminds me: for anyone who shares my enthusiasm for these planes, you really should pick up the long-out-of-print (but still available on Amazon) Color Profiles of World War I Combat Planes, which has gorgeous technical illustrations of 25 of the war's remarkable aircraft, (don't let the lame cover dissuade you; the pictures inside are awesome).
PART 4: The last section of the book then focuses on American involvement in the ground war, which to my surprise (although I should have known this) only lasted for the last six months from May-November 1918. And while it started off fairly interesting, it soon came to reflect the war itself, lasting far too long and becoming a real slog by the end.
Interestingly, other than America's seemingly "could-do-no-wrong" General Pershing and the French Marshal Pétain (who later went on to become France's biggest collaborator with the Nazis, and who went on to die in island exile like Napoleon), none of the leadership characters - military or political - come off particularly well. It is the men in the trenches and the men in the air who fought and won this too-forgotten war, and it is their well-described sacrifice which elevates this book to its final 4-star rating. That said, if you are only going to read one book on "The Great War," you would do better with any of the following:
Or else you can watch either the fictional "1917," or Peter Jackson's tour-de-force documentary "They Shall Not Grow Old." And while James Franco's "Flyboys" is just awful as a movie, it does have some outstanding aerial combat scenes, if you want to see what the air war might have looked like....more
Another in the overall fascinating series Scientists in the Field, this one follows Icelandic entomologist Erling Ólafsson as he studies the developmeAnother in the overall fascinating series Scientists in the Field, this one follows Icelandic entomologist Erling Ólafsson as he studies the development of life on the volcanic island of Surtsey, which popped out of the North Atlantic Ocean in 1963.
Fascinating premise, but after the islands dramatic birth it quickly becomes a repetitive search for birds, bugs and weeds. Would have made a great Smithsonian article, but I basically had all the information I needed by page 12, and I definitely don't see any younger readers having the patience to stick this one out to the end.
As always, however, Iceland and its people remain a fascinating subject - I had no idea that by law, Icelandic parents are only allowed to pick their children's names from a list approved by the government. And looking around here in the U.S. sometimes, that might not be such a bad idea!...more
Met and chatted with Laura at a recent SCBWI conference, and so of course had to buy her book.
Under a War-Torn Sky is a good but fairly straight-forwMet and chatted with Laura at a recent SCBWI conference, and so of course had to buy her book.
Under a War-Torn Sky is a good but fairly straight-forward WWII story, so don't expect any complicated, Alistair MacLean-type double-crosses - "the good guy was really bad, but then turns out he was really good!" But then again, it's aimed at a much younger audience, (officially Young Adult but IMHO it fits more in that netherland between mature Middle Grade and early YA), and it firmly hits that mark.
Great to see someone aiming historical fiction at a younger market - what better way to inculcate an interest in learning history?...more
Surprisingly good book, since the only other Gross I've read was the supremely awful No Way Back, (whose badness is actually telegraphed in its terribSurprisingly good book, since the only other Gross I've read was the supremely awful No Way Back, (whose badness is actually telegraphed in its terribly designed cover). But thanks to some solid recommends from GR friends, I gave this a listen and was pleasantly surprised.
And sure, some if its plot twists were less than twisty, put thanks in fair measure to Edoardo Ballerini's excellent narration, it was a solid 3+ stars, which I'm rounding up just because my expectations going in were so low.
NOTE: It's really depressing to read WWII stories about the Nazis right now, since in today's political situation here in America, I'm no longer as shocked as I once was to sit back and wonder "how did the German people allow someone like Hitler to come to power?" Now, it's more like "ok, I'm starting to see how that might happen..."...more
Loading...
