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Library for the War-Wounded
The internationally bestselling novel- a daughter's portrait of her WWII veteran father, assembled from shards of memory.
We called him Vati, Dad. Not Papa. He thought it sounded modern. He wanted to present himself to us, and through us, as a man in tune with the modern age. A man who could be read as having a different past.
Inspired by the author's family history, Library for the War-Wounded transports readers to the aftermath of World War II, uncovering the life of Helfer's father, Josef. Born with the stigma of illegitimacy, he found solace in books, and his education was eventually funded by the Catholic Church. Drafted into the Wehrmacht, he witnessed the horrors of the Eastern Front and returned from the war an amputee. He married his nurse and brought his family to the high, idyllic slopes of the Austrian Alps, where he took a position as manager of a convalescent home for war-wounded.
Josef was a man of many mysteries. To his daughter Monika, none was greater than his obsession with the home's unlikely and remarkable library, his great treasure and comfort as the country barrels away from the memory of war. He will stop at nothing to save it-even when it tears apart his family.
Beautifully restrained and compressed, Library for the War-Wounded turns lived experience into great literature by confronting the universal Can we ever truly know our parents?
We called him Vati, Dad. Not Papa. He thought it sounded modern. He wanted to present himself to us, and through us, as a man in tune with the modern age. A man who could be read as having a different past.
Inspired by the author's family history, Library for the War-Wounded transports readers to the aftermath of World War II, uncovering the life of Helfer's father, Josef. Born with the stigma of illegitimacy, he found solace in books, and his education was eventually funded by the Catholic Church. Drafted into the Wehrmacht, he witnessed the horrors of the Eastern Front and returned from the war an amputee. He married his nurse and brought his family to the high, idyllic slopes of the Austrian Alps, where he took a position as manager of a convalescent home for war-wounded.
Josef was a man of many mysteries. To his daughter Monika, none was greater than his obsession with the home's unlikely and remarkable library, his great treasure and comfort as the country barrels away from the memory of war. He will stop at nothing to save it-even when it tears apart his family.
Beautifully restrained and compressed, Library for the War-Wounded turns lived experience into great literature by confronting the universal Can we ever truly know our parents?
208 pages, Hardcover
Published January 16, 2024
30 people are currently reading
3294 people want to read
About the author
Monika Helfer
43 books89 followersMonika Helfer (1947), vormals Monika Helfer-Friedrich, ist eine österreichische Schriftstellerin.
Thema ihrer Bücher sind oft schwierige Familienbeziehungen, wobei sie einen besonderen Fokus auf die Kinderperspektive legt. „Die Figuren in Monika Helfers Büchern haben Mut, Überlebenswillen und den gesunden Trotz eines Kindes, nämlich den Trotz, sich von gesellschaftlichen Wertvorstellungen und Kategorisierungen nicht beirren zu lassen“, so Dorothea Zanon in ihrer Laudatio anlässlich der Verleihung des Österreichischen Ehrenkreuzes für Wissenschaft und Kunst I. Klasse.
Thema ihrer Bücher sind oft schwierige Familienbeziehungen, wobei sie einen besonderen Fokus auf die Kinderperspektive legt. „Die Figuren in Monika Helfers Büchern haben Mut, Überlebenswillen und den gesunden Trotz eines Kindes, nämlich den Trotz, sich von gesellschaftlichen Wertvorstellungen und Kategorisierungen nicht beirren zu lassen“, so Dorothea Zanon in ihrer Laudatio anlässlich der Verleihung des Österreichischen Ehrenkreuzes für Wissenschaft und Kunst I. Klasse.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
December 31, 2023
There were certain passages in this book that were really lovely, and I did read the book in a day, so it wasn’t altogether boring, but the timeline was so random that it was a bit hard to follow. It was disjointed and felt like a first draft of a book.
June 21, 2024
A memoir? A family saga? Yes to both. A bit convoluted in style. Not strong or dynamic in any way. Just a rendition of childhood memories, growing up, questions in adulthood for things that were not quite clearly seen or understood to a child or concealed family secrets.
