WWII Fiction

[annis]

"Skeletons at the Feast" has been highly recommended to me, so it's helpful to have confirmation that it's good. I'm being restrained and waiting for it to become available at the library- hopefully not too long. Also, it will give me a small break from WWII- I seem to have been spending a lot of time recently in that era!

[tsjmom]

[quote=""Margaret""]Sue Gillmor has contributed a review of a World War II novel by Joanne Harris, Five Quarters of the Orange, for HistoricalNovels.info. It's a rather dark novel about a woman's experiences as a child in German-occupied France. Joanne Harris is also the author of Chocolat.[/quote]

I'm just starting this. I liked 'Chocolat' the movie so I'm delving into more books by Joanne Harris.

[Margaret]

When you finish, be sure and let us know what you thought of it, Tjsmom.

[EC2]

I read this one several years ago. I'll leave you to your impressions but I have a review of my own to post (still on file) when you're done. My favourite Joanne Harris novel is Blackberry Wine.

[Ash]

[quote=""tsjmom""]I'm just starting this. I liked 'Chocolat' the movie so I'm delving into more books by Joanne Harris.[/quote]

Oh you must read the book. The movie really did not do the book justice.

[tsjmom]

Thanks EC2 about the Blackberry Wine rec and Ash about encouraging me to read Chocolat. It's added to my TBR!

[Caveowl]

What is my favorite WWII book? For combat scenes, probably the audio version of David Robbins "War of the Rats" about sniper warfare between a Russian and a German, based on a real series of events. For civilians caught up in the horrors, probably "Pied Piper" by Nevil Shute, wherein an elderly Englishman is caught behind German lines in eastern France.

In the discussion above, Pressfield's "Killing Rommel" is mentioned. I also liked Ken Follett's "Eye of the Needle" where British try to capture an Egyptian/German spy.

Ralph Graves, in "Share of Honor" shows how Anglo/American civilians and soldiers coped with Japanese imprisonment. Also another Nevil Shute, "Town Named Alice." For a different view, in "Ice Brothers," Sloan Wilson wrote about how the Coast Guard tried to reduce German activities in the north Atlantic

[annis]

I didn't know that Ralph Graves wrote a novel with a WWII setting, Caveowl. A while ago I discovered his novel "The Lost Eagles" (thanks to Chuck). This is a historical novel in which a fictional Roman, Severus Varus, searches for the legionary emblems lost by his kinsman Quintilius Varus at the 9 AD Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in Germania. I notice that it's been nominated for a Bad Cover Award on this forum (though IMO nothing can top the 1980 cover of Poul Anderson's "Rogue Sword")
I was loved "Lost Eagles", a tale about honour, duty and sacrifice, and a real heart-wrencher.

[Caveowl]

for the tip on Ralph Graves "Lost Eagles." I checked on WorldCat (http://www.worldcat.org) and saw that it is available at the Oregon State University library. By checking Worldcat first, I'm making it easier for our local ILL (interlibrary loan) clerk. The OSU copy because, unlike many libraries, they accept online requests and usually ship within 24 hours.

When requesting ILLs, be assertive. Some libraries don't promote interlibrary loan service, because the costs are a lot more expensive than borrowers might realize. Counting staff time and postage, or courier service, cost estimates range from $15 to $30 per loan. Borrowers can gain "brownie points" by being able to tell the library staff where to search, particularly for those books which few libraries "hold." (Don't be confident your local loan clerk is aware of WorldCat.)

[Caveowl]

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