“this book looks really good..about what age to u thinks this is for? ”
“Please come visit the discussion group JARS, we're talking about this book right now! Would love to have additional input and incite.”
“Nemirovsky did a good job in portraying the intensity of the situation (i.e. the flight, hunger, war, etc.). Unfortunately, it is unfinished due to the author's capture and eventual death. I liked the ending of the first part and how it jumped from each character to give a synopsis of where they left off and a glimpse of how they will survive the occupation.”
“This novel is a memoir by a Russian Jew who was in France during the German occupation. It's an amazing novel given the circumstances under which it was written and the author's youth. She meant it to be part of a suite of five movements (comparable to a symphony), but was unable to finish the final movements because she became a victim of the Nazis.”
“I liked the writing style, and there was a lot of close observation here, however, I found the beginning quite disjointed and the ending dropped off in an anti-climactic way. I realize that this was not intended to be the end of the story, but after everything the characters went through it was odd to just have the German soldiers march off into the sunset.”
“I loved this book. The tragedy of the author's death in Auschwitz is all too felt by the reader as two of the four parts were never finished. A book about the French during the exodus and occupation. A little humor. A must-read.”
“This is my current favorite novel - I.N. does such a good job of describing French manners. It is so subtle, the writing so detailed, precise and delicate. ”
“I found this book fascinating because of the historical context and the author's own personal history. Her social commentary about how people act during war time was a bit shocking/depressing. I guess I thought people would pull together to help one another more during tragic times but she portrayed some really egotistical, selfish people through her characters. I found some of these characters comical at first and then thought, oh my, she must have run into such characters during the German occupation of France. It also made me wonder how I would act during wartime. I only hope I don't ever have to test my theory.”
“an intriguing story, a backdrop of world war II--i found it to be unique in style and presentation,,i didnt want the book to end, and when it did I was left hanging with a real appetite for more information on the characters. The author died in auschwitz, but her words remain alive.”
“Poignant reminder that authors do not exist in a vaccuum. Nemirovsky was hauled off to a concentration camp before she had the opportunity to finish this. ”
