Christine

by Alice Cholmondeley (Pseudonym)

My daughter Christine, who wrote me these letters, died at a hospital in Stuttgart on the morning of August 8th, 1914, of acute double pneumonia. I have kept the letters private for nearly three years, because, apart from the love in them that made them sacred things in days when we each still hoarded what we had of good, they seemed to me, who did not know the Germans and thought of them, as most people in England for a long while thought, without any bitterness and with a great inclination to explain away and excuse, too extreme and sweeping in their judgments.

Genres: Classics, 20th Century, Fiction, Womens, World War I

141 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1917

About the author

Pen name of Elizabeth von Arnim.

Reviews

[JimZ · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an epistolary novel that is written by Elizabeth von Arnim under the pseudonym of Alice Cholmondeley. Christine, referred to by herself as Chris in this novel, is writing letters to her mother Alice. Their correspondence begins on May 29, 1914 and Chris’ last letter is written on August 6 of that same year. What happens in between that time is the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and Franz Ferdinand's wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, on 28 June 1914, in Sarajevo, Bosnia.

Spoiler Alert: Unlike other reviews I’m going to include some key parts of the novel, because a large portion of this review deals with things that are in the book, and not so much how I feel about the book and why I feel that way (that occupies one short paragraph). So if you want to read the book you might want to skip this review, but I hope you come back to it when you are finished. 🧐

Chris, 22 years of age, was to spend a year in Germany being trained by a concert violinist, Herr Kloster. The game plan was to further hone the skills of Chris, who had a talent for playing the violin, so she could become a virtuoso and tour throughout Europe, earning enough money to support her and her mother, who apparently was poor because her husband had just died. Chris stays at a boarding house in which the owner also supplies meals to outsiders (another way to earn money). So at the table are a number of Germans along with Chris and they have a superior attitude and are always extolling their country directly to Chris and look down on her due to her being 1) a woman and 2) from England. Once the Archduke is assassinated, we are introduced via Chris’ letters to the almost day-by-day progression to war, because Germany has a treaty with Austria-Hungary and Austria-Hungary’s demands for reparations are rejected by Serbia. So Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia on July 28, which produces a cascade of different countries picking sides due to treaties between countries, and on August 4, England declares war on Germany. Chris no longer has the support of Herr Kloster, is no longer welcome in the boarding house, and for that matter in Germany. She tries to get out to be reunited with her mother who is now in Switzerland and makes it as far as Stuggart, at which she contracts double pneumonia and dies on August 8, 1914.

One other important thing in the novel is that on July 18 Chris becomes engaged to a Prussian lieutenant officer, Herr von Inster. The engagement is met with general acceptance by those around the dinner table at the boarding house, but that air of acceptance ends on August 4, less than one month after her engagement and when war is declared between England and Germany. von Inster and Chris promise that after the war ends they will get together again — I think both are hoping for a quick end to the conflict.

Why would Elizabeth write such a novel and why under a pen name? I’m not sure — what I know is this: Elizabeth von Arnim had a daughter, Felicitas, known as Martin, who was sent to a boarding school in Lausanne Switzerland when she was 14. She gets kicked out of the boarding school in 1914 and with help from a former housekeeper and friend of Elizabeth, Teppi, finds a job in Germany as an assistant at a children’s home in Bremen Germany. On the night of June 1, 1916, Felcitas “contracts double pneumonia while playing the violin at her open window”. She died the next day of complications at the age of 16.

The novel Christine is published in July of 1917. In an introduction to the book written by ‘Alice Cholmondeley’, she informs the reader that her daughter had died on August 8, 1914 and that she is publishing her letters from May to August of that year to inform the reader through Chris’ voice how Germans treated her daughter and how after the assassination those around the table of the boarding house and those out in the street of Berlin were rabid for war and wanted the blood of any and all enemies of Germany. They were a bloodthirsty nation, according to Alice. Well, then that would also be according to Elizabeth von Arnim. In real life, her daughter was stuck in Germany during World War I and could not leave, and died there, and Elizabeth blamed the Germans on her daughter’s death.

Elizabeth never wrote her memoirs, so we don’t know with 100% certitude her reasoning for this novel. In a book that comes closest to a memoir, All the Dogs of my Life (1936), no mention is made of Felicitas (Martin). Elizabeth learned of her daughter’s death initially via a telegram from Teppi and writes to another daughter of hers, Liebet, who was living in the United States on June 7, 1916: “I’ve got sad news for you – Johnnie was killed in the naval battle, and the same day we heard that, came a telegram from Teppi saying briefly and giving no explanation that Martin is dead. …how dreadful it is, too dreadful – I can’t bear it – and yet I’m going to bear it”. She added that “Martin’s death is just as directly the result of the war as Johnnie’s”. Johnnie was a nephew of Elizabeth who was a Prussian commander of a ship, The Black Prince, that was sunk during the Battle of Jutland, in a fight between the German and British naval forces on May 31-June 1, 1916.

I reluctantly give this novel 2 stars. It is rather a boring book overall. Chris’ letters back to her mother are saccharine-sweet…and what is lacking to a significant degree is Elizabeth’s humor, which is a huge reason I am so fond of Elizabeth von Arnim. There were a couple of places in the book in which her humor shown through and I’ll relate them below, but the humor was mostly lacking in this book. But let’s face it—there was nothing humorous about the situation Chris was in (or that Elizabeth’s daughter Felicitas was in).

A couple of humorous places in the novel:
• She is peeved towards the keeper of the boarding house, Frau Berg: I was snappy, you see. The hot weather makes me disposed, I’m afraid, to impatience with Frau berg. She is so large, and she seems to soak up what air there is, and whenever she has sat on a chair it keeps warm afterwards for hours. If only some clever American with inventions rioting in his brain would come here and adapt her to being an electric fan! I want one so badly, and she would be beautiful whirling round, and would make an immense volume of air, I’m sure.
• A German is driving their horse and carriage through the forest: “He is a huge rawboned man, with the flat backed head and protruding ears so many Germans have. What is it that if left out of their heads, I wonder? His moustache is like the Kaiser’s, and looks rather a fine figure of a man in his grey-green forester’s uniform and becoming slouch hat with a feather stuck in it. Without his hat he is less impressive, because of his head. I suppose he has to have a head, but if he didn’t have to he’d be very good-looking.”

Notes:
• This article implies that ‘Christine’ was used as propaganda to get Americans into WW I. H.G. Wells is mentioned in the article (and he was reportedly a lover of Elizabeth for 3 years): https://www.historynet.com/how-great-...
• Wikipedia flags this article as having multiple issues, and I’d have to agree…some things are stated as facts without references. A number of statements are made that are clearly the opinion of the author but are written with a certain “air of authority” which I would question. Interestingly the entry was made in July of this year. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christi...
• Virago published this novel in paperback in 2008 as a Virago Modern Classic. As far as I can tell these other novels by Elizabeth were published as Virago Modern Classics: Love; The Solitary Summer; Elizabeth and Her German Garden; The Enchanted April; Adventures of Elizabeth in Rugen; The Caravaners.

Reviews:
I can’t find any. There were reviews written at the time of publication but I can’t access them. I think if you are a subscriber to the New York Times you can. The links are provided here:
• "A luminous story: absorbingly interesting" [Review of the book Christine]. