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In the Land of Armadillos: Stories
A debut collection of linked stories from a two-time Pushcart Prize nominee, set in a German-occupied town in Poland, where tales of myth and folklore meet the real-life monsters of the Nazi invasion.
1942. With the Nazi Party at the height of its power, the occupying army empties Poland’s towns and cities of their Jewish populations. As neighbor turns on neighbor and survival often demands unthinkable choices, Poland has become a moral quagmire—a place of shifting truths and blinding ambiguities.
Blending folklore and fact, Helen Maryles Shankman shows us the people of Wlodawa, a remote Polish town: we meet a cold-blooded SS officer dedicated to rescuing the creator of his son’s favorite picture book, even as he helps exterminate the artist’s friends and family; a Messiah who appears in a little boy’s bedroom to announce that he is quitting; a young Jewish girl who is hidden by the town’s most outspoken anti-Semite—and his talking dog. And walking among these tales are two unforgettable figures: the enigmatic and silver-tongued Willy Reinhart, Commandant of the forced labor camp who has grand schemes to protect “his” Jews, and Soroka, the Jewish saddlemaker and his family, struggling to survive.
1942. With the Nazi Party at the height of its power, the occupying army empties Poland’s towns and cities of their Jewish populations. As neighbor turns on neighbor and survival often demands unthinkable choices, Poland has become a moral quagmire—a place of shifting truths and blinding ambiguities.
Blending folklore and fact, Helen Maryles Shankman shows us the people of Wlodawa, a remote Polish town: we meet a cold-blooded SS officer dedicated to rescuing the creator of his son’s favorite picture book, even as he helps exterminate the artist’s friends and family; a Messiah who appears in a little boy’s bedroom to announce that he is quitting; a young Jewish girl who is hidden by the town’s most outspoken anti-Semite—and his talking dog. And walking among these tales are two unforgettable figures: the enigmatic and silver-tongued Willy Reinhart, Commandant of the forced labor camp who has grand schemes to protect “his” Jews, and Soroka, the Jewish saddlemaker and his family, struggling to survive.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published February 2, 2016
23 people are currently reading
3072 people want to read
About the author
Helen Maryles Shankman
14 books232 followersOriginally, when I moved to New York to attend art school, I thought I wanted to be an illustrator, to tell stories with paint. A few years later, I discovered that what I really wanted to do was paint with words.
Helen Maryles Shankman lived in Chicago before moving to New York City to attend art school. She is the author of In the Land of Armadillos, a collection of linked stories illuminated with magical realism, published by Scrbner, following the inhabitants of a small town in 1942 Poland and tracing the troubling complex choices they are compelled to make. The paperback reprint, titled They Were Like Family to Me, is now available at bookstores everywhere.
Her stories have appeared in numerous fine publications, including The Kenyon Review, Cream City Review, Gargoyle, Grift, 2 Bridges Review, Danse Macabre, and JewishFiction.net. She was a finalist in Narrative Magazine's Winter Story Contest and earned an Honorable Mention in Glimmer Train's Short Story Award for New Writers competition. Two of her stories, They Were Like Family to Me and The Jew Hater have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
Shankman received an MFA in Painting from the New York Academy of Art, where she was awarded a prestigious Warhol Foundation Scholarship. She spent four years as as artist's assistant and two years at Conde Nast working closely with the legendary Alexander Liberman. She lived on a kibbutz in Israel for a year, spending the better part of each day in an enormous barn filled with chickens, where she collected eggs and listened to the Beatles.
Shankman lives in New Jersey with her husband, four children, and an evolving roster of rabbits. When she is not neglecting the housework so that she can write stories, she teaches art and paints portraits on commission.
Helen Maryles Shankman lived in Chicago before moving to New York City to attend art school. She is the author of In the Land of Armadillos, a collection of linked stories illuminated with magical realism, published by Scrbner, following the inhabitants of a small town in 1942 Poland and tracing the troubling complex choices they are compelled to make. The paperback reprint, titled They Were Like Family to Me, is now available at bookstores everywhere.
Her stories have appeared in numerous fine publications, including The Kenyon Review, Cream City Review, Gargoyle, Grift, 2 Bridges Review, Danse Macabre, and JewishFiction.net. She was a finalist in Narrative Magazine's Winter Story Contest and earned an Honorable Mention in Glimmer Train's Short Story Award for New Writers competition. Two of her stories, They Were Like Family to Me and The Jew Hater have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
Shankman received an MFA in Painting from the New York Academy of Art, where she was awarded a prestigious Warhol Foundation Scholarship. She spent four years as as artist's assistant and two years at Conde Nast working closely with the legendary Alexander Liberman. She lived on a kibbutz in Israel for a year, spending the better part of each day in an enormous barn filled with chickens, where she collected eggs and listened to the Beatles.
Shankman lives in New Jersey with her husband, four children, and an evolving roster of rabbits. When she is not neglecting the housework so that she can write stories, she teaches art and paints portraits on commission.
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September 16, 2018
”...the world as it used to be, a world run by the seasons, not by soldiers with machine guns. With harvest dances and girls who wore flirty, flouncy skirts, singing as they spun flax in their parents’ parlors. When neighbors helped one another instead of running to tell tales, where people made an honest living working the land of their fathers, where it was against the law to kill another man’s children because of how they worshipped or the color of their hair.”
Excerpt from the story The Jew Hater
Ultimately for civilisation to ever be considered a true civilisation we must set aside those things that make us different and truly see a child as a child as a child. If we can see the child we can see their fathers, mothers, aunts, and uncles as simply slightly different people from our own fathers, mothers, aunts, and uncles. We all want to live and prosper, celebrate and grieve, and pass on our stories so the future always has a chance to learn from the past.
(JK comment.)
Helen Maryles Shankman asked if I would be interested in reading an advance reading copy of her new collection of short stories and I couldn’t reply fast enough...uhhhh yeah!! The stories are set in the city of Wlodawa, Poland during WW2. When you read these short stories you will have a chance to meet people who are surviving through various means such as collaborating, or by fleeing to the woods, or by ignoring the brutality perpetrated on their neighbors and hoping and praying that the terror will continue to move past them. There are no rules. Violations are arbitrarily decided and punished. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time takes on new meaning. What happened to the Jews seems like something that was concocted out of the mind of a novelist. How could such an atrocity happen in the 20th century?
But it did.
As I was reading these stories I kept thinking about the background behind these stories. A book is never just a book. The tendrils of personal experience, family history, and other writers/books all influence every new generation of books. I knew there was a larger story surrounding these stories and so I asked Helen if I could ask her a few questions. She kindly agreed.
Jeffrey: One of the things I really like about David Mitchell's books is the way his novels are really short story collections with the tales wrapping around each other. In the process he produces this wide lens view of the story because he is allowed to break from a linear narrative. You elected to publish this book as stories, but with the way the stories are so interconnected you could have published this as a novel. Conceptually did you always see this book as a series of stories?
Helen: I loved that about “Cloud Atlas,” even though all I did was watch the movie.
Yes, I always envisioned this as linked stories. I wrote the “The Partizans” in three frenzied days before Halloween 2009, followed immediately by “The Golem of Zukow.” By the time I finished “Golem,” I realized that I needed to live in that world for a while, my parents’ world, the world of war and atrocities, of pure evil and selfless heroism and the many shades of gray in between, where every instance of survival could be attributed to miracles and wonders. As I burned through story after story, I came to realize that what I was really creating was a portrait of the town.
JK: All the stories are set in Wlodawa, Poland. Atrocities against Jews happened all across Europe. Does this particular region have particular significance for you?
HMS: It sure does! My mother was from Wlodawa. I spent a lot of Shabbat mornings listening to her stories, my mouth hanging open with astonishment. Mom’s war experiences were very different from my father’s, which all ended in tragedy. There were hair-raising escapes in the dead of night, fearless partizans, heroic Polish farmers, Germans dashing in at the eleventh hour to pry their workers from SS extermination squads—and weaving through all of them, my wise and talented grandfather, who seemed to be friendly with everyone.
A lot has been written about the Warsaw Ghetto. What people don’t get is that Warsaw was more or less equivalent to New York City. Imagine if a despot came to power and moved all of New York’s Jews into, say, the East Village. Even if someone escaped, they’d be in the middle of a sprawling city. Who would help them? Where could they hide? Wlodawa, on the other hand, was heavily rural, situated on the Bug River, the border with the Soviet Union, and surrounded by forests, farmland and swamps. Because of its unique location, it was possible for Jews to slip out of town and try to live in the forests, or to convince a farmer to hide them, or join the partizan groups that flourished in the woods. There were Jewish partizans, Polish partizans, and Soviet partizans, a turncoat German or two. Even without the connection to my mother, it would be a fascinating place to set a World War 2 story.
Polish Partizans who were by any means necessary trying to thwart the German war effort.
JK: One of charming aspects of this book, even though it is dealing with a very serious subject, is the mysticism that runs through every story. The world was in such upheaval during this time period that it would make perfect sense that things long forgotten possible might emerge in the chaos. The skies were clogged with prayers for miracles. At the same time it takes a deft hand to weave these magical moments into a story without masking the true purpose of the plot. The changelings in The Partizans in particular had me thinking I just fell through a portal into another dimension. Do you believe that "unbelievable" and "unexplainable" things (beyond science) actually happen?
HMS: Thank you for your extremely kind words, Jeffrey! The way you phrased your question is absolutely beautiful, so lyrical. “...things long forgotten possible might emerge in the chaos.”
Magic is the only way I can approach the horror of what happened across Europe in 1945. Without it, all that is left is grim, inexplicable reality.
I’ve been to Poland. It’s the most haunted place on the planet. In 1939, three million Jews lived there. In 1945, poof, they were all gone. Ghosts of Jewish life linger in the occasional random star-of-David mounted in a building’s facade, in empty synagogues pressed into use as gyms or civic centers or museums, in folk carvings, in derelict, boarded-up structures whose ownership is in question because the owners disappeared, in lonely, vandalized, overgrown Jewish cemeteries. To find out what it feels like to be in the presence of ghosts, all one need do is walk through the fields of chimneys at Birkenau, or into the gas chamber at Majdanek. There’s a place in Poland for the enchanting tale of the fireflower, but also for the tale of Marzanna, goddess of death and winter, whom children ritually set on fire, then drown in rivers each spring, in the symbolic guise of a doll.
But that’s the long answer. Do I believe that “unbelievable” and unexplainable” things actually happen? I will let my character Pavel Walczak speak for me: “He had lived long enough to know there were things in this world that could not be explained.”
JK: I was reading a Margery Allingham book published in 1929 this weekend. One of the characters was Jewish. He was a member of a gang. Everyone else was referred to by their name, but The Jew was just called The Jew and every description of him dripped with contempt. Towards the end of the book Allingham does finally reveal his name is Gideon, but I was really taken aback by the antisemitism displayed by a British crime writer. It reminds me of the time that I revealed to my mother that I liked a certain girl, in 6th grade by the way, and she said to me..."You know she is Catholic." My response: "Huh?" I was stunned because it hadn't crossed my mind whether she was Baptist, Jewish, Martian or Catholic. I just thought she had pretty brown eyes.
I like the way in the story titled The Jew Hater that you humanized a man who in many ways didn't deserve to be humanized. You really made him see someone he loathed as someone better than himself. Pavel is a complicated character probably the second most complicated character in the book. Where did you feel his fervent antisemitism came from?
HMS: I know exactly what you mean. In 1932, Graham Greene published “Orient Express.” It was wildly popular in its day, a book-of-the-month-club selection, and his first big success. Reading the book, I felt my face flame with disbelief and shock. Page after page is filled with stereotypical antisemitic statements. In the 1920s, it was acceptable to harbor these vile, ridiculous views.
As a veteran of World War 1, Pavel would have known that in the years following the war, Poland was in upheaval, physically, financially and politically. In 1934, Pavel’s crop, and perhaps his property, would have been destroyed by record-breaking rains and floods in southeastern Poland. Pavel was a church-going Catholic; in 1936, he would have heard his priest read a pastoral letter from Cardinal August Hlond, the Primate of Poland, asserting that Jews were responsible for fraud, usury and white slavery, that Jews were in the forefront of bolshevism and atheism, and that Jewish children were an evil influence on their Polish friends. The antisemitic Polish nationalist parties that were ascendant after the more liberal Pilsudski’s death would have explained to the poor, the peasants, and the unemployed that everything wrong in their lives was the Jews’ fault. It’s a time-tested formula; when things are bad, and you feel powerless, find a scapegoat.
The point of Pavel’s redemption was this: I believe that most people would drop their prejudice against a race, a religion or nationality if they only spent time with someone from that group. During the course of ordinary, workaday friendship, every kind of senseless hatred just fades away.