At times I liked the writing, others, not so much. Lots of jumping around in time, too many relatives that seemed to all have some kind of quirk. A mother, or Mutti, that flits in and of her family’s life. The father, an amputee with prosthetic leg from the war, moves his family into a home for the war wounded. He loves his books and in this book, his treasured library books and how he got them and what happens to them when he dies, these are housed in the home for the war wounded and housed in the memory of the author.
I was attracted to the title as I always am for key words - a library? Yes!
In a home for the war wounded? Hmm…That’s a different spin on things, this could be interesting, so yes!
But, all is not as I hoped for and anticipated, so 2 weak stars awarded.
At times I liked the writing, others, not so much. Lots of jumping around in time, too many relatives that seemed to all have some kind of quirk. A mother, or Mutti, that flits in and of her family’s life. The father, an amputee with prosthetic leg from the war, moves his family into a home for the war wounded. He loves his books and in this book, his treasured library books and how he got them and what happens to them when he dies, these are housed in the home for the war wounded and housed in the memory of the author.
I was attracted to the title as I always am for key words - a library? Yes!
In a home for the war wounded? Hmm…That’s a different spin on things, this could be interesting, so yes!
But, all is not as I hoped for and anticipated, so 2 weak stars awarded.
December 3, 2023
Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.
This book was difficult to rate on multiple levels. It did, like others have said, come across as a memoir as she used her name as one of the characters, whether or not it was, I have no idea.
Although the story was interesting with the library, the home and then the girls growing up, the writing was incredibly erratic. Sometimes changing stories from paragraph to paragraph, which made it very difficult to follow the story line and know when in the story an event was taking place. It wasn't even that the story was not told in a linear way, but that the timeline that you were reading about jumped so frequently into the past and future right after one another. I might not be the right audience for this book, as I struggle with stream of consciousness writing.
Some of the tangents that author went on seemed thrown in, for no reason as they were not part of the plot or any subplot.
Although I am rating this book a 2, I do think that the story within the book, however convoluted this version is, could be re-organized/written into a lovely book. I will say though, I'm not sure the title really fits, as only a portion of the book takes place there.
This book was difficult to rate on multiple levels. It did, like others have said, come across as a memoir as she used her name as one of the characters, whether or not it was, I have no idea.
Although the story was interesting with the library, the home and then the girls growing up, the writing was incredibly erratic. Sometimes changing stories from paragraph to paragraph, which made it very difficult to follow the story line and know when in the story an event was taking place. It wasn't even that the story was not told in a linear way, but that the timeline that you were reading about jumped so frequently into the past and future right after one another. I might not be the right audience for this book, as I struggle with stream of consciousness writing.
Some of the tangents that author went on seemed thrown in, for no reason as they were not part of the plot or any subplot.
Although I am rating this book a 2, I do think that the story within the book, however convoluted this version is, could be re-organized/written into a lovely book. I will say though, I'm not sure the title really fits, as only a portion of the book takes place there.
April 9, 2024
A subject matter that should have been appealing to me; but it was a disappointment.
January 29, 2024
Monika tells the story of her family, focusing on her father, in particular, in this lovely and affecting autofiction that asks what we really know about the people closest to us. Josef, her father, was a poor Austrian student drafted into Hitler's army near the end of the war, and lost half his leg on the Eastern front, after which he met his future wife, a field nurse. The best part of the narrator's childhood was spent with her parents and siblings while they ran a home for disabled veterans in the mountains. There, he taught her to love and care for the books in the library, and this and other idyllic memories would carry her through more difficult times (**spoiler alert**) after the death of her mother, when the kids were farmed out to relatives for a while. But the family re-forms, and the author/narrator is adept at creating a throughline while also going back and forth in time, musing to herself and in dialogue with siblings over just who their father really was, in the end. I enjoyed getting to know Josef and his two oldest daughters, in particular, but there were a number of other intriguing characters, as well, especially the subtle, stylish Uncle Sepp, who marries a prostitute, and Pirmin, the blind giant masseur who wins Aunt Irma's heart. I'll be seeking out more work by this author.
