The Street Sweeper by Elliot Perlman

A quick rundown… A saga of several characters, seemingly unconnected, that transcends time and moves from WWII to the present day.

Strengths: Excellent historical research, particularly in relation to Auschwitz.

Weaknesses: The explanation at the end about what was true and what wasn’t; threads of characters took a long tied to get tied up.

Why I read it: Christmas present.

Pages: 554

Published: 2011

Publisher: Random House Australia

Setting: New York, Chicago, Poland, Melbourne

Rating: 8 out of 10

If you liked this, try: Fall of Giants by Ken Follett

The Street Sweeper is a complex book and I’m not entirely sure how I felt about it. I know some people are dedicated fans of Elliot Perlman’s work, but this is the first of his books that I’ve read. I’m honestly not sure whether I’ll read another one.

You might wonder why I gave this book such a high rating then. It’s due to the detailed history included in the book regarding the death camps at Auschwitz. Perlman tells the story of Jewish men working for the Germans (unwillingly, only as an aid to survive) to kill and bury the Jewish people of Europe in a blunt, horrendous fashion. It’s kind of a car crash scene- you want to look away but you can’t. The worst thing is that you know that the suffering and depravity is all real.

But I digress. What does Auschwitz have to do with a book titled The Street Sweeper? It’s a story within a story linking up a number of seemingly unconnected people across New York and the world. All the characters are linked, but it takes time for both them and the reader to discover exactly how. I found that part rather farfetched. The odds of finding someone in Australia who is linked to a European immigrant to America through an Australian-born professor of a New York university studying something outside his field must be longer than winning the lottery.

Two characters tell parallel stories across New York – Lamont is a former prisoner working in a hospital, who strikes up a friendship with an elderly gentleman with numbers tattooed on his arm. This then leads into the story of Auschwitz. Adam is the Australian-born professor who risks losing his job if he doesn’t find an area of research quickly. Through his friend (and boss)’s father, he happens upon what is thought to be the first recorded oral history – from people in DP camps (displaced persons) in Europe post-World War II. These stories eventually combine, but not until the very end. In addition to the history, Lamont is looking for his lost daughter and Adam breaks up with his partner. I felt that the modern-day characters were a little superfluous at times and tended to repeat themselves excessively, particularly in the early parts of the novel. It took nearly 200 pages for me to become engrossed, and that was primarily due to the history side of things.

When I finished the book, I read that a lot of the events in the book were real – not just the things about Auschwitz, which I had expected; but the inspiration for Henry Border, was a real person. His name was David P. Boder and the wire recorder, people he interviewed and even the name of his book were all the same as the fictional version. To be honest, I felt a little ripped off. I would have liked to know this before I read the book!

Perlman’s research for this book was intricately detailed and it shows in the high level of detail of the book. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always make the narrative flow or create hooks for the reader to continue reading. I think I would read another book by this author if I was interested in the history, but otherwise, I’m not so sure.

I read this book as part of Australian Literature Month, hosted by Kimbofo at Reading Matters.

Atonement by Ian McEwan

A quick rundown… A young girl’s statement changes things for the rest of her family forever. How can she atone for her sin?

Strengths: The different types of writing in each part, the raw desolation of the war.

Weaknesses: The ending makes you want to immediately flip back to the front and start again.

Why I read it: It’s a movie and the book won lots of prizes.

Pages: 351

Published: 2003

Publisher: Anchor

Setting: England, France.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

If you liked this, try: Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

It’s difficult to know where to start in this review of Atonement – many people are familiar with the book and many more have seen the film with Keira Knightley (I haven’t; I thought Keira played Briony, not Cecelia). It seems from a small amount of research I’ve done (i.e. asking friends) that opinion of Atonement is divided – you either love it or hate it. I’m one of the former, so you’ll need to excuse me for my gushings.

Briony is a young girl, determined to put on a play with her cousins for her brother’s homecoming. But over the course of one day, everything changes and Briony tells a lie, which affects the rest of her family. Both she and her older sister separate from the family as they grow older, but the events of that day are never forgotten.