SD ( full title Sicherheitsdienst des Reichsführers-SS, or SD). They were the intelligence agency of the SS. Here they are depicted in Wlowada.
JK: We meet Commandant Willy Reinhart in the very first story, In the Land of Armadillos, which is one of my favorites from the book. He has the reputation of being a Jew Lover and is constantly seen interfering, when he can, to save the lives of certain Jews. As I learn more and more about him I start to realize that he is mostly interested in saving talented Jews. The best at painting, baking, saddle making etc. He was building a bizarre utopia of his own making. Is he based on a real person or did you conceive him from the clay of your mind like a golem?
I couldn't help but like Willy.
HMS: I’m so glad you liked my “Armadillos!” I love that story, too. It was very hard to shake myself free of it. I didn’t write anything for months afterwards.
Let me quickly address your comment about Reinhart wanting only to save talented Jews. In April, 1940, he wouldn’t have known that the official German policy towards “The Jewish Problem” was going to end in annihilation. (The Wannsee Conference, where the “Final Solution” was approved, took place in January, 1942.) Reinhart didn’t begin with the intention of saving Jews--he was just doing his job, organizing his labor camp, and for that, he was seeking the best workers. That seems like normal administrator stuff to me.
Willy Reinhart is a fictional character. I made him up, a charming, dashing, Alan Furst-flavored antihero. For a visual, I occasionally glanced at a particular photo of Gunter Grass from the cover of his controversial biography, “Peeling the Onion.” In it, he is swathed in smoke, crafty, watchful, bemused.
In part, the character of Reinhart was inspired by stories I heard from my mother and uncle about a man named Willy Selinger, a powerful German who protected their family until the summer of 1943. Selinger was known among Jews and Poles as “A good German.” Over and over again, he saved his Jewish laborers from German death squads, bringing the killers to his castle and plying them with food and liquor while he phoned friends in high places in order to get the executions called off. My mother smiled when she remembered the way he looked at my grandfather when he was talking to him: “He liked him,” she said. “You could tell. I think they knew each other from before the war. He never wore a uniform, always a coat and a hat. He looked like a movie star.”
With Reinhart, I wanted to explore a theme; what makes a man risk his life to save another man? During World War 2, so many millions just looked the other way.
Wlodawa Jews forced to perform labor for the Germans.
JK: As I was reading The Messiah I kept thinking to myself Helen is going to get herself in trouble with this one by depicting such a beloved Christian figure in a very human way. Has there ever been a better time to quit on the human race than during World War Two?
HMS: Heh...as I wrote this story, it didn’t occur to me that the Messiah is a beloved Christian figure. (Though I did borrow the Northern Italian Renaissance-era version of his looks.) In my religion, he is a much-yearned-for Jewish figure, especially in times of violence and strife. During World War 2, as things went from bad to worse, my father says that the people in his town were certain that the Messiah must be coming. My mother spoke of it, too. It was on everyone’s lips, a wish echoed in Bruno Schulz’s legendary long-lost manuscript, “The Messiah.”
I agree, there’s never been a better time to quit on the human race than during World War 2. But my Messiah gives up on God. He’s had it up to here with His master plans and the whole Heavenly Host. Defiantly, he chooses to rejoin the human race.
I did feel pretty sacriligeous writing his dialogue, particularly when he’s conversing with the angel Gabriel. (I didn’t have it in me to let him talk to God that way.) From what I’ve read, partizans were never the pillars of the community. They were the kids who couldn’t sit still in class, kids who disappointed their parents by hanging out with the wrong sort of friends, shaving off their beards and earlocks, joining the army, or maybe dabbling in the criminal world. Saviors were people who bent the rules. Or rewrote the rules to suit the times.
JK: Thanks again to Helen for letting me cross examine her. The book is due for publication on February 2nd, 2016. I hope you all enjoy these stories as much as I did.
Helen Maryles Shankman
Helen Maryles Shankman has a website that gives information well beyond the books she writes. http://helenmarylesshankman.com/
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
Excerpt from the story The Jew Hater
Ultimately for civilisation to ever be considered a true civilisation we must set aside those things that make us different and truly see a child as a child as a child. If we can see the child we can see their fathers, mothers, aunts, and uncles as simply slightly different people from our own fathers, mothers, aunts, and uncles. We all want to live and prosper, celebrate and grieve, and pass on our stories so the future always has a chance to learn from the past.
(JK comment.)
Helen Maryles Shankman asked if I would be interested in reading an advance reading copy of her new collection of short stories and I couldn’t reply fast enough...uhhhh yeah!! The stories are set in the city of Wlodawa, Poland during WW2. When you read these short stories you will have a chance to meet people who are surviving through various means such as collaborating, or by fleeing to the woods, or by ignoring the brutality perpetrated on their neighbors and hoping and praying that the terror will continue to move past them. There are no rules. Violations are arbitrarily decided and punished. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time takes on new meaning. What happened to the Jews seems like something that was concocted out of the mind of a novelist. How could such an atrocity happen in the 20th century?
But it did.
As I was reading these stories I kept thinking about the background behind these stories. A book is never just a book. The tendrils of personal experience, family history, and other writers/books all influence every new generation of books. I knew there was a larger story surrounding these stories and so I asked Helen if I could ask her a few questions. She kindly agreed.
Jeffrey: One of the things I really like about David Mitchell's books is the way his novels are really short story collections with the tales wrapping around each other. In the process he produces this wide lens view of the story because he is allowed to break from a linear narrative. You elected to publish this book as stories, but with the way the stories are so interconnected you could have published this as a novel. Conceptually did you always see this book as a series of stories?
Helen: I loved that about “Cloud Atlas,” even though all I did was watch the movie.
Yes, I always envisioned this as linked stories. I wrote the “The Partizans” in three frenzied days before Halloween 2009, followed immediately by “The Golem of Zukow.” By the time I finished “Golem,” I realized that I needed to live in that world for a while, my parents’ world, the world of war and atrocities, of pure evil and selfless heroism and the many shades of gray in between, where every instance of survival could be attributed to miracles and wonders. As I burned through story after story, I came to realize that what I was really creating was a portrait of the town.
JK: All the stories are set in Wlodawa, Poland. Atrocities against Jews happened all across Europe. Does this particular region have particular significance for you?
HMS: It sure does! My mother was from Wlodawa. I spent a lot of Shabbat mornings listening to her stories, my mouth hanging open with astonishment. Mom’s war experiences were very different from my father’s, which all ended in tragedy. There were hair-raising escapes in the dead of night, fearless partizans, heroic Polish farmers, Germans dashing in at the eleventh hour to pry their workers from SS extermination squads—and weaving through all of them, my wise and talented grandfather, who seemed to be friendly with everyone.
A lot has been written about the Warsaw Ghetto. What people don’t get is that Warsaw was more or less equivalent to New York City. Imagine if a despot came to power and moved all of New York’s Jews into, say, the East Village. Even if someone escaped, they’d be in the middle of a sprawling city. Who would help them? Where could they hide? Wlodawa, on the other hand, was heavily rural, situated on the Bug River, the border with the Soviet Union, and surrounded by forests, farmland and swamps. Because of its unique location, it was possible for Jews to slip out of town and try to live in the forests, or to convince a farmer to hide them, or join the partizan groups that flourished in the woods. There were Jewish partizans, Polish partizans, and Soviet partizans, a turncoat German or two. Even without the connection to my mother, it would be a fascinating place to set a World War 2 story.
Polish Partizans who were by any means necessary trying to thwart the German war effort.
JK: One of charming aspects of this book, even though it is dealing with a very serious subject, is the mysticism that runs through every story. The world was in such upheaval during this time period that it would make perfect sense that things long forgotten possible might emerge in the chaos. The skies were clogged with prayers for miracles. At the same time it takes a deft hand to weave these magical moments into a story without masking the true purpose of the plot. The changelings in The Partizans in particular had me thinking I just fell through a portal into another dimension. Do you believe that "unbelievable" and "unexplainable" things (beyond science) actually happen?
HMS: Thank you for your extremely kind words, Jeffrey! The way you phrased your question is absolutely beautiful, so lyrical. “...things long forgotten possible might emerge in the chaos.”
Magic is the only way I can approach the horror of what happened across Europe in 1945. Without it, all that is left is grim, inexplicable reality.
I’ve been to Poland. It’s the most haunted place on the planet. In 1939, three million Jews lived there. In 1945, poof, they were all gone. Ghosts of Jewish life linger in the occasional random star-of-David mounted in a building’s facade, in empty synagogues pressed into use as gyms or civic centers or museums, in folk carvings, in derelict, boarded-up structures whose ownership is in question because the owners disappeared, in lonely, vandalized, overgrown Jewish cemeteries. To find out what it feels like to be in the presence of ghosts, all one need do is walk through the fields of chimneys at Birkenau, or into the gas chamber at Majdanek. There’s a place in Poland for the enchanting tale of the fireflower, but also for the tale of Marzanna, goddess of death and winter, whom children ritually set on fire, then drown in rivers each spring, in the symbolic guise of a doll.
But that’s the long answer. Do I believe that “unbelievable” and unexplainable” things actually happen? I will let my character Pavel Walczak speak for me: “He had lived long enough to know there were things in this world that could not be explained.”
JK: I was reading a Margery Allingham book published in 1929 this weekend. One of the characters was Jewish. He was a member of a gang. Everyone else was referred to by their name, but The Jew was just called The Jew and every description of him dripped with contempt. Towards the end of the book Allingham does finally reveal his name is Gideon, but I was really taken aback by the antisemitism displayed by a British crime writer. It reminds me of the time that I revealed to my mother that I liked a certain girl, in 6th grade by the way, and she said to me..."You know she is Catholic." My response: "Huh?" I was stunned because it hadn't crossed my mind whether she was Baptist, Jewish, Martian or Catholic. I just thought she had pretty brown eyes.
I like the way in the story titled The Jew Hater that you humanized a man who in many ways didn't deserve to be humanized. You really made him see someone he loathed as someone better than himself. Pavel is a complicated character probably the second most complicated character in the book. Where did you feel his fervent antisemitism came from?
HMS: I know exactly what you mean. In 1932, Graham Greene published “Orient Express.” It was wildly popular in its day, a book-of-the-month-club selection, and his first big success. Reading the book, I felt my face flame with disbelief and shock. Page after page is filled with stereotypical antisemitic statements. In the 1920s, it was acceptable to harbor these vile, ridiculous views.
As a veteran of World War 1, Pavel would have known that in the years following the war, Poland was in upheaval, physically, financially and politically. In 1934, Pavel’s crop, and perhaps his property, would have been destroyed by record-breaking rains and floods in southeastern Poland. Pavel was a church-going Catholic; in 1936, he would have heard his priest read a pastoral letter from Cardinal August Hlond, the Primate of Poland, asserting that Jews were responsible for fraud, usury and white slavery, that Jews were in the forefront of bolshevism and atheism, and that Jewish children were an evil influence on their Polish friends. The antisemitic Polish nationalist parties that were ascendant after the more liberal Pilsudski’s death would have explained to the poor, the peasants, and the unemployed that everything wrong in their lives was the Jews’ fault. It’s a time-tested formula; when things are bad, and you feel powerless, find a scapegoat.
The point of Pavel’s redemption was this: I believe that most people would drop their prejudice against a race, a religion or nationality if they only spent time with someone from that group. During the course of ordinary, workaday friendship, every kind of senseless hatred just fades away.
SD ( full title Sicherheitsdienst des Reichsführers-SS, or SD). They were the intelligence agency of the SS. Here they are depicted in Wlowada.
JK: We meet Commandant Willy Reinhart in the very first story, In the Land of Armadillos, which is one of my favorites from the book. He has the reputation of being a Jew Lover and is constantly seen interfering, when he can, to save the lives of certain Jews. As I learn more and more about him I start to realize that he is mostly interested in saving talented Jews. The best at painting, baking, saddle making etc. He was building a bizarre utopia of his own making. Is he based on a real person or did you conceive him from the clay of your mind like a golem?
I couldn't help but like Willy.
HMS: I’m so glad you liked my “Armadillos!” I love that story, too. It was very hard to shake myself free of it. I didn’t write anything for months afterwards.
Let me quickly address your comment about Reinhart wanting only to save talented Jews. In April, 1940, he wouldn’t have known that the official German policy towards “The Jewish Problem” was going to end in annihilation. (The Wannsee Conference, where the “Final Solution” was approved, took place in January, 1942.) Reinhart didn’t begin with the intention of saving Jews--he was just doing his job, organizing his labor camp, and for that, he was seeking the best workers. That seems like normal administrator stuff to me.
Willy Reinhart is a fictional character. I made him up, a charming, dashing, Alan Furst-flavored antihero. For a visual, I occasionally glanced at a particular photo of Gunter Grass from the cover of his controversial biography, “Peeling the Onion.” In it, he is swathed in smoke, crafty, watchful, bemused.