October 17, 2023
I’m certain that much was lost in translation of this free form, stream of consciousness writing. Add that style to what was a highly unusual childhood experience, and I think this is the result. Not only were Monika’s parents walled off from their children, but also her relatives seemed to be void of healthy interpersonal relationships.
I feel so sad for Monika who on the surface accepted her fate not knowing how scarred she would be for life. Her father was a sad emotional recluse fixated on books and knowledge. He apparently had sexual desires, fathering 6 children
, but otherwise was unable to show affection or even carry on a normal conversation with his children.
I applaud Monika Helfer for telling her story despite how painful her recollections must have been.
I feel so sad for Monika who on the surface accepted her fate not knowing how scarred she would be for life. Her father was a sad emotional recluse fixated on books and knowledge. He apparently had sexual desires, fathering 6 children
, but otherwise was unable to show affection or even carry on a normal conversation with his children.
I applaud Monika Helfer for telling her story despite how painful her recollections must have been.
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November 1, 2023I had a very difficult time with this. I'm not sure if it was the translation, but it just didn't seem to flow well and I was often confused about what i'd just read and often having to go back and reread things over and over again. It also didn't really seem to have a story line? At least half way through, I couldn't find anything to latch onto that made me interested in finishing the second half.
I'm also confused about the classification of it being a novel when it is very much the author's remembering of her family. So even if she didn't want to classify it as non fiction as she may have been unsure of her memories, i would still say this is by far a memoir and definitely NOT a novel.
I'm also confused about the classification of it being a novel when it is very much the author's remembering of her family. So even if she didn't want to classify it as non fiction as she may have been unsure of her memories, i would still say this is by far a memoir and definitely NOT a novel.
January 4, 2024
The flow of the story may seem disjointed but that is how our memories are. It was like being in the author’s head. I do agree it feels more like a memoir. Solid continuation of the first book.
January 2, 2025
I usually adore books about libraries. This one, however.. didn't seem to actually be as much about the library, as the family who resided in the convalescent home where the library was home. Despite finishing in less than 24hrs, (due to the short length) this book felt longer.
April 25, 2024
In this brief autobiography, Helfer talks about her family in the aftermath of WWII. Mostly she ponders her father's (Josef's) life and how his peculiarities led to the disruption of and near-disintegration of that family.
I didn't much care for War-wounded. To succeed, it needed more fleshing out and a better understanding of Josef and why he did the things he did. Mental illness is the simple answer, but it's also an unsatisfying one.
I didn't much care for War-wounded. To succeed, it needed more fleshing out and a better understanding of Josef and why he did the things he did. Mental illness is the simple answer, but it's also an unsatisfying one.
September 2, 2025
Not for me.
January 24, 2024
DNF. Sooo hard to get into and understand
January 1, 2024
A small, but impressive collection of books, the library for the war-wounded inhabits a room on the upper floors of a rural hotel in Austria that serves as a space of retreat and recuperation for some of world war II’s wounded veterans. Monika, daughter of the manager, conversationally recounts her childhood in this idyll and the struggles of her father’s life in Library for the War-Wounded.
Helfer presents a factionalized account of her family, and much of it focuses on her father. Josef was born an illegitimate child who through education escaped the rural poverty of his family. His higher education was funded by the Catholic Church and he was on the path to the priesthood, when World War II took him off to way where he would lose his leg from frostbite. He married his nurse, whose family also struggled with poverty and acceptance. They found their way to the Austrian Alps where they took to running a hotel that became a convalescent home. The wider family would join them, a sister in law to keep house and the expansion of family brought by the birth of children. Josef had goals to attain his education still, and valued the pleasures of literacy and possession of books. However this quest for learning and coveting of books would lead to strife and loss of place, along with the sorrows of loss and dismantling of a family.
Helfer has Monika present this history to us in a very meandering conversational style, jumping from present to past to other tangents of family life as told by an elder. Portions are chronological and much is focused on the families time in the Austrian Alps. We know snippets of the after before the crucial events come to pass, some is foreshadowed, but clear explanations are still vague.