This is the first McEwan book I’ve read and I was told by others to be patient, that his books grow on you. While lyrically beautiful, it did take some time to get used to the style of this first section, which is quite floaty and dreamlike (and I’m told, in the style of Virginia Woolf). It also reminded me of how a hot summer day feels – kind of endless and somewhat detached. I enjoyed this, but didn’t rave about it. The second part, which describes WWII in detail, was sharply focused and graphic in comparison to the first section. I really also enjoyed Briony’s trials as a nurse – it was unsympathetically confronting. This was where I was hooked, with the shocking turn of events. And the ending…well, I felt like flipping back to the front and starting the book all over again. It made me question everything I’d read previously in the book – which of the characters were not to be trusted? Were there any holes in the story? McEwan leaves the reader to try to figure this out rather than join the dots. It’s a little frustrating, but it certainly ensures the reader will be thinking about the book long after it’s finished.

There are some light moments in this book – the khaki green Amo chocolate bar for the soldiers for instance, but most of it is about one events and how everything after is distorted – possibly forever. It is painfully slow in some places, but picks up in others. Well worth the rewards if you persevere.

Next to Love by Ellen Feldman

A quick rundown… Three American women and what befalls them during WWII and after. Three different but plausible stories.

Strengths: Easy to read, light and interesting.

Weaknesses: A lot of pain and compromise. It’s not always rosy.

Why I read it: Reviewed for Net Galley.

Pages: 320

Published: 2011

Publisher: Spiegel & Grau

Setting: USA

Rating: 8 out of 10

If you liked this, try: The Morland series during World War I deals with similar themes.

Next to Love was an absolute find on Net Galley for me. This was such a cozy book to read despite its content. The book opens as Babe, who is running the Western Union Telegram office in a town in the USA, is rushed off her feet as telegrams flood in from the War Office. The town receives many cases of bad news in just one day, affecting her friends Millie and Grace but not her.

The narrative then moves back in time to before America’s entry into WWII when all three of the girls were still at school. It then goes through each of their marriages and how they received the news that their husband was dead – or alive. But the majority of the book focuses on the period after the war and the issues each woman faces. Babe got Claude back, but he’s not the same man. How can they go on? Grace lost her husband and is extremely devoted to his memory – how can she move on? Some say that Millie is moving on too quickly from her widow status, but is she? Feldman covers many topics that are not generally discussed in books set in this time period – post-traumatic stress disorder, remarriage and grief. She also tells us the story from the female, left behind point of view which is refreshing.

This was a quick read and is very easy to pick up again after a day of work or during busy times. My only small gripe would be that it would be useful to have different fonts for each of the girls’ perspectives – it can occasionally be difficult to keep track of whose story is being told.

This is not a war story, but a story about the personal effects of war. The reactions and thoughts of each characters will remain with you long after the book is closed.

Thank you to Random House for allowing me to read this galley.

Coventry by Helen Humphreys

In a nutshell… The story of two women the night Coventry was bombed during World War II.

Strengths: Conveys emotion of that night well, excellent prose.

Weaknesses: Too short!

Why I read it: Sounded interesting

Pages: 177

Published: 2009

Publisher: Harper Collins Canada

Setting: Coventry, England

Rating: 9 out of 10

If you liked this, try: Their Finest Hour and a Half by Lissa Evans

Coventry may be more aptly described as a novella, given its slim silhouette, but its content certainly punches well above its weight. It is the story of two women who meet initially during World War I, but the majority of the plot takes place during the night of the Coventry bombing during World War II on November 14, 1940. This is the story Harriet, a widow from WWI, now a substitute firewatcher on the roof of the cathedral who meets Jeremy while trying to escape the city. Their night of near misses and helping out complete strangers is in contrast to Maeve, Jeremy’s mother, who anxiously awaits his turn before going out to look for him herself.

I read this book in only a couple of days, but its impact is much stronger. The author has an excellent use of language in re-creating the scene of the bombings, right down to the fear, smells and sights in only a few words. It’s incredibly visually descriptive. It also captures the emotions very well – from fear to anguish to confusion during that night. The characters are well written and the reader bonds with them, crossing our fingers with Maeve that Jeremy makes it home, and feeling Harriet’s loneliness. There is an allure and mystery to their backgrounds, but not so much so that it leaves a gap in their character.

I wasn’t familiar with the Coventry bombing before reading this book but after doing some research, I found that this book is very accurate, down to the names of buildings that were destroyed.

If I had to sum up this book in a single word, that word would be powerful. This skinny little book brings to life a page from history. It’s definitely one to be taken off the shelf and read, preferably in a single sitting. It will haunt you for a long time afterwards, with the terror of the bombing and fires and the power of the Coventry people to survive and grow from that night.