In part, the character of Reinhart was inspired by stories I heard from my mother and uncle about a man named Willy Selinger, a powerful German who protected their family until the summer of 1943. Selinger was known among Jews and Poles as “A good German.” Over and over again, he saved his Jewish laborers from German death squads, bringing the killers to his castle and plying them with food and liquor while he phoned friends in high places in order to get the executions called off. My mother smiled when she remembered the way he looked at my grandfather when he was talking to him: “He liked him,” she said. “You could tell. I think they knew each other from before the war. He never wore a uniform, always a coat and a hat. He looked like a movie star.”
With Reinhart, I wanted to explore a theme; what makes a man risk his life to save another man? During World War 2, so many millions just looked the other way.
Wlodawa Jews forced to perform labor for the Germans.
JK: As I was reading The Messiah I kept thinking to myself Helen is going to get herself in trouble with this one by depicting such a beloved Christian figure in a very human way. Has there ever been a better time to quit on the human race than during World War Two?
HMS: Heh...as I wrote this story, it didn’t occur to me that the Messiah is a beloved Christian figure. (Though I did borrow the Northern Italian Renaissance-era version of his looks.) In my religion, he is a much-yearned-for Jewish figure, especially in times of violence and strife. During World War 2, as things went from bad to worse, my father says that the people in his town were certain that the Messiah must be coming. My mother spoke of it, too. It was on everyone’s lips, a wish echoed in Bruno Schulz’s legendary long-lost manuscript, “The Messiah.”
I agree, there’s never been a better time to quit on the human race than during World War 2. But my Messiah gives up on God. He’s had it up to here with His master plans and the whole Heavenly Host. Defiantly, he chooses to rejoin the human race.
I did feel pretty sacriligeous writing his dialogue, particularly when he’s conversing with the angel Gabriel. (I didn’t have it in me to let him talk to God that way.) From what I’ve read, partizans were never the pillars of the community. They were the kids who couldn’t sit still in class, kids who disappointed their parents by hanging out with the wrong sort of friends, shaving off their beards and earlocks, joining the army, or maybe dabbling in the criminal world. Saviors were people who bent the rules. Or rewrote the rules to suit the times.
JK: Thanks again to Helen for letting me cross examine her. The book is due for publication on February 2nd, 2016. I hope you all enjoy these stories as much as I did.
Helen Maryles Shankman
Helen Maryles Shankman has a website that gives information well beyond the books she writes. http://helenmarylesshankman.com/
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
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March 1, 2016
I finished this book last night and woke up thinking about it, thinking about the author's acknowledgement that "many of the events in these pages were handed down to me by my mother, Brenda Soroka Maryles who reported her war experiences with pitiless accuracy. My dad Barry Maryles, told me narratives of blinding courage and incomprehensible horror. I pass them on in the only way I am able, through the filter of fiction." Fact , fiction, fantasy, magic are all present in this depiction of the atrocities that befell the Jews of Włodawa, a town in Poland that was occupied by Nazis during WWII. What I do know for sure is that this author is a magnificent storyteller.
One of the remarkable things about this collection of stories is the connections. I have not read a lot of short story collections but of the ones that I have read , I am most taken with those where the connections and linking of people and events cross over the stories in such a way that it feels like a novel and it's really only one story . This one is reminiscent of The Tsar of Love and Techno and in that respect, it is no small compliment from me to compare Shankman's creativity and writing skill to Anthony Marra's.
That is just one of the remarkable things about it . It is also beautifully written and the author does a wonderful job with blending the reality of this awful time in history with magical realism that is never over the top , that feels like it belongs here. This is best summarized by one of the characters who says , "Love is a kind of magic too , isn't it?" A common thread among some of the stories is the sadness surrounding loss of loved ones - family, lovers , and some characters reappear . The forest and what happened there always seems to be present.
In the first title story , we see a side of a Nazi officer SS that we don't always see in literature. Max Haas makes a connection with an artist painting a mural in the house he is preparing for the arrival of his wife and son . He wants to help this artist. My jaw dropped at the end of this story . My amazement continued in one story after another - a beautiful haunting story of love amid the slaughter, a young boy meeting a cigarette smoking , gum chewing , Messiah who wants to quit, a hater of Jews whose heart is stolen by a little Jewish girl , a Golem.
I don't know what else to say except that even though it's only February, this is the best I've read since the beginning of the year and I wouldn't be surprised if that held up for the entire year .
Thanks to Simon & Schuster and Edelweiss.
One of the remarkable things about this collection of stories is the connections. I have not read a lot of short story collections but of the ones that I have read , I am most taken with those where the connections and linking of people and events cross over the stories in such a way that it feels like a novel and it's really only one story . This one is reminiscent of The Tsar of Love and Techno and in that respect, it is no small compliment from me to compare Shankman's creativity and writing skill to Anthony Marra's.
That is just one of the remarkable things about it . It is also beautifully written and the author does a wonderful job with blending the reality of this awful time in history with magical realism that is never over the top , that feels like it belongs here. This is best summarized by one of the characters who says , "Love is a kind of magic too , isn't it?" A common thread among some of the stories is the sadness surrounding loss of loved ones - family, lovers , and some characters reappear . The forest and what happened there always seems to be present.
In the first title story , we see a side of a Nazi officer SS that we don't always see in literature. Max Haas makes a connection with an artist painting a mural in the house he is preparing for the arrival of his wife and son . He wants to help this artist. My jaw dropped at the end of this story . My amazement continued in one story after another - a beautiful haunting story of love amid the slaughter, a young boy meeting a cigarette smoking , gum chewing , Messiah who wants to quit, a hater of Jews whose heart is stolen by a little Jewish girl , a Golem.
I don't know what else to say except that even though it's only February, this is the best I've read since the beginning of the year and I wouldn't be surprised if that held up for the entire year .
Thanks to Simon & Schuster and Edelweiss.
February 11, 2016
When I finished the first story, which is the title story and the one the cover harkens to, I literally put the book down, stunned. I found it to be one of the most vivid and astonishing stories I have read for quite some time. The author's use of magical realism was perfect, fit the story perfectly. All I could think was, "Wow."
These are connected stories, you will find characters from one blending into another. A small village in Poland that finds itself immersed in the terror of the Third Reich when the Nazi's come to clean out the village of undesirables. The first and last stories are narrated by Nazi officers. All these stories are fantastic and give a complete look from different sides of how this horror effected and forever changed this small village. Hard stories to read, how can people do this to other people, and in this novel we find out how some who had to believe they were doing the right thing, ordered to do this, coped.
Magical realism is again in many of the stories and used to great effect. Colors abound, beautiful sunrises, sunshine reflected off buildings, cheery trees blossoming great beauty alongside savagery.
Life does go on, the sun does keep shining, but how? Why should it when it ended for a great many.
I think this is the first book of short stories I have ever rated five stars, how could I not when each story had a little awe inspiring twist at the end, something that really sets in and makes you think.
An absolutely amazing book.
ARC from Netgalley.
These are connected stories, you will find characters from one blending into another. A small village in Poland that finds itself immersed in the terror of the Third Reich when the Nazi's come to clean out the village of undesirables. The first and last stories are narrated by Nazi officers. All these stories are fantastic and give a complete look from different sides of how this horror effected and forever changed this small village. Hard stories to read, how can people do this to other people, and in this novel we find out how some who had to believe they were doing the right thing, ordered to do this, coped.
Magical realism is again in many of the stories and used to great effect. Colors abound, beautiful sunrises, sunshine reflected off buildings, cheery trees blossoming great beauty alongside savagery.
Life does go on, the sun does keep shining, but how? Why should it when it ended for a great many.
I think this is the first book of short stories I have ever rated five stars, how could I not when each story had a little awe inspiring twist at the end, something that really sets in and makes you think.
An absolutely amazing book.
ARC from Netgalley.
January 30, 2016
These stories are wonderful and excruciating.
......without concentration camps ever being mentioned!
There is a restrained non-sentimental way in which the author presents the Holocaust experience from different perspectives in the villages of occupied Poland.....
stories of remembering the agony of life in a very broken world.
Acts of courage ...decisions made on the spot --and personal attempts to justify wartime.
Each story is so well described..that I felt like was an added spectator ....to understand how these characters experienced the different events.
Whether a story is about hiding Jews, trying to feed or cloth them, or the telling of the horrific ways Jews died...author Helen Maryles Shankman's stories are beautifully told and evoke every emotion; from joy, to fear, hatred to pity....
The uniqueness of mixing folklore, with simple lyrical language, allows for us to be able to contain this unforgettable historical nightmare about ordinary people....who had previously lived a secure ordered existence.
I can name less than a handful of fictional-Holocaust books that I find capture
truthful specific moments. This is one of them.
"In The Land of Armadillos", deserves the highest praise - we see and feel the tragedy and the injustice as with past books, yet at the same time it's as we are observing the birth of a whole new genre in Holocaust literature.
Thank You Scriber Publishing, Netgalley, and Helen Maryles Shankman
......without concentration camps ever being mentioned!
There is a restrained non-sentimental way in which the author presents the Holocaust experience from different perspectives in the villages of occupied Poland.....
stories of remembering the agony of life in a very broken world.
Acts of courage ...decisions made on the spot --and personal attempts to justify wartime.
Each story is so well described..that I felt like was an added spectator ....to understand how these characters experienced the different events.
Whether a story is about hiding Jews, trying to feed or cloth them, or the telling of the horrific ways Jews died...author Helen Maryles Shankman's stories are beautifully told and evoke every emotion; from joy, to fear, hatred to pity....
The uniqueness of mixing folklore, with simple lyrical language, allows for us to be able to contain this unforgettable historical nightmare about ordinary people....who had previously lived a secure ordered existence.
I can name less than a handful of fictional-Holocaust books that I find capture
truthful specific moments. This is one of them.
"In The Land of Armadillos", deserves the highest praise - we see and feel the tragedy and the injustice as with past books, yet at the same time it's as we are observing the birth of a whole new genre in Holocaust literature.
Thank You Scriber Publishing, Netgalley, and Helen Maryles Shankman
February 17, 2017
Well, I really enjoyed this. But, at the same time, was left wondering if it’s appropriate to enjoy so much a fictional account of the Holocaust. It reminded me of the ambivalence of emotion many felt while watching Benigni’s film Life is Beautiful. The Holocaust as fairy story is dangerous territory and requires an awful lot of artistry to bring off. I think Helen Maryles Shankman just manages it.
One of the central thrusts of these stories is the idea that hatred of a race is only possible in the abstract. That the minute you have personal relations with a member of the race you despise your blind prejudice will slowly begin to reveal itself as preposterous. Two of the stories in this collection, perhaps the most engaging two, take up this theme. In the Land of Armadillos dramatises the relationship between a Nazi monster and a Jewish painter he employs to fresco his son’s bedroom. The Nazi never registers the discrepancy between the affection and admiration he feels for the artist and the heartlessness, the conclusive lack of empathy with which he is able to treat the rest of the Jewish race. The Jew Hater is about a Polish farmer who snitches on any of his neighbours who help hide Jews. Then partisans charge him with looking after a little Jewish girl threatening him with death if he fails to keep her safe. The little girl has a transformative effect on his character.
Shankman is determined to find reasons to be upbeat about human nature and she often does this by introducing a magical element into her stories. In other words by colouring her narrative of the Holocaust with events that didn’t happen. I’ve read a fair few non-fiction accounts of the Holocaust and without doubt one of the most surprising and beautiful features of these books is the kindness and bravery shown by a few individuals in the face of colossal personal danger. If you want a testament to the selfless courage and generosity of which human nature is capable the Holocaust is a good place to look. In the universal imagination Schindler has come to represent the Holocaust more than, say, Richard Heydrich. We want to believe in the ultimate triumph of good. Shankman, like Spielberg, doesn’t shy away from the horrors. But ultimately the horrors are at the service of a life affirming message. Nothing wrong with that. But as a modus operandi it began to get a bit predictable. Every story in the collection ends on an upbeat note. The prevailing atmosphere of fear and tension which should permeate literature about Jewish characters living under the threat of Nazism is replaced by an expectation of the next magic event. I guess this would be my main criticism. Shankman’s determination to ultimately replace the horror with reasons to be cheerful about human nature. Of course she’s not alone. In fact, as some of us have discussed recently, there’s a growing trend for authors to commercially exploit the Holocaust as a vehicle for romance-driven or YA action heroine novels. Probably 90% of novels dealing with the Holocaust end on an upbeat note. We’ve become insistent on that upbeat ending. Hollywood has known this for a long time. Literature maybe is beginning to follow in its wake. It’s like if Tess was written now, she wouldn’t die on the gallows; she would walk off towards the sunset with Angel because our tolerance for the disturbing and depressing message has diminished unless it comes with the caveat of an upbeat ending, unless it sends us to bed feeling optimistic about human nature and some basic fairness in life. We’ve perhaps become more sentimental in recent times. And, as a result, perhaps even a little complacent that the Holocaust could never happen again.