Despite its short length, we are focused on one man’s life struggle, but rarely through his own perspective. Though this is the point, for many works of literature ask if we can truly know those we love or live with, here what could be a revealing story of one man’s life and the stressors of war and change is muddled by a stream of consciousness narration. Perhaps something has been lost in translation, like books left to weather hidden in the woods.
I received a free digital version of this book via NetGalley thanks to the publisher.
Helfer presents a factionalized account of her family, and much of it focuses on her father. Josef was born an illegitimate child who through education escaped the rural poverty of his family. His higher education was funded by the Catholic Church and he was on the path to the priesthood, when World War II took him off to way where he would lose his leg from frostbite. He married his nurse, whose family also struggled with poverty and acceptance. They found their way to the Austrian Alps where they took to running a hotel that became a convalescent home. The wider family would join them, a sister in law to keep house and the expansion of family brought by the birth of children. Josef had goals to attain his education still, and valued the pleasures of literacy and possession of books. However this quest for learning and coveting of books would lead to strife and loss of place, along with the sorrows of loss and dismantling of a family.
Helfer has Monika present this history to us in a very meandering conversational style, jumping from present to past to other tangents of family life as told by an elder. Portions are chronological and much is focused on the families time in the Austrian Alps. We know snippets of the after before the crucial events come to pass, some is foreshadowed, but clear explanations are still vague.
Despite its short length, we are focused on one man’s life struggle, but rarely through his own perspective. Though this is the point, for many works of literature ask if we can truly know those we love or live with, here what could be a revealing story of one man’s life and the stressors of war and change is muddled by a stream of consciousness narration. Perhaps something has been lost in translation, like books left to weather hidden in the woods.
I received a free digital version of this book via NetGalley thanks to the publisher.
June 26, 2024
Based on her own life story and family, Monika Helfer brings the post-World War II years to life in this historical fiction novel. Following the life of a German family in the postwar years, readers follow their protagonist, her siblings, mother, and war veteran father through their mundane, quotidian life which is speckled by family tension and PTSD. Their world is one of books, nature, and familial camaraderie, qualities which many readers will quickly recognize and feel as they continue through the book. Helfer’s characters are charming, realistic, and entertaining, and the world that they inhabit is realistic and tangible. Helfer brings the childlike whimsy, curiosity, and questions to the front of the novel, which follows the lens of her fictionalized child self, and this protagonist’s viewpoint is realistic and clear. Presenting an interesting take on the World War II historical fiction genre, readers are sure to enjoy this perspective of postwar Germany and the narrow case study lens it takes by focusing on a single family. This novel is a fascinating, compelling, engaging, and immersive historical fiction book, and its unique take on the genre, with the semi-autobiographical elements, adds to the atmosphere and characters in Helfer’s latest book.
Thanks to NetGalley, Bloomsbury USA, and Bloomsbury Publishing for the advance copy.
Thanks to NetGalley, Bloomsbury USA, and Bloomsbury Publishing for the advance copy.
February 13, 2024
I am a huge fan of translated fiction, I usually read translated crime but have also come across some very special books in other genre. Library for the War-Wounded is fiction, but based on the author's own family. It is beautifully translated into English by Gillian Davidson. The writing is spare yet so lyrical, and the characters almost jump from the pages.
The lead character is Josef, the father of Monika and her siblings. Josef was an illegitimate child who grew up in Salzberg, and despite being brought up by his single mother, with little money, he always had access to books.
Josef was seriously injured in World War One, losing a leg, but at the same time, finding a wife. He married his nurse and they moved their family to the Austrian Alps. Josef became the manager of a home for the war-wounded, allowing a place of peace and comfort to those soldiers so badly injured during the fighting. Josef's love of books never left him and he built up an extraordinary library within the home; not that the residents really cared about the books, but for Josef this was his sanctuary.