These are pictures from the bombing, courtesy of Wikipedia:

The day after – Winston Churchill visits the remains of the cathedral (where Harriet and Jeremy were firewatching)

Owen Owen, the department store that is mentioned in the novel is centre here – burnt during the bombing

Small Island by Andrea Levy

Small Island was recently made into a television series. Like most book to TV/film adaptations, I haven’t seen it. I tend to reach for the book first, then look into seeing the show. Small Island is also a book that’s won a lot of prizes – the Orange Prize, the Whitbread Award and the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize. It’s a good book, with an original idea.

I can’t say that I can recall reading other books about Jamaica, let alone Jamaicans in WWII England and beyond. Levy has taken her own history (her parents moved to England from Jamaica) and made it into an engaging story. The story focuses on two husband and wife pairs: Hortense and Gilbert, newly arrived from Jamaica and Queenie and Bernard, an English couple who Hortense and Gilbert rent their room from. But all is not well – Bernard is absent and nobody knows why, Hortense and Gilbert don’t seem to get along and Queenie has her secrets. What are they?

Levy tells the story by moving back and forth between 1948 (when the story is set) and Before, giving us each character’s backstory and unravelling some of the mysteries occurring in 1948. The ‘Before’ sections deal primarily with World War II for Gilbert (he was in the RAF), Bernard (also in the RAF in India) and Queenie (who was dealing with the London bombings). They also delve back into childhood and early adult years, revealing how the two couples came to meet and why things are so awkward. In fact, the majority of the book takes place in the past – I’d be interested to see how the television series copes with this – moving forward and back like the novel or telling the story in a linear fashion. A lot of the suspense comes from not knowing a character’s past, but catching glimpses of problems in 1948. Back in 1948, there are a few bombshells where my mouth was hanging open in surprise – I didn’t see those twists and turns!

The characters in Small Island are flawed. Bernard is very racist by today’s standards, while Queenie is a lot more open-minded. Hortense is very particular with her visions of what England should be like, while Gilbert rolls with the majority of unfair things that happen to him. It was interesting to see the Jamaican couple’s perceptions of what they believed England to be like and the reality they were faced with, not to mention the racism from the English and Americans. The English are quite ignorant in their knowledge of Jamaica, to Hortense and Gilbert’s disgust (England is so important to them, why is Jamaica not so?); it made me think if other countries in the Commonwealth suffer from the same inflated image problem (can you tell me much about Australia?) Which country is the ‘small island’ with all its connotations?

This was thought provoking and original as well as an entertaining book – thoroughly worthy of the awards it won. Well done Andrea Levy.

Read this if: you’re interested in Jamaican history and its ties to England or just looking for a cracking read.

9 out of 10.

The Siege by Helen Dunmore

I came to read The Siege in rather a roundabout way. I bought the sequel, The Betrayal, at Singapore’s Changi airport with my last Singaporean dollars due to its interesting cover and its Stalinist Russia setting. Settling in to read this book at home the next day, my first thought was ‘Uh-oh! Sequel!’ Thanks to the wonders of ebooks and the interest, I was able to download The Siege from Kobo and start reading in under 10 minutes. A store can’t beat that!*

The Siege covers the Leningrad siege during World War II – the winter of 1941/42 to be precise. We start as the war becomes closer to Leningrad through the eyes of the Levin family – Anna, her father Mikhail and younger brother Kolya. Anna’s mother died in childbirth and Anna has had to miss university and take up a position as a nursery school assistant while looking after Kolya. She is the practical one; her father is a writer and dreamer, eternally watching and waiting to be taken away as he has fallen out of favour with the government. As things worsen, Anna is forced to search for food, ending up in strange and dangerous circumstances. Mikhail is injured and is looked after by his former flame, Marina. Fortunately for Anna, there is one bright spot in her life: Andrei, a medical student. But will they survive the siege?

While I didn’t find the portrayal of the siege as harrowing as that in The Bronze Horseman (probably because I knew what was going to happen) it was still powerfully written and it’s a testament to Helen Dunmore that I carried on straightaway with The Betrayal. It’s written in the present tense, so it’s like the plot is unfolding before you, like a play. This does make it seem a little detached at times, but the tone of starvation and fear still comes across very powerfully.

Read it if: you’re interested in the Russian people’s perspective during WWII.

* Absolutely nothing wrong with bookstores (this is a hot topic in Australia at present) and I do support my local bookstore well financially as well as investing in ebooks.