Nevertheless, the fact that this collection of stories makes one think about these issues is a testament to its daring. On top of that Shankman is a very accomplished story teller. One decisive factor in determining the persuasive charge of all fiction is how much imaginative commitment and feeling an author is able to muster for her characters. Shankman excels in this regard. The fact she’s writing about her own family no doubt helps here.
One of the central thrusts of these stories is the idea that hatred of a race is only possible in the abstract. That the minute you have personal relations with a member of the race you despise your blind prejudice will slowly begin to reveal itself as preposterous. Two of the stories in this collection, perhaps the most engaging two, take up this theme. In the Land of Armadillos dramatises the relationship between a Nazi monster and a Jewish painter he employs to fresco his son’s bedroom. The Nazi never registers the discrepancy between the affection and admiration he feels for the artist and the heartlessness, the conclusive lack of empathy with which he is able to treat the rest of the Jewish race. The Jew Hater is about a Polish farmer who snitches on any of his neighbours who help hide Jews. Then partisans charge him with looking after a little Jewish girl threatening him with death if he fails to keep her safe. The little girl has a transformative effect on his character.
Shankman is determined to find reasons to be upbeat about human nature and she often does this by introducing a magical element into her stories. In other words by colouring her narrative of the Holocaust with events that didn’t happen. I’ve read a fair few non-fiction accounts of the Holocaust and without doubt one of the most surprising and beautiful features of these books is the kindness and bravery shown by a few individuals in the face of colossal personal danger. If you want a testament to the selfless courage and generosity of which human nature is capable the Holocaust is a good place to look. In the universal imagination Schindler has come to represent the Holocaust more than, say, Richard Heydrich. We want to believe in the ultimate triumph of good. Shankman, like Spielberg, doesn’t shy away from the horrors. But ultimately the horrors are at the service of a life affirming message. Nothing wrong with that. But as a modus operandi it began to get a bit predictable. Every story in the collection ends on an upbeat note. The prevailing atmosphere of fear and tension which should permeate literature about Jewish characters living under the threat of Nazism is replaced by an expectation of the next magic event. I guess this would be my main criticism. Shankman’s determination to ultimately replace the horror with reasons to be cheerful about human nature. Of course she’s not alone. In fact, as some of us have discussed recently, there’s a growing trend for authors to commercially exploit the Holocaust as a vehicle for romance-driven or YA action heroine novels. Probably 90% of novels dealing with the Holocaust end on an upbeat note. We’ve become insistent on that upbeat ending. Hollywood has known this for a long time. Literature maybe is beginning to follow in its wake. It’s like if Tess was written now, she wouldn’t die on the gallows; she would walk off towards the sunset with Angel because our tolerance for the disturbing and depressing message has diminished unless it comes with the caveat of an upbeat ending, unless it sends us to bed feeling optimistic about human nature and some basic fairness in life. We’ve perhaps become more sentimental in recent times. And, as a result, perhaps even a little complacent that the Holocaust could never happen again.
Nevertheless, the fact that this collection of stories makes one think about these issues is a testament to its daring. On top of that Shankman is a very accomplished story teller. One decisive factor in determining the persuasive charge of all fiction is how much imaginative commitment and feeling an author is able to muster for her characters. Shankman excels in this regard. The fact she’s writing about her own family no doubt helps here.
February 6, 2017
At heart, this series of interconnected short stories/fables, is an act of alchemy. The author has as her base material the horrors perpetrated by the Nazis in a town called Wlodawa, on the Polish/Ukraine border. Her aim, brilliantly achieved, is to produce a heartwarming testament to the good and magical in human nature in the face of flooding black evil.
Structurally it’s very similar to Anthony Marra’s The Tsar of Love and Techno. Though the author doesn’t possess the artistry of Marra she is perhaps more successful at simple straightforward gripping storytelling. Add to that, it’s a book written with a huge amount of love and imaginative engagement – not surprising as she’s fictionalising her family history.
In fact, the author’s explanation at the end of the book as to why and how she wrote these stories was fascinating. She had always heard that a good Nazi saved her family. However, when she finally comes to google him, he doesn’t sound good at all. Thus she is faced with a mystery. Very cleverly she uses this mystery as the template for this series of stories, approaching the same events from different angles with characters from all sides of the political and social spectrum.
I’ve got nothing bad to say about this. It’s a fabulous feat of storytelling, uplifting, horrifying, moving, thought-provoking. And it’s Holocaust Memorial Day today so even had I deemed it a four star read, I would have given it five stars. Definitely recommended.
Structurally it’s very similar to Anthony Marra’s The Tsar of Love and Techno. Though the author doesn’t possess the artistry of Marra she is perhaps more successful at simple straightforward gripping storytelling. Add to that, it’s a book written with a huge amount of love and imaginative engagement – not surprising as she’s fictionalising her family history.
In fact, the author’s explanation at the end of the book as to why and how she wrote these stories was fascinating. She had always heard that a good Nazi saved her family. However, when she finally comes to google him, he doesn’t sound good at all. Thus she is faced with a mystery. Very cleverly she uses this mystery as the template for this series of stories, approaching the same events from different angles with characters from all sides of the political and social spectrum.
I’ve got nothing bad to say about this. It’s a fabulous feat of storytelling, uplifting, horrifying, moving, thought-provoking. And it’s Holocaust Memorial Day today so even had I deemed it a four star read, I would have given it five stars. Definitely recommended.
January 27, 2016
I was completely taken by surprise by In the Land of Armadillos, but from the very first story I knew this was my kind of book. How to describe it and do it justice? In a series of linked stories set during WWII, Shankman depicts a small German occupied town in Poland. The Jews in the town are being used as slave labour, murdered or sent away to camps – on the periphery, some of them have escaped and occupy the neighbouring forest where from time to time they manage small acts of insurgency. For the most part, Shankman presents the perspective of a number of occupying Germans or in one case a local collaborating Polish man. She imagines their rationales, their emotions, their shifting understanding of what they are doing and involved in. Some of them see themselves as trying to help the Jews or as not as bad as other Germans, but their motivations and rationale are hard to see as heroic in this crazy evil landscape. But none of what I’ve said so far describes the feel of this beautifully written and crafted book. The author infuses the stories with tinges of magic – talking animals, slightly surreal meteorological events, a Golem, a messiah -- that tilt the stories off kilter just a little bit – in a good way I promise. And folded into the horrific stories are folktales and parables that people tell each other to try to make sense of the senseless world they find themselves in. Really, I can’t seem to do this book justice by describing it. Suffice it to say that I loved reading it! It was beautiful, original and at times breathtaking. The author deals with a difficult topic – and one that has been depicted in fiction over and over again – and somehow she gives it a new perspective without trivializing or exploiting the historical atrocities she writes about. Absolutely worth reading! Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an opportunity to read an advance copy.
April 8, 2016
A Pushcart nominated author and accomplished artist, Helen Maryles Shankman adds to her glowing resumé a magical short story collection: In The Land of Armadillos: Stories - a tightly connected set of tales that merge dark WWII realism, Jewish myth and folklore in an imaginative and compelling combination that greatly impressed me.
Set in the Nazi-occupied Polish town of Wlodawa, the stories are told in the perspectives of German officers, their Jewish captives and Polish co-habitants, observed through a keen painter's eye and bristles teased with dabs of vibrant folklore. Shankman presents her protagonists in creatively different views, in vivid allegory and balanced tones of good and evil, of light and dark; in scenes of persecution and compassion, of desolation and hope.
Well-documented scenarios of this horrifying directive to extinguish from the earth a whole race: play out in manhunts that span across deep forests, and in regularly scheduled Aktzias where the final destination is in a giant pit. Contrastingly, atonement and redemption are apologetically sought; acts of bravery and kindness from those proffering protection at their own peril are furtively explored.
Supernatural creatures morph in and out of the shadows like an opioid-driven hallucination: a golem, a wolf-man, a giant bear, a talking dog, a mystic Messiah have feature roles. Even "the strange astronomical occurrence that came to be referred to as “The Parczew Event” makes its historic appearance.
In the Land of Armadillos, some 'monsters' may appear in varied guises or may differ in intent, but be aware that "sometimes a monster looks just like any other man."
Sturmbannführer Max Haas, the 'General of the Jews' , doesn't bat an eye when his SS men play humiliating games with Jewish prisoners then shoot one for stumbling, but protects his 'special Jew' -the famous novelist and painter, Tobias Rey - who wrote his son's favorite book 'In the Land of Armadillos':
Haas's motives toward Tobias are primarily selfish, exploiting the talented prisoner until he would be no longer useful; and even as an amicable bond develops, he never really understands the meaning behind Tobias's illustrations.
Many of Shankman's characters are drawn from true life: for example, Tobias Rey revives the story of Bruno Schulz(The Street of Crocodiles) whose execution by an SS officer was an act of vengeful retaliation. “You killed my Jew. Now I killed yours.”
Among my favorite characters is the little Jewish girl, Reina - inspired by Shankman's mother - who stole my heart with her bravery as she faced being placed in the care of The Jew Hater, Pavel Walczak, an untrustworthy man who had, without guilt or conscience, ratted on his neighbors to the SS for harboring Jews. "So what, a Jew was a Jew. They were all cut from the same cloth, greedy, scheming Christ killers, just waiting for the opportunity to cheat an honest Pole out of his money. Anyone who thought differently was either stupid or naive.” Their story, apart from the whimsical element of a talking dog, has its share of tension and twisty turns.
Shankman's stories, though familiar among countless highly praised WW II narratives, impress and bring particular freshness and distinctiveness with their magical, mythical touches. Her holocaust storytelling is a vital model for survivors of war crimes and their subsequent generations: to maintain the responsibility of recounting their history and stories of survival from hate-filled acts against a race; to revive to vividness memories of the holocaust for the now and future generations lest they should fade over time to a dull ache, or be forgotten altogether - to never again allow to such a scale: racist monsters to be given a chance to rise to power.
Set in the Nazi-occupied Polish town of Wlodawa, the stories are told in the perspectives of German officers, their Jewish captives and Polish co-habitants, observed through a keen painter's eye and bristles teased with dabs of vibrant folklore. Shankman presents her protagonists in creatively different views, in vivid allegory and balanced tones of good and evil, of light and dark; in scenes of persecution and compassion, of desolation and hope.
Well-documented scenarios of this horrifying directive to extinguish from the earth a whole race: play out in manhunts that span across deep forests, and in regularly scheduled Aktzias where the final destination is in a giant pit. Contrastingly, atonement and redemption are apologetically sought; acts of bravery and kindness from those proffering protection at their own peril are furtively explored.
Supernatural creatures morph in and out of the shadows like an opioid-driven hallucination: a golem, a wolf-man, a giant bear, a talking dog, a mystic Messiah have feature roles. Even "the strange astronomical occurrence that came to be referred to as “The Parczew Event” makes its historic appearance.
In the Land of Armadillos, some 'monsters' may appear in varied guises or may differ in intent, but be aware that "sometimes a monster looks just like any other man."
Sturmbannführer Max Haas, the 'General of the Jews' , doesn't bat an eye when his SS men play humiliating games with Jewish prisoners then shoot one for stumbling, but protects his 'special Jew' -the famous novelist and painter, Tobias Rey - who wrote his son's favorite book 'In the Land of Armadillos':
In the story, the armadillos live alongside the cockatoos for years, peacefully sharing the savannah, until an armadillo named Lazarus comes along and tells the others that cockatoos are bad, greedy creatures. The armadillos trample the blue cockatoos’ favorite food, the indigo plant, and then they drink up all the water.
Haas's motives toward Tobias are primarily selfish, exploiting the talented prisoner until he would be no longer useful; and even as an amicable bond develops, he never really understands the meaning behind Tobias's illustrations.
Many of Shankman's characters are drawn from true life: for example, Tobias Rey revives the story of Bruno Schulz(The Street of Crocodiles) whose execution by an SS officer was an act of vengeful retaliation. “You killed my Jew. Now I killed yours.”
Among my favorite characters is the little Jewish girl, Reina - inspired by Shankman's mother - who stole my heart with her bravery as she faced being placed in the care of The Jew Hater, Pavel Walczak, an untrustworthy man who had, without guilt or conscience, ratted on his neighbors to the SS for harboring Jews. "So what, a Jew was a Jew. They were all cut from the same cloth, greedy, scheming Christ killers, just waiting for the opportunity to cheat an honest Pole out of his money. Anyone who thought differently was either stupid or naive.” Their story, apart from the whimsical element of a talking dog, has its share of tension and twisty turns.