Monika narrates her story in an unusual way. The reader is taken back and forth, from the days when Josef first met his wife, to the present time, after his death. Monika always felt that her father was a mysterious man, with no past to tell them about. His ideas were forward thinking, but it becomes clear that he had many emotional difficulties. After the death of their mother, Josef's children were scattered far and wide, cared for by different family members and they saw and heard very little of him. When Josef eventually re-married, he gathered his family together, to make a new start.
This is a short novel of just under two hundred pages, and the stye and structure of the story lends itself to being read in large chunks. It's not the sort of novel to read a page or two here and there, it needs as much investment from the reader as has been given by the author, and also the fabulous translator.
The reader also gets to know other members of the family, and these characters add colour to what could be more of a musing by the author. There's Aunt Irma who acts as a stand in for their mother and Uncle Sepp, the man who confounds his family by marrying a prostitute. These outlying characters enhance Monika's story so much, confirming that this is no ordinary family at all.
How many of us really know our parents? Who they were, why they became the adults that they ended up as. Do we always choose our own path? Are our parents always a guiding light, or are they more of a mystery?
A book to savour, not to be rushed, and one that conjures up images and questions of us all. Recommended.
The lead character is Josef, the father of Monika and her siblings. Josef was an illegitimate child who grew up in Salzberg, and despite being brought up by his single mother, with little money, he always had access to books.
Josef was seriously injured in World War One, losing a leg, but at the same time, finding a wife. He married his nurse and they moved their family to the Austrian Alps. Josef became the manager of a home for the war-wounded, allowing a place of peace and comfort to those soldiers so badly injured during the fighting. Josef's love of books never left him and he built up an extraordinary library within the home; not that the residents really cared about the books, but for Josef this was his sanctuary.
Monika narrates her story in an unusual way. The reader is taken back and forth, from the days when Josef first met his wife, to the present time, after his death. Monika always felt that her father was a mysterious man, with no past to tell them about. His ideas were forward thinking, but it becomes clear that he had many emotional difficulties. After the death of their mother, Josef's children were scattered far and wide, cared for by different family members and they saw and heard very little of him. When Josef eventually re-married, he gathered his family together, to make a new start.
This is a short novel of just under two hundred pages, and the stye and structure of the story lends itself to being read in large chunks. It's not the sort of novel to read a page or two here and there, it needs as much investment from the reader as has been given by the author, and also the fabulous translator.
The reader also gets to know other members of the family, and these characters add colour to what could be more of a musing by the author. There's Aunt Irma who acts as a stand in for their mother and Uncle Sepp, the man who confounds his family by marrying a prostitute. These outlying characters enhance Monika's story so much, confirming that this is no ordinary family at all.
How many of us really know our parents? Who they were, why they became the adults that they ended up as. Do we always choose our own path? Are our parents always a guiding light, or are they more of a mystery?
A book to savour, not to be rushed, and one that conjures up images and questions of us all. Recommended.
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October 23, 2023United States Publication: January 16, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for this advanced reader's copy. In exchange, I am providing an honest review.
It says on the front cover of this book that it is a novel but I disagree. It's a memoir. Maybe it's exaggerated or made up in some places, thus the novel label, but it's clear it is a memoir. Because of this, I am refraining from giving it an "official" rating. However, this title was terrible. Really, really terrible. I suspect that translation isn't solely to blame with this one. First of all, the book just starts, almost in mid-sentence. In fact, I thought it was an introduction to the book until three pages in I figured out it was the book itself. And that the author was writing it in stream of consciousness. But not well. (That might be partly the fault of translation.) The entire book is just a meandering story that has stops and starts, no chapter breaks, all stream of consciousness. It was painful to get through. And not interesting for anyone but the author. This is a memoir that should've remained unpublished and to be only passed around within the family. What an editor, and publishing house, was thinking in green-lighting it is baffling to me. I truly mean no disrespect to the author or her memories but this book was terrible, and the title is extremely misleading as is the label of a novel.
Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for this advanced reader's copy. In exchange, I am providing an honest review.
