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March 30, 2008
An Era in History
This past month my reading has taken me to both World War I and World War II and the time in between. These books have been in different genres including mystery, biography and historical fiction. The most amazing book was The Zookeeper’ s Wife: A War Story by Diane Ackerman. Jan and Antonina Zabinski headed a world renowned zoo in Warsaw that was a haven in a busy city. Due to the Zabinski’s courage and bravery it became a haven for hiding Jews during the Nazi occupation of Poland. Ackerman tells a true story of Jan Zabinski’s involvement in the Polish resistance but the story centers more on Antonina and her gentle and humane way that she took care of the Jews that came under her roof during that awful time. This heartbreaking book reminds you of the triumph of the human spirit even in the most extreme circumstances imaginable.
Imagine a world where the Allies are losing to the Germans and the Germans are on their way to England. Imagine you wake up one morning and all the men in your Wales village have disappeared to fight in the English resistance. This is the premise of Owen Sheers debut novel Resistance and it is a scary world. The story is told through the women of the village and the German captain who takes over a deserted home with his small band of soldiers. They reach an uneasy truce only to have it shattered when war once again invades their lives. This is a book you can't put down and I will look forward to reading Sheers' future works.
The period between World War I and II was a volatile time in Europe and both Touchstone by Laurie R. King and An Incomplete Revenge take place in England during this period. Touchstone is a thriller and a mystery concerning Harris Stuyvesant, an agent for the U.S. Justice Department. He comes to London to investigate terrorist bombings that have taken place in America but that he believes originate from a British organization. Stuyvesant is a World War I vet and in the course of his investigation he meets a shell shocked vet who may have the ability to read minds. This book could have been edited down a bit but the story is compelling and the last 100 pages are hard to walk away from!
Maisie Dobbs is a British investigator who was also extremely affected by the time she served as a nurse in World War I. This is the fourth in a series involving this character but you do not have to have read the others in order to pick An Incomplete Revenge up. When you read this series all you want to do is curl up on a couch with a blanket and a cup of tea and read away. Happy Reading!!!
Posted by Claudia at March 30, 2008 09:29 AM
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Comments
Claudia, I have Touchstone in hand and can't wait to start reading it. I also found an older Laurie King title, Keeping Watch, which I've never read before, so I look forward to that one, too. Keep your recommendations coming!
Posted by: Beth at April 9, 2008 11:00 PM