Shankman's stories, though familiar among countless highly praised WW II narratives, impress and bring particular freshness and distinctiveness with their magical, mythical touches. Her holocaust storytelling is a vital model for survivors of war crimes and their subsequent generations: to maintain the responsibility of recounting their history and stories of survival from hate-filled acts against a race; to revive to vividness memories of the holocaust for the now and future generations lest they should fade over time to a dull ache, or be forgotten altogether - to never again allow to such a scale: racist monsters to be given a chance to rise to power.
March 8, 2016
This book made me sad.
When I first started it, visualizing the war in my head, all those atrocities done by human beings to their fellow human beings, I had to put it aside. It made me a bit depressive, we cannot deny what happened. I needed to step away from it and wait for the right moment.
--The Nazis have occupied small town Włodawa in Poland, where the Jews are either set to work, murdered or sent away to camps.
This book made me smile.
That moment came last week. Picking up where I left it, from then on it was a beautiful read till the end. Eventhough the horrific details still made me cringe, the magical and mythical touches interspersed throughout took the stories to a whole new level.
--We have The Messiah refusing to lead his people to the Promised Land. There are shapeshifters in the forest, coming to the aid of Jews. A giant Golem rescues a group of Jews on their way to being transferred.
This book gave me hope.
People doing good, despite the circumstances. The author created some memorable characters, who, while natural to despise, were quite compassionate after all.
--There is a Jew hater who spies and informs on his neighbours, but sees himself forced as caretaker of a Jewish girl. A Nazi commissioner takes it upon himself to help his Jewish workers and keep them from being taken away.
Helen Maryles Shankman is a wonderful storyteller, creating this world of horror and wonder at the same time. An author to keep an eye on.
Review copy supplied by publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a rating and/or review.
When I first started it, visualizing the war in my head, all those atrocities done by human beings to their fellow human beings, I had to put it aside. It made me a bit depressive, we cannot deny what happened. I needed to step away from it and wait for the right moment.
--The Nazis have occupied small town Włodawa in Poland, where the Jews are either set to work, murdered or sent away to camps.
This book made me smile.
That moment came last week. Picking up where I left it, from then on it was a beautiful read till the end. Eventhough the horrific details still made me cringe, the magical and mythical touches interspersed throughout took the stories to a whole new level.
--We have The Messiah refusing to lead his people to the Promised Land. There are shapeshifters in the forest, coming to the aid of Jews. A giant Golem rescues a group of Jews on their way to being transferred.
This book gave me hope.
People doing good, despite the circumstances. The author created some memorable characters, who, while natural to despise, were quite compassionate after all.
--There is a Jew hater who spies and informs on his neighbours, but sees himself forced as caretaker of a Jewish girl. A Nazi commissioner takes it upon himself to help his Jewish workers and keep them from being taken away.
Helen Maryles Shankman is a wonderful storyteller, creating this world of horror and wonder at the same time. An author to keep an eye on.
Review copy supplied by publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a rating and/or review.
August 8, 2016
This collection of interlocking stories is quite an achievement. I wasn’t as affected by the title story as much as I think others may be, but that is likely because I already knew the fate of the man who is the inspiration for the character at its heart. My favorite stories are those in the middle, including one that is quite humorous—though of course, in the final analysis, it cannot really be such. As the stories built, reflected and crashed upon each other -- ripples becoming impossible to ignore -- I quickly realized there was much more to this book than I originally thought.
*
My friend Tara pointed out in her review that the paperback is being issued under the title of a different story, “They Were Like Family to Me”. I wish that weren’t the case: the original title, though specific to the first story only, highlights not only the collection's overarching theme, but also the fantastical, an integral element in each one of the stories.
*
My friend Tara pointed out in her review that the paperback is being issued under the title of a different story, “They Were Like Family to Me”. I wish that weren’t the case: the original title, though specific to the first story only, highlights not only the collection's overarching theme, but also the fantastical, an integral element in each one of the stories.
July 21, 2016
I finished this book today, and sat quietly for a long time, absorbing it fully. This is one of the most tightly woven, inventive, important short story collections I've ever read. Shankman draws from personal history and research to explore many intersecting lives in a Polish village during Nazi occupation. I'm generally not a fan of interconnecting collections, but this one is so tightly woven, it's a marvel. To me, it reflects the greater reality of our human interconnectedness. Shankman somehow captures this despite the very dark subject matter, the Holocaust from the pov of both the victims and the murderers. Layered with mystical beings and events, this will surely be on my best of list for 2016, and beyond. Her longer stories read like novellas and could stand on their own.
As a side note, I'm disappointed that the paperback changed the title to They Were Like Family to Me and has lovely little birds all over the cover. The hard copy has a unique piece of art that captures the tone of this collection, and the title story In the Land of Armadillos is epic enough to be a movie. I suppose for marketing purposes they wanted to prettify the paperback, but I prefer the artsy hard cover and title. You will never forget the armadillos, promise.
As a side note, I'm disappointed that the paperback changed the title to They Were Like Family to Me and has lovely little birds all over the cover. The hard copy has a unique piece of art that captures the tone of this collection, and the title story In the Land of Armadillos is epic enough to be a movie. I suppose for marketing purposes they wanted to prettify the paperback, but I prefer the artsy hard cover and title. You will never forget the armadillos, promise.
May 6, 2020
I enjoy short story collections that are intertwined; in which characters pop up in more than one story. And after reading this collection I still do. So I have a favor to ask you: if you know of such short story collections can you let me know here? I learned about this book through a GR friend. Collections with that motif I have already read include Winesburg, Ohio (Sherwood Anderson), Revenge (Yoko Ogawa), The Springs of Affection (Maeve Brennan).
When I read the synopsis of these short stories, I was reluctant to read them because they were stories of Nazis and the atrocities they committed in the Holocaust. And I wondered how in the world could someone weave myth/folklore/fantastical creatures with women, men and children being mowed down next to the graves they had to dig for themselves (I am sorry for that statement but that is the sort of thing you are going to run across in this book).
But Shankman pulls it off. The horrors and atrocities are not discounted, and maybe this was a way for me to be reminded of such horrors and atrocities, because I typically stay away from books and movies about the Holocaust. It’s like “I know what the Holocaust is, and it is too aversive for me to be reminded of it again and again.” I will say that after reading this short story collection by Shankman, I don’t feel that way anymore – I do want to read more. On the back cover, writers like Nathan Englander, Nicole Krauss, and Isaac Bashevis Singer were recommended for further reading.
The stories revolve around characters in a Polish town, Wlodawa, in 1942. Here is the synopsis that is given on the inside cover of the book jacket:
“…we meet a cold-blooded SS officer dedicated to rescuing the creature of his son’s favorite picture book (Jim: a book involving an armadillo which is in the title of this book), even as he helps exterminate the artist’s friends and family; a Messiah who appears in a little boy’s bedroom to announce that he is quitting; a young Jewish girl who is hidden by the town’s most outspoken anti-Semite — and his talking dog. And walking among these tales are two unforgettable figures: the enigmatic and silver-tongued Willy Reinhart, commander of the forced labor camp who has grand schemes to protect “his” Jews, and Soroka, the Jewish saddle maker, struggling to survive with his family. Wlodawa in 1942 is a town torn apart, but Shankman shows how even in the midst of this unfathomable calamity, the people of Wlodawa — oppressors and oppressed alike — continue to grapple with the eternal human dilemmas of love and envy, freedom and responsibility, faith and doubt.
This novel in hardcover form was renamed when it was issued in paperback format: They Were Like Family to Me.
These stories were written over a number of years in the following publications: The Kenyon Review, Cream City Review, Gargoyle, Grift, 2 Bridges Review, Danse Macabre, and JewishFiction.net. She was a finalist in Narrative Magazine's Winter Story Contest and earned an Honorable Mention in Glimmer Train's Short Story Award for New Writers competition.
Reviews: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/s/he...
https://therumpus.net/2016/02/in-the-...
https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book...
When I read the synopsis of these short stories, I was reluctant to read them because they were stories of Nazis and the atrocities they committed in the Holocaust. And I wondered how in the world could someone weave myth/folklore/fantastical creatures with women, men and children being mowed down next to the graves they had to dig for themselves (I am sorry for that statement but that is the sort of thing you are going to run across in this book).
But Shankman pulls it off. The horrors and atrocities are not discounted, and maybe this was a way for me to be reminded of such horrors and atrocities, because I typically stay away from books and movies about the Holocaust. It’s like “I know what the Holocaust is, and it is too aversive for me to be reminded of it again and again.” I will say that after reading this short story collection by Shankman, I don’t feel that way anymore – I do want to read more. On the back cover, writers like Nathan Englander, Nicole Krauss, and Isaac Bashevis Singer were recommended for further reading.
The stories revolve around characters in a Polish town, Wlodawa, in 1942. Here is the synopsis that is given on the inside cover of the book jacket:
“…we meet a cold-blooded SS officer dedicated to rescuing the creature of his son’s favorite picture book (Jim: a book involving an armadillo which is in the title of this book), even as he helps exterminate the artist’s friends and family; a Messiah who appears in a little boy’s bedroom to announce that he is quitting; a young Jewish girl who is hidden by the town’s most outspoken anti-Semite — and his talking dog. And walking among these tales are two unforgettable figures: the enigmatic and silver-tongued Willy Reinhart, commander of the forced labor camp who has grand schemes to protect “his” Jews, and Soroka, the Jewish saddle maker, struggling to survive with his family. Wlodawa in 1942 is a town torn apart, but Shankman shows how even in the midst of this unfathomable calamity, the people of Wlodawa — oppressors and oppressed alike — continue to grapple with the eternal human dilemmas of love and envy, freedom and responsibility, faith and doubt.
This novel in hardcover form was renamed when it was issued in paperback format: They Were Like Family to Me.
These stories were written over a number of years in the following publications: The Kenyon Review, Cream City Review, Gargoyle, Grift, 2 Bridges Review, Danse Macabre, and JewishFiction.net. She was a finalist in Narrative Magazine's Winter Story Contest and earned an Honorable Mention in Glimmer Train's Short Story Award for New Writers competition.
Reviews: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/s/he...
https://therumpus.net/2016/02/in-the-...
https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book...
January 5, 2018
If you like magical realism, then this book is for you.
If you don’t like magical realism this book is also for you.
It’s one of those rare books that takes this concept and weaves it into the story in such a way that you can interpret it however you wish. Did the Messiah really arrive in the nick of time and then refuses to help? Did Zosha really see people turn into wild animals or was it a way for her to process the horrors she witnessed in the woods? Did the all too human Golem really have immortal powers?
I loved how the little folk tales and hints of magic portrayed the complexities that affected people during that time, and the difficult decisions they had to make.
In my opinion this is not a collection of short stories but just a different way of structuring a novel, similar to The Tsar of Love and Techno
Essentially the tales centers around a small polish town of Wlodawa following the German invasion and leading up to the arrival of the Russians. I must confess a fondness for WW2 stories set in Eastern Europe as they are so under-represented in books of this genre. And in the middle of all the stories of brutality, unsung heroes and survival is Commandant Reinhart, a German commander who turns a blind eye to the rebels, secret camps and goes out of his way to protect the locals.
This book is one of those off the beaten track gems that deserves more attention.
If you don’t like magical realism this book is also for you.
It’s one of those rare books that takes this concept and weaves it into the story in such a way that you can interpret it however you wish. Did the Messiah really arrive in the nick of time and then refuses to help? Did Zosha really see people turn into wild animals or was it a way for her to process the horrors she witnessed in the woods? Did the all too human Golem really have immortal powers?
I loved how the little folk tales and hints of magic portrayed the complexities that affected people during that time, and the difficult decisions they had to make.
In my opinion this is not a collection of short stories but just a different way of structuring a novel, similar to The Tsar of Love and Techno
Essentially the tales centers around a small polish town of Wlodawa following the German invasion and leading up to the arrival of the Russians. I must confess a fondness for WW2 stories set in Eastern Europe as they are so under-represented in books of this genre. And in the middle of all the stories of brutality, unsung heroes and survival is Commandant Reinhart, a German commander who turns a blind eye to the rebels, secret camps and goes out of his way to protect the locals.
This book is one of those off the beaten track gems that deserves more attention.
November 2, 2018
In the Land of Armadillos by Helen Maryles Shankman*
This prize-winning collection of connected Nazi occupation stories is so powerful and real that I could only process the feelings of one story a day. Helen Maryles Shankman puts you right there in 1942 Wlodawa, Poland, a small town occupied by Germans that is eventually overtaken by Russians. The people—civilians, soldiers—are so tangible and complex that it hurts. And the writing is perfect: beautiful, seamlessly combining history and folktales, prose and poetry, true stories and fiction (although I gave up googling to fact check), monsters and heroes, and realism and magic. Often, while reading, I found I had stopped breathing and had to consciously remember to exhale.