It says on the front cover of this book that it is a novel but I disagree. It's a memoir. Maybe it's exaggerated or made up in some places, thus the novel label, but it's clear it is a memoir. Because of this, I am refraining from giving it an "official" rating. However, this title was terrible. Really, really terrible. I suspect that translation isn't solely to blame with this one. First of all, the book just starts, almost in mid-sentence. In fact, I thought it was an introduction to the book until three pages in I figured out it was the book itself. And that the author was writing it in stream of consciousness. But not well. (That might be partly the fault of translation.) The entire book is just a meandering story that has stops and starts, no chapter breaks, all stream of consciousness. It was painful to get through. And not interesting for anyone but the author. This is a memoir that should've remained unpublished and to be only passed around within the family. What an editor, and publishing house, was thinking in green-lighting it is baffling to me. I truly mean no disrespect to the author or her memories but this book was terrible, and the title is extremely misleading as is the label of a novel.
December 10, 2024
"When you know a person your whole life and don't discover who they really are until late in the day, coming to terms with that may be difficult."
In Library for the war wounded Monika Helfer explores her father's life, blending fiction and fact seamlessly.
Her father- Josef Helfer- was many things: husband, father, veteran of the Second World War, amputee, and above all, a devoted lover of books.
The positives first: the atmosphere and descriptions were amazingly done! It was a joy to look up and find the photographs Helfer was describing, and imagining what the Convalescent Home for War-wounded must have looked like in that time.
I was immersed in the story the whole time, and it kept me engaged throughout!
However, while I really enjoyed the author's writing style, the narrative felt a bit disjointed at times, due to frequent (and unprompted) time jumps.
Additionally, despite the novel centering around Josef, he's still a big mystery- which is reflective of how his daughter feels about him, but nevertheless a bit disappointing and unsatisfying.
While an engaging read, this wasn't as hard-hitting as I was expecting, and left me feeling a bit unsatisfied in multiple ways.
rating: 3.75
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September 4, 2024Unfortunately, I ended up DNF'ing this book around the 70-page mark.
This book is a girl recalling memories of her parents (mostly focused on her father).
This is a translated work and I am not sure if it was the translation or style of the book but I found if difficult to follow at times.
There isn't really a plot that I can pinpoint (at least as far as I got). Instead, the book was mostly the daughter recalling stories she'd heard of her parents or stories she'd been part of. The daughter also seems to be slightly unreliable as a narrator because there are times in the narrative that other family members disagree with her memories or suggest that what her father told her about a situation wasn't entirely the truth.
This book might work better for people who read lots of literary novels but I don't usually.
There were some good moments I enjoyed but my general confusion and the lack of cohesive plot made it difficult to convince myself to keep picking up this book and so eventually I decided to stop trying.
This book is a girl recalling memories of her parents (mostly focused on her father).
This is a translated work and I am not sure if it was the translation or style of the book but I found if difficult to follow at times.
There isn't really a plot that I can pinpoint (at least as far as I got). Instead, the book was mostly the daughter recalling stories she'd heard of her parents or stories she'd been part of. The daughter also seems to be slightly unreliable as a narrator because there are times in the narrative that other family members disagree with her memories or suggest that what her father told her about a situation wasn't entirely the truth.
This book might work better for people who read lots of literary novels but I don't usually.
There were some good moments I enjoyed but my general confusion and the lack of cohesive plot made it difficult to convince myself to keep picking up this book and so eventually I decided to stop trying.
April 29, 2024
I read this entire book thinking, what is she trying to say? It was disjointed, random and I could not find the plot besides she came from a poor family and her father loved books more than his family. To say I did not enjoy this read is correct. I tried to see the purpose until the very end and all I could come up with is that her father died with joy as he was surrounded by books. Other than that, I found it hard to follow where she was going and in what order she wrote. She would pick up in random places, including people that she thought were or were not present saying what may or may not have been said. Glad to finish this book but I hoped until the very end there was a point. If there was one I missed it, sorry.
March 6, 2024
This book was so hard to read and follow.
It jumped all over in terms of timeline and I was never quite sure where she was and what time period she was talking about.