I read this stunning book as I was simultaneously reeling from the latest display of antisemitism in our U.S. of A. And in a very strange way, it was therapeutic. I felt my roots and that felt good.
________
*Because GR admins have deleted authors’ names from the review titles in daily newsfeeds.
If you are bothered by having to scroll to the end of long reviews to learn whose work is being discussed, please ask GR to restore authors’ names to the tops of daily emails of reviews—attributing books to the people who provide the meat for our community’s conversation: support@goodreads.com
This prize-winning collection of connected Nazi occupation stories is so powerful and real that I could only process the feelings of one story a day. Helen Maryles Shankman puts you right there in 1942 Wlodawa, Poland, a small town occupied by Germans that is eventually overtaken by Russians. The people—civilians, soldiers—are so tangible and complex that it hurts. And the writing is perfect: beautiful, seamlessly combining history and folktales, prose and poetry, true stories and fiction (although I gave up googling to fact check), monsters and heroes, and realism and magic. Often, while reading, I found I had stopped breathing and had to consciously remember to exhale.
I read this stunning book as I was simultaneously reeling from the latest display of antisemitism in our U.S. of A. And in a very strange way, it was therapeutic. I felt my roots and that felt good.
________
*Because GR admins have deleted authors’ names from the review titles in daily newsfeeds.
If you are bothered by having to scroll to the end of long reviews to learn whose work is being discussed, please ask GR to restore authors’ names to the tops of daily emails of reviews—attributing books to the people who provide the meat for our community’s conversation: support@goodreads.com
March 29, 2016
Beyond fantastic. But you need a strong stomach. I had to keep putting it down to think about what I was reading and to breathe deeply before I could begin reading again.
December 22, 2017
It took me a few weeks to read this 285 page linked story collection because each story was so potent, I needed time to recover. This may be the most powerful book about the Holocaust that I've read.
The stories are about ordinary people in a Polish town occupied by Nazis and how they lead their lives and go to their deaths. Shankman writes poetically, magically, chillingly. Reading these amazing stories, I felt such a profound sense of loss.
The stories are about ordinary people in a Polish town occupied by Nazis and how they lead their lives and go to their deaths. Shankman writes poetically, magically, chillingly. Reading these amazing stories, I felt such a profound sense of loss.
July 3, 2017
A True Story Told as Fable
This is a Holocaust book. But you would never know it from the title or the cover illustration, a children's book drawing of an anthropomorphized armadillo and cockatoo looking at each other in quizzical fashion. But it makes perfect sense when you read the title story, in which a German officer responsible for Jewish resettlement in a small town in Poland finds that he has a famous children's book author in his charge, and commissions him to paint the walls of a bedroom for his young son, who is expecting to arrive with his mother very soon. Although the officer, Max Haas, can be uncompromising when his job demands, he strikes up a kind of friendship with the author-illustrator, Tobias Rey, whose children's tales are really fables for grown-ups. The almost-70-page story sets a pattern that will be found in the other six (there is also an epilogue): an unsparing description of Nazi atrocities, leavened with Jewish folk legends and just a hint of magical realism.
Just a hint; this is not an extended fantasy in the manner of Joseph Skibell's A Blessing on the Moon. The degradation and deaths are real, but every story but one contains a gleam of light: the one act of selflessness from a ruthless exterminator, the one Jewish child saved from death. Some of the shorter ones are brilliant: the Messiah who arrives in the nick of time but then refuses to help, or the Golem whose immortal powers prove all too mortal. Shankman treads a fine line between fancy and reality. Several stories, for instance, make reference to a cataclysmic event in the Parczew Forest in 1942, but Shankman leaves it ambiguous whether this is a miracle, the result of something like a meteorite strike, and/or a concerted action by a band of Jewish partisans who operate on a guerilla basis from the forest depths. All the same, my initial five-star impression of the book gradually declined as, despite the variety of the author's invention, the strange mixture of atrocity and uplift became a little too predictable.
The partisans, though, were real (photo above). So is the setting, which I had first assumed was imaginary: the small town of Wlodawa in southeastern Poland, near the Russian border. When I looked it up on Wikipedia, and the small estate of Adampol nearby, I even found the names of some of the survivors, and lo and behold the surnames are the same as some of the characters that recur throughout the stories. So, for all the apparent fantasy, this collection is based on truth. As it became clear that, so far from being separate, these stories were in effect the component parts of a novel, my rating rose again. The two other long stories in the book, "The Jew Hater" and "A Decent Man," are effectively paired: the one the story of the most rabid Polish anti-Semite in the region, the other that of a Nazi official who, as in Schindler's Ark, tried to protect the Jewish craftsmen he had working for him. Neither story turns out quite as expected, but there is goodness in both of them. More than that, they turn out both to be chapters in a very moving family history. As the author says in her acknowledgements, "My dad […] told me narratives of blinding courage and incomprehensible horror. I pass them on in the only way I am able, through the filter of fiction."
Oddly enough, though set in the same place, the story that I think I will treasure the longest, "They Were Like Family to Me," has no element of folklore and its connection to the family history is far from obvious at first. Many decades after the war, a Catholic priest and a companion visit Wlodawa and talk to an old Polish man about what happened there. What comes out is a long-repressed confession of his own part in the horror. The priest realizes that what the old man is describing was captured in a photo—I think a real one that I believe I have seen, but cannot now find. If so, it is a stunningly empathetic interpretation of the image on the part of the author, but then she has already shown herself empathetic to Germans, Poles, and Jews alike. No, what most strikes me about this story is that it does not rely on any kind of fantasy to round off its sharp edges. The moral dilemma, the question of guilt, is out there for all to see, stark but impossible to resolve. These are questions that stick in the mind for ever.
This is a Holocaust book. But you would never know it from the title or the cover illustration, a children's book drawing of an anthropomorphized armadillo and cockatoo looking at each other in quizzical fashion. But it makes perfect sense when you read the title story, in which a German officer responsible for Jewish resettlement in a small town in Poland finds that he has a famous children's book author in his charge, and commissions him to paint the walls of a bedroom for his young son, who is expecting to arrive with his mother very soon. Although the officer, Max Haas, can be uncompromising when his job demands, he strikes up a kind of friendship with the author-illustrator, Tobias Rey, whose children's tales are really fables for grown-ups. The almost-70-page story sets a pattern that will be found in the other six (there is also an epilogue): an unsparing description of Nazi atrocities, leavened with Jewish folk legends and just a hint of magical realism.
Just a hint; this is not an extended fantasy in the manner of Joseph Skibell's A Blessing on the Moon. The degradation and deaths are real, but every story but one contains a gleam of light: the one act of selflessness from a ruthless exterminator, the one Jewish child saved from death. Some of the shorter ones are brilliant: the Messiah who arrives in the nick of time but then refuses to help, or the Golem whose immortal powers prove all too mortal. Shankman treads a fine line between fancy and reality. Several stories, for instance, make reference to a cataclysmic event in the Parczew Forest in 1942, but Shankman leaves it ambiguous whether this is a miracle, the result of something like a meteorite strike, and/or a concerted action by a band of Jewish partisans who operate on a guerilla basis from the forest depths. All the same, my initial five-star impression of the book gradually declined as, despite the variety of the author's invention, the strange mixture of atrocity and uplift became a little too predictable.
The partisans, though, were real (photo above). So is the setting, which I had first assumed was imaginary: the small town of Wlodawa in southeastern Poland, near the Russian border. When I looked it up on Wikipedia, and the small estate of Adampol nearby, I even found the names of some of the survivors, and lo and behold the surnames are the same as some of the characters that recur throughout the stories. So, for all the apparent fantasy, this collection is based on truth. As it became clear that, so far from being separate, these stories were in effect the component parts of a novel, my rating rose again. The two other long stories in the book, "The Jew Hater" and "A Decent Man," are effectively paired: the one the story of the most rabid Polish anti-Semite in the region, the other that of a Nazi official who, as in Schindler's Ark, tried to protect the Jewish craftsmen he had working for him. Neither story turns out quite as expected, but there is goodness in both of them. More than that, they turn out both to be chapters in a very moving family history. As the author says in her acknowledgements, "My dad […] told me narratives of blinding courage and incomprehensible horror. I pass them on in the only way I am able, through the filter of fiction."
Oddly enough, though set in the same place, the story that I think I will treasure the longest, "They Were Like Family to Me," has no element of folklore and its connection to the family history is far from obvious at first. Many decades after the war, a Catholic priest and a companion visit Wlodawa and talk to an old Polish man about what happened there. What comes out is a long-repressed confession of his own part in the horror. The priest realizes that what the old man is describing was captured in a photo—I think a real one that I believe I have seen, but cannot now find. If so, it is a stunningly empathetic interpretation of the image on the part of the author, but then she has already shown herself empathetic to Germans, Poles, and Jews alike. No, what most strikes me about this story is that it does not rely on any kind of fantasy to round off its sharp edges. The moral dilemma, the question of guilt, is out there for all to see, stark but impossible to resolve. These are questions that stick in the mind for ever.
"That's something," said Eric. Sympathetically. "He couldn't have been the monster they say he was." "You should have noticed by now," the priest said. "Sometimes a monster looks just like any other man."
April 11, 2016
In the Land of Armadillos is, by no means, your typical Holocaust fiction. It is wonderfully original, and at only about 300 pages, it felt huge to me. Not in length, obviously, but in content. These were GIGANTIC short stories, with such unique voices and so much to tell.
I have never read a book like this before, and probably never will again. It felt so honest, so real -- even with it's fable-like qualities, Golems, and talking animals.
Having written this as a collection of stories Helen Maryles Shankman allowed for a wide variety of voices to be heard. And what I found to be so interesting is that a lot of these stories center on the "bad" guy. Sometimes they just die bad guys, but sometimes they are redeemed. I was especially moved by "A Decent Man" which tells the story of a Nazi officer struggling with what he is commanded to do versus what he knows in his heart to be right. The characters that Maryles Shankman created here are absolutely fascinating in each story. She touches upon how things aren't always completely 'black' or 'white', especially during times of war. She does this consistently, and reminds us, very eloquently, of the horrendous atrocities committed against the Jewish people during this dark, dark time in history.
I was baffled when I saw that 'In the Land of Armadillos' has only 83 ratings on Goodreads. I'm still baffled. All I can say is, this is a book that deserves to be read. Helen Maryles Shankman is a hugely talented writer, not to be overlooked.
I have never read a book like this before, and probably never will again. It felt so honest, so real -- even with it's fable-like qualities, Golems, and talking animals.
Having written this as a collection of stories Helen Maryles Shankman allowed for a wide variety of voices to be heard. And what I found to be so interesting is that a lot of these stories center on the "bad" guy. Sometimes they just die bad guys, but sometimes they are redeemed. I was especially moved by "A Decent Man" which tells the story of a Nazi officer struggling with what he is commanded to do versus what he knows in his heart to be right. The characters that Maryles Shankman created here are absolutely fascinating in each story. She touches upon how things aren't always completely 'black' or 'white', especially during times of war. She does this consistently, and reminds us, very eloquently, of the horrendous atrocities committed against the Jewish people during this dark, dark time in history.
I was baffled when I saw that 'In the Land of Armadillos' has only 83 ratings on Goodreads. I'm still baffled. All I can say is, this is a book that deserves to be read. Helen Maryles Shankman is a hugely talented writer, not to be overlooked.
March 8, 2016
I confess from the start that I am not much of a reviewer. I find that I want to move to the next book on my pile rather than take time to write about one I've finished. In this case, though, I feel obliged to comment. I thought "Armadillos" exhilarating, touching and profoundly engaging. In fact, let me say two things. First, though I finished the book near midnight, I felt compelled to send the author an email thanking her (!). Second, images from the stories, and questions raised by reading them, came back to me again and again in the following days. The stories are linked; a major character in one will turn up as a minor character or off-stage in another, and vice versa. The setting -- Poland during the Holocaust -- is dark, and tragedy and evil are more than merely hinted at in the book. But magic and humor and unexpected moments of empathy break through from time to time. For example (no spoiler alert: it's in the flap copy), the Messiah appears one day and announces in disgust that he's "done," that there's no point in going on. Or this: Jewish partisans suddenly develop super powers in a battle with Nazi soldiers. In theory, the eruption of magic or comedy into such a dark setting as the Holocaust should be troubling at best, or perhaps even offensive. But not here. In Shankman's hands, the magic and humor are not distractions but rather means of adding new layers of meaning to our engagement with the text -- expressions of our most desperate wishes and the unanswerable questions that bubble up when we are confronted with inexplicable horror. Does all this sound abstract or pointlessly academic? I don't mean it to: the book itself is anything but abstract, academic or oppressive. I sincerely hope it gets the readership it deserves.
December 2, 2018
There were many Messiahs in those years, coming from nowhere to emerge as heroes for a brief and terrifying time, vanishing afterward into the banality of everyday existence.
What a beautiful and touching book. In the Land of Armadillos consists of 8 short stories set in Wlodawa, Poland during the Holocaust of WWII. The stories are all interwoven and there are many themes running throughout. It definitely served as a reminder that once you become close to someone it is very difficult to treat them the same as the faceless group. This was one of the best WWII books I've read and I loved the beautiful descriptions, hints of magical realism and fully developed characters. I normally don't read novellas or short stories as it takes me some time to connect, but here I was invested in every story by the end of the first paragraph. The stories written from the perspective of Nazi's were especially interesting and thought-provoking. I look forward to reading more by this author.
My best-loved stories:
1. In the Land of Armadillos - I was shocked to learn that this was based on the live and death of Bruno Schulz.
2. The Messiah,
3. The Jew Hater,
4. The Golem of Zukow and
5. A Decent Man.
February 14, 2016
The man took up his pen and wrote:
My Own Darling,
From my new office, I can see the village square. The houses are very old, with slanted roofs all painted cheery colors. In the distance, I can see church spires, little cottages with thatched roofs, lovely rolling fields. Just outside my window, a cherry tree has burst into bloom.
In the Land of Armadillos: Stories
byHelen Maryles Shankman
I love this opening as I feel as if I can see the view from the office. This lovely Polish hamlet that is being described by a man to his wife in a letter. It is in a Nazi occupied territory and the writer is a cold blooded SS Officer.
The first story, In the Land of Armadillos, is worth the price of admission. Marlyes Shankman creates such colorful imagery and beauty with her writing that she somehow brings a humanity to the horrors she is depicting. The holocaust is never an easy subject to read or remember, but she manages to give grace and sometimes a needed irony to the victims of the Nazi occupation. This is so well-written with a bit of whimsy and magical realism that it is one of my favorite reads of 2016.
My Own Darling,
From my new office, I can see the village square. The houses are very old, with slanted roofs all painted cheery colors. In the distance, I can see church spires, little cottages with thatched roofs, lovely rolling fields. Just outside my window, a cherry tree has burst into bloom.
In the Land of Armadillos: Stories
byHelen Maryles Shankman
I love this opening as I feel as if I can see the view from the office. This lovely Polish hamlet that is being described by a man to his wife in a letter. It is in a Nazi occupied territory and the writer is a cold blooded SS Officer.
The first story, In the Land of Armadillos, is worth the price of admission. Marlyes Shankman creates such colorful imagery and beauty with her writing that she somehow brings a humanity to the horrors she is depicting. The holocaust is never an easy subject to read or remember, but she manages to give grace and sometimes a needed irony to the victims of the Nazi occupation. This is so well-written with a bit of whimsy and magical realism that it is one of my favorite reads of 2016.
February 5, 2017
I quite enjoyed reading In the Land of Armadillos, though unfortunately I was not blown away by this collection like most readers. As always with fiction related to the Holocaust, the unavoidable question appears: what else is there to say which has not already been said a hundred times over?
Helen Maryles Shankman attempts to answer it by fusing stories of the Holocaust with elements of eastern European folklore, therefore creating a quasi-fantastical hybrid which - surprisingly! - works. Sometimes the line between the enthralling and the ridiculous can be very thin, and luckily in this case the author doesn't cross it.
In the Land of Armadillos consists of eight interlinked stories, all set in the Polish town of Włodawa; each of the stories contains an element of another; a character makes an appearance in another role, a situation is referenced in passing. The title story was inspired by the life and work of Bruno Schulz, famous for the forgotten but wonderful The Street of Crocodiles. In the story, the German SS officer is determined to keep a desolate and depressed Jewish painter alive - despite having no qualms about eliminating most of the people said painter lived and interacted with with his administration. He is moved by the artist's illustrations for his book, In the Land of Armadillos, and wants him to create more illustrations. The interplay between the officer and the artist is worth reading, and although the story ends predictably tragic - to anyone familiar with Schulz's life - it is still worth reading, and a good exercise in short fiction.
Other stories are not bad as well. In The Messiah, a young Jewish boy is convinced that he has met the real Messiah who is supposed to lead his people out of danger and into safety - only to discover that the Messiah is not exactly how he expected him to be...or is he? The Golem of Żuków is based on the Czech legend of the Golem of Prague, as the story features a man showing up at the door of Shayna and Hersh, two Jewish siblings living in the Polish town of Żuków, convinced that he is the Golem and that he has been called by Shayna, whom he considers to be his rabbi.
Ironically, the two best stories might be the ones which are most based on the two contrasting stereotypes and sentiments - the Polish Antisemite and the Good German. In The Jew Hater, Paweł Walczak is well liked by the occupying forces because of his hatred of the Jews - he freely gives them up, and regularly denounces those who hide them, as well as rats out the partisans. One day Jewish partisans show up at his doorstep - he denounced their positions to the Germans, and they took a heavy hit. The partisans demand that he takes in a Jewish girl and hide her, in exchange for his life - and precisely because he hates Jews, and no one will ever think to look for one in his house. Walczak is understandably infuriated, but has little choice. However, throughout the story he develops a genuine affection for the girl, and takes considerable risk to keep her safe; it is a heartwarming story of redemption and the inescapable power of love, and as cliched as it sounds I could not help but be moved by it.
In A Decent Man we meet Willy Reinhart - the Regional Commissioner of Agricultural Products and Services, who has appeared in the background of previous stories. Reinhart is a decent man, who does not consider himself to be superior to those whom he came to rule. Yet, despite his honest intentions and good nature, he cannot help but resist to take advantage of his position: he sent his wife and son away so that he could live with a mistress, and has no trouble with looting the buildings left behind by Jews, and takes their valuable possessions - which he has a great liking for - for himself. Although flawed, Reinhart is fundamentally devoted to protecting as many people as he can as he becomes more exposed to the atrocities - which only leads to more suspicion and scrutiny from his supervisors, which he constantly has to talk his way out with his fabled silver tongue. As the war draws to a desperate close, Reinhart realizes that he cannot go back to Germany - but also that he cannot remain where he is.
I've seen these stories categorized as magical realism; I disagree. They have nothing in common with magical realism as understood by Marquez or Allende, or even Bruno Schulz (who, I think, pioneered it long before any other author); they are simply stories set during the war with fantastical elements put in. Although I would not call them essential reading, these are not bad stories; good enough to pass the time and hopefully develop more interest in the subjects that they touch upon.
Helen Maryles Shankman attempts to answer it by fusing stories of the Holocaust with elements of eastern European folklore, therefore creating a quasi-fantastical hybrid which - surprisingly! - works. Sometimes the line between the enthralling and the ridiculous can be very thin, and luckily in this case the author doesn't cross it.
In the Land of Armadillos consists of eight interlinked stories, all set in the Polish town of Włodawa; each of the stories contains an element of another; a character makes an appearance in another role, a situation is referenced in passing. The title story was inspired by the life and work of Bruno Schulz, famous for the forgotten but wonderful The Street of Crocodiles. In the story, the German SS officer is determined to keep a desolate and depressed Jewish painter alive - despite having no qualms about eliminating most of the people said painter lived and interacted with with his administration. He is moved by the artist's illustrations for his book, In the Land of Armadillos, and wants him to create more illustrations. The interplay between the officer and the artist is worth reading, and although the story ends predictably tragic - to anyone familiar with Schulz's life - it is still worth reading, and a good exercise in short fiction.
Other stories are not bad as well. In The Messiah, a young Jewish boy is convinced that he has met the real Messiah who is supposed to lead his people out of danger and into safety - only to discover that the Messiah is not exactly how he expected him to be...or is he? The Golem of Żuków is based on the Czech legend of the Golem of Prague, as the story features a man showing up at the door of Shayna and Hersh, two Jewish siblings living in the Polish town of Żuków, convinced that he is the Golem and that he has been called by Shayna, whom he considers to be his rabbi.
Ironically, the two best stories might be the ones which are most based on the two contrasting stereotypes and sentiments - the Polish Antisemite and the Good German. In The Jew Hater, Paweł Walczak is well liked by the occupying forces because of his hatred of the Jews - he freely gives them up, and regularly denounces those who hide them, as well as rats out the partisans. One day Jewish partisans show up at his doorstep - he denounced their positions to the Germans, and they took a heavy hit. The partisans demand that he takes in a Jewish girl and hide her, in exchange for his life - and precisely because he hates Jews, and no one will ever think to look for one in his house. Walczak is understandably infuriated, but has little choice. However, throughout the story he develops a genuine affection for the girl, and takes considerable risk to keep her safe; it is a heartwarming story of redemption and the inescapable power of love, and as cliched as it sounds I could not help but be moved by it.
In A Decent Man we meet Willy Reinhart - the Regional Commissioner of Agricultural Products and Services, who has appeared in the background of previous stories. Reinhart is a decent man, who does not consider himself to be superior to those whom he came to rule. Yet, despite his honest intentions and good nature, he cannot help but resist to take advantage of his position: he sent his wife and son away so that he could live with a mistress, and has no trouble with looting the buildings left behind by Jews, and takes their valuable possessions - which he has a great liking for - for himself. Although flawed, Reinhart is fundamentally devoted to protecting as many people as he can as he becomes more exposed to the atrocities - which only leads to more suspicion and scrutiny from his supervisors, which he constantly has to talk his way out with his fabled silver tongue. As the war draws to a desperate close, Reinhart realizes that he cannot go back to Germany - but also that he cannot remain where he is.
I've seen these stories categorized as magical realism; I disagree. They have nothing in common with magical realism as understood by Marquez or Allende, or even Bruno Schulz (who, I think, pioneered it long before any other author); they are simply stories set during the war with fantastical elements put in. Although I would not call them essential reading, these are not bad stories; good enough to pass the time and hopefully develop more interest in the subjects that they touch upon.
February 11, 2020
I loved this collection of short stories dealing with the horrors of Nazi occupation in Poland. So emotional, and so detached at the same time, and so concise and well-written.
The little touches of magical realism are exactly in line with what people start imagining and believing in when undergoing mass trauma and dramatic social histories. When something good happens even if everything was bound to go bad, the human mind sometimes makes up a supernatural reason for it.
So that's how we have werewolves among the Jewish partisan fighters in the woods, talking dogs and horses who guard their masters (Fallada being the mythical name of the animal in both cases) and a golem who falls in love with their female Rabbi and gives his life to protect her.
I also loved that the stories are somewhat intertwined and that it's all based on historical fact. A must-read for all interested in Eastern European lore, the Holocaust, or simply good stories.
The little touches of magical realism are exactly in line with what people start imagining and believing in when undergoing mass trauma and dramatic social histories. When something good happens even if everything was bound to go bad, the human mind sometimes makes up a supernatural reason for it.
So that's how we have werewolves among the Jewish partisan fighters in the woods, talking dogs and horses who guard their masters (Fallada being the mythical name of the animal in both cases) and a golem who falls in love with their female Rabbi and gives his life to protect her.
I also loved that the stories are somewhat intertwined and that it's all based on historical fact. A must-read for all interested in Eastern European lore, the Holocaust, or simply good stories.
April 22, 2017
The collection has interconnected stories set in Poland when the Germans were clearing out the towns of Jewish populations. If you pick the book I would urge you to keep reading because the stories come to a full circle towards the end.; all the loopholes are answered. This is one of the good magical realism short story collections. I am surprised it didn't gain as much publicity as it should.
I adored this short story collection. As I started reading I gave it a 3 star in my head. Towards the end it was at a 4.5 stars. I love six (almost seven) of the eight stories in the collection. Visit http://www.thebooksatchel.com/they-we... where I talk about the individual stories.
I would recommend the read if you enjoy stories with magical realism.
Disclaimer : Much thanks to Scribner for a copy of the book. All opinions are my own
I adored this short story collection. As I started reading I gave it a 3 star in my head. Towards the end it was at a 4.5 stars. I love six (almost seven) of the eight stories in the collection. Visit http://www.thebooksatchel.com/they-we... where I talk about the individual stories.
I would recommend the read if you enjoy stories with magical realism.
Disclaimer : Much thanks to Scribner for a copy of the book. All opinions are my own
July 13, 2016
Linked short stories are quickly becoming my favorite. When done well they are extraordinary. Last year I was astonished by The Tsar of Love and Techno and this year it is In the Land of Armadillos. This book packs a punch to the gut. It is told on the front lines of the Holocaust in a small village in eastern Poland just a few kilometers from Sobibor. Jews are regularly brutally exterminated and life is not guaranteed. I felt this was a very authentic portrayal of the Holocaust. "The Were Like Family to Me" and "The Jew Hater" were my favorite. Mingled throughout are Jewish fairy tales and magical realism. A very powerful and poignant book.