I assumed it was a memoir and that made me realize that it flowed just like a conversation might when people are remembering their past. I could imagine Monika talking with her siblings and trying to recall their memories of their childhood. That allowed me to see the writing in a much different light and the flow began to make sense.
The book was under 200 pages so it was a quick read.
An interesting read !
It jumped all over in terms of timeline and I was never quite sure where she was and what time period she was talking about.
I assumed it was a memoir and that made me realize that it flowed just like a conversation might when people are remembering their past. I could imagine Monika talking with her siblings and trying to recall their memories of their childhood. That allowed me to see the writing in a much different light and the flow began to make sense.
The book was under 200 pages so it was a quick read.
An interesting read !
May 9, 2024
Ummm, not quite sure how to rate this book. It seems as if it’s a memoir, and several times I checked the blurb to confirm/deny, and am still not sure. Much of it is written stacato style, with short stream-of-consciousness sentences. Some of the descriptions are beautiful. The time lines are all over the place.
I finished the book to try to find its purpose, and I guess it’s true that none of us really know our parents.
Not sure I could recommend. So the 2 stars are based purely on my enjoyment level of the book.
I finished the book to try to find its purpose, and I guess it’s true that none of us really know our parents.
Not sure I could recommend. So the 2 stars are based purely on my enjoyment level of the book.
October 6, 2025
I don't have many reasons to recommend this book. I suppose one of them would be that it does a good job of
storytelling in a way that memory actually works, with tangents jumping between times places and making small, random connections. It is true that in incredibly stressful or sad times, one always remembers the banal details.
That said, I thought this book was confusing, boring, and had no overarching plot or purpose.
storytelling in a way that memory actually works, with tangents jumping between times places and making small, random connections. It is true that in incredibly stressful or sad times, one always remembers the banal details.
That said, I thought this book was confusing, boring, and had no overarching plot or purpose.
February 24, 2024
I started skipping early on.
I'm not sure if this issue for me was the European author just tells a story differently than what I'm used to, or if I had trouble engaging what the point of the book was.
A memoir? A novel?
It says it's a novel on the title page, but it reads more like a memoir/family history.
I'm sure others will enjoy it, for me, no.
I'm not sure if this issue for me was the European author just tells a story differently than what I'm used to, or if I had trouble engaging what the point of the book was.
A memoir? A novel?
It says it's a novel on the title page, but it reads more like a memoir/family history.
I'm sure others will enjoy it, for me, no.
April 23, 2024
i enjoyed this memoir by a daughter trying to patch together her memories of a silent father, "Vati," who suffered injuries in wartime. "Vati" convalesced by running a home for soldiers with war wounds. The home contained a library of which "Vati" was very proud, and the author watched and helped her father save the books when the collection was threatened.
June 20, 2024
Did not care for this. Only finished because it fit a prompt in my reading club. This had very little to do with a library. I like to read books about libraries. This was more a relationship book. It should have a different title. There are no chapters. I agree with another reviewer, the timeframes jump around and make it very confusing.
January 27, 2024
1⭐ DNF 30%
Like many of the other readers, I'm thinking things got lost in translation.
It was difficult to get into, though I tried. I only made it 30% in and had skimmed through parts hoping it would eventually pick up.
Like many of the other readers, I'm thinking things got lost in translation.
It was difficult to get into, though I tried. I only made it 30% in and had skimmed through parts hoping it would eventually pick up.
February 22, 2024
Very episodic and meandering in its telling. It seems to be extremely autobiographical but I don’t know anything about the author - aside from her bio on the jacket - to confirm this. Not my cup of tea.
April 11, 2024
I thought this book was excellent! I enjoyed learning about Austria and her vivid descriptions of the land. It is moving, funny, happy and sad. If your love for books runs deeper than the words on the pages within you will treasure this story about a man, a veteran, husband and father.
May 16, 2024
I really wanted to like this book more, but the way it was written is frustrating. It is very choppy, and you are given pivotal pieces of information randomly. I think I would have really enjoyed this more if written differently.
March 13, 2024
An odd little book. At times boring but the family story was one of love.
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