May 4, 2016
Full disclosure: I got a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
In the title story, a mass murderer from the SS finds a Jewish painter that has painted armadillos in a children’s story that his son loves, and the monster finds that he wants to work to keep the painter alive. The contrast is absolutely striking, and this story alone makes the whole book worth reading (although the other stories are pretty great, too).
This is collection of stories that take place in Nazi Germany, and there is a whole gamut of emotions – some funny moments, some horrors of the Holocaust (of course), and overall grim and tragic. However, this author’s ability to paint (pun intended) moments of light on a very dark landscape make this a book well worth reading.
In the title story, a mass murderer from the SS finds a Jewish painter that has painted armadillos in a children’s story that his son loves, and the monster finds that he wants to work to keep the painter alive. The contrast is absolutely striking, and this story alone makes the whole book worth reading (although the other stories are pretty great, too).
This is collection of stories that take place in Nazi Germany, and there is a whole gamut of emotions – some funny moments, some horrors of the Holocaust (of course), and overall grim and tragic. However, this author’s ability to paint (pun intended) moments of light on a very dark landscape make this a book well worth reading.
March 26, 2017
This is a wonderful collection of interconnected short stories based in Poland during Germany's occupation in WWII. I think the strength in these stories lies with both the marvelously crafted characters and that there are stories about both the occupied and the occupiers. I think my favorite story is the first in the collection, "In the Land of Armadillos", because it highlights the complexity of the situation that everyone found themselves in during this time period. It makes you really think about the characters as people and not stereotypes. I loved entering into these stories, some written about a SS officer or a Polish collaborator, and coming out at the end being reminded about how complex all humans are. We are all such complicated creatures.
March 14, 2016
Hands down the best book of the year to date, and there have been some good ones already this year. The author prefers to call these connected short stories, but they do tell the story of life in Wlodawa, Poland during WWII. It is not a pretty story but there are moments of grace among the horror. We see some of the events that happen through the different eyes in different stories.
These stories could be classified as intrusive fantasy, where the fantastical intrudes on real life. The lives of those living in Wlodawa (a city which Wikipedia says was 70% Jewish at the beginning of WWII) had to have been one filled with fear, as the SS executed the citizens just for the fun of it and to keep them "in line." In all the stories, magic plays a role. In one, the partisans turn into bears and wolves and destroy the soldiers who are systematically executing Jewish citizens. In another, the armadillos and cockatoos painted on the nursery wall come to life. In another, a golem appears and protects a young woman. In another, a dog talks to a little girl and keeps her safe with the enemy appears.
These stories do not just tell the stories of the victims, they also tell the stories of the conflicted. Of those who are not the intended victims, but who are in some way caught up on the side of the inflictors of horror. Sometimes they do good; sometimes they do bad. While not in the same situation as the victims, they too fear for their lives as they see what happens to those who try to help. They are hard to hate, as they are all too human.
The historical side of this book is based on reality; the fantastical side on fable. The author has done an amazing job weaving history and fantasy.
I enjoyed each of the eight stories immensely, but my favorite was the first and the longest, called "In the Land of the Armadillos." Strumbannfuhrer Maximillian Haas writes in his diary that he is once again the "General of the Jews." He assigns Jews to the jobs best suited to them but is also responsible for carrying out many of the local executions. He notes in his diary that "shooting women and children is not what I signed up for; I'm a soldier; I miss the smoke and strategy of the battlefield. Still, a soldier must do what he is told, or all discipline disappears, and the war is lost." Max is trying to get his house into shape, so that his wife and son join him. He is told of a Jewish painter - Toby - and arranges for Toby to paint the nursery with the armadillos and cockatoos of his son's favorite storybook -- "The Land of the Armadillos." Max loves the red armadillos and the blue cockatoos that appear on the wall -- some even look familiar -- and really takes a liking to Toby. Max looks out for Toby, giving him a winter coat, good food, and encouraging Toby to get together with Max's young female cook. Of course, things do not go as Max thought they would, for either himself or Toby. A fascinating part of this story is the tale within it that Toby tells Max -- the story of the boy who loved birds.
For me, the stories in this book capture the possibility of hope where none would seem to dare exist.
These stories could be classified as intrusive fantasy, where the fantastical intrudes on real life. The lives of those living in Wlodawa (a city which Wikipedia says was 70% Jewish at the beginning of WWII) had to have been one filled with fear, as the SS executed the citizens just for the fun of it and to keep them "in line." In all the stories, magic plays a role. In one, the partisans turn into bears and wolves and destroy the soldiers who are systematically executing Jewish citizens. In another, the armadillos and cockatoos painted on the nursery wall come to life. In another, a golem appears and protects a young woman. In another, a dog talks to a little girl and keeps her safe with the enemy appears.
These stories do not just tell the stories of the victims, they also tell the stories of the conflicted. Of those who are not the intended victims, but who are in some way caught up on the side of the inflictors of horror. Sometimes they do good; sometimes they do bad. While not in the same situation as the victims, they too fear for their lives as they see what happens to those who try to help. They are hard to hate, as they are all too human.
The historical side of this book is based on reality; the fantastical side on fable. The author has done an amazing job weaving history and fantasy.
I enjoyed each of the eight stories immensely, but my favorite was the first and the longest, called "In the Land of the Armadillos." Strumbannfuhrer Maximillian Haas writes in his diary that he is once again the "General of the Jews." He assigns Jews to the jobs best suited to them but is also responsible for carrying out many of the local executions. He notes in his diary that "shooting women and children is not what I signed up for; I'm a soldier; I miss the smoke and strategy of the battlefield. Still, a soldier must do what he is told, or all discipline disappears, and the war is lost." Max is trying to get his house into shape, so that his wife and son join him. He is told of a Jewish painter - Toby - and arranges for Toby to paint the nursery with the armadillos and cockatoos of his son's favorite storybook -- "The Land of the Armadillos." Max loves the red armadillos and the blue cockatoos that appear on the wall -- some even look familiar -- and really takes a liking to Toby. Max looks out for Toby, giving him a winter coat, good food, and encouraging Toby to get together with Max's young female cook. Of course, things do not go as Max thought they would, for either himself or Toby. A fascinating part of this story is the tale within it that Toby tells Max -- the story of the boy who loved birds.
For me, the stories in this book capture the possibility of hope where none would seem to dare exist.
February 22, 2016
Who will live and who will die? Who will survive the Nazi occupation of the dreamy Polish hamlet of Wlodawa? Two-time Pushcart Prize nomine Helen Maryles Shankman weaves historical fact and Jewish folklore in the eight haunting tales of In the Land of Armadillos.
In the title story we meet a gifted painter and writer—the consumptive captive of a notorious SS officer—whose painted subjects become unwitting recipients of a blessing. Imbued with a kind of haunting mysticism, we are kept wondering until the final perfect sentence.
In The Partizans a werewolf fights to save his childhood love from death, and a common grave.
Next, a gangster becomes a reluctant savior in The Messiah, a story that blurs the edges between astronomical anomalies and miracles.
In They Were Like Family to Me a priest searches for his father’s humanity at the edge of a strange empty lot where the grass mysteriously stays green, even in the dead of winter.
In The Jew Hater a little copper-haired girl who can talk with animals cracks open and heals a hardened heart.
A handsome golem mysteriously appears one night in The Golem of Zukow, just where he is most needed.
Willy Reinhart, charming businessman, lover of beautiful creatures and beautiful craftsmanship, believes he can save his community of Jewish artisans and their families until the bitter-sweet end, in A Decent Man.
Though presented as a collection of short stories, all are connected by the same characters, events and places, and In the Land of Armadillos reads like a multiple viewpoint novel. Full of surprises, Shankman’s prose is clean, and disarmingly simple, until she steps from the shadows and you realize you have been under her cleverly woven spell all along. One aspect of her dialogue I particularly enjoyed, though it was deeply disturbing when I realized what she was doing, was how much like our modern-day coworkers and neighbors her Polish characters occasionally sounded; a subtle reminder that these disturbing conversations could take place here, today.
Despite being about the Holocaust, this novel is not all grim. Though there are appalling events aplenty, these share focus with the survivors and acts of heroism. The harsh reality behind the story of Wlodawa is further relieved by really excellent writing. And the novel ends, in a brief epilogue-like non-story that reveals a healed past and leaves readers hopeful.
I absolutely loved everything about this brilliant little historical novel, and will be keeping it for my shelf. Highly recommended.
In the title story we meet a gifted painter and writer—the consumptive captive of a notorious SS officer—whose painted subjects become unwitting recipients of a blessing. Imbued with a kind of haunting mysticism, we are kept wondering until the final perfect sentence.
In The Partizans a werewolf fights to save his childhood love from death, and a common grave.
Next, a gangster becomes a reluctant savior in The Messiah, a story that blurs the edges between astronomical anomalies and miracles.
In They Were Like Family to Me a priest searches for his father’s humanity at the edge of a strange empty lot where the grass mysteriously stays green, even in the dead of winter.
In The Jew Hater a little copper-haired girl who can talk with animals cracks open and heals a hardened heart.
A handsome golem mysteriously appears one night in The Golem of Zukow, just where he is most needed.
Willy Reinhart, charming businessman, lover of beautiful creatures and beautiful craftsmanship, believes he can save his community of Jewish artisans and their families until the bitter-sweet end, in A Decent Man.
Though presented as a collection of short stories, all are connected by the same characters, events and places, and In the Land of Armadillos reads like a multiple viewpoint novel. Full of surprises, Shankman’s prose is clean, and disarmingly simple, until she steps from the shadows and you realize you have been under her cleverly woven spell all along. One aspect of her dialogue I particularly enjoyed, though it was deeply disturbing when I realized what she was doing, was how much like our modern-day coworkers and neighbors her Polish characters occasionally sounded; a subtle reminder that these disturbing conversations could take place here, today.
Despite being about the Holocaust, this novel is not all grim. Though there are appalling events aplenty, these share focus with the survivors and acts of heroism. The harsh reality behind the story of Wlodawa is further relieved by really excellent writing. And the novel ends, in a brief epilogue-like non-story that reveals a healed past and leaves readers hopeful.
I absolutely loved everything about this brilliant little historical novel, and will be keeping it for my shelf. Highly recommended.
February 3, 2016
This was my kind of short story collection. When I finished it (a little bit past my bedtime *cough*) I just held it in my hands and savored the feeling of reading something that was just such a good read. It was like eating a Snickers bar on a day that if you DIDN'T GET SOME CHOCOLATE THERE WOULD BE HELL TO PAY.
Anyway.
This is my favorite kind of short story collection, when all of the stories have a common theme or setting and has a thread of continuity through them all but it doesn't just tell the same story from a different angle over and over again.
I like the little dose of magical realism in a couple of the stories. For the people of Europe during WWII it must have really seemed like the end of the world was at hand; so who says talking animals would have been completely out of the question? (If you don't like magical realism, don't let this put you off. It doesn't show up a lot.) Even my magical creature, the golem, shows up in a story. I might have to update my guest post about golem that I just did for Book Bloggers International!
I liked that there were some happy endings, but not so many to not be realistic. Because, not a whole lot of happy endings come out of WWII, but there were enough to keep me from despairing.
Each story I read I thought "this one will probably be my favorite". (With the exception of the Messiah one, that one I liked the least out of the whole bunch). But I think my two absolute favorites were "Super crotchety old man saves a little Jewish girl, also there's a talking dog" or "Legit ghost story I could tell around the campfire about mysterious animals in the woods" those aren't the actual titles obviously.
The more "humane" side of a couple of the German characters also made things complicated, in the best kind of way.
If you couldn't tell from the gushiness of this review, I very much liked this book. It gets a solid 4 out of 5 stars from me!
Anyway.
This is my favorite kind of short story collection, when all of the stories have a common theme or setting and has a thread of continuity through them all but it doesn't just tell the same story from a different angle over and over again.
I like the little dose of magical realism in a couple of the stories. For the people of Europe during WWII it must have really seemed like the end of the world was at hand; so who says talking animals would have been completely out of the question? (If you don't like magical realism, don't let this put you off. It doesn't show up a lot.) Even my magical creature, the golem, shows up in a story. I might have to update my guest post about golem that I just did for Book Bloggers International!
I liked that there were some happy endings, but not so many to not be realistic. Because, not a whole lot of happy endings come out of WWII, but there were enough to keep me from despairing.
Each story I read I thought "this one will probably be my favorite". (With the exception of the Messiah one, that one I liked the least out of the whole bunch). But I think my two absolute favorites were "Super crotchety old man saves a little Jewish girl, also there's a talking dog" or "Legit ghost story I could tell around the campfire about mysterious animals in the woods" those aren't the actual titles obviously.
The more "humane" side of a couple of the German characters also made things complicated, in the best kind of way.
If you couldn't tell from the gushiness of this review, I very much liked this book. It gets a solid 4 out of 5 stars from me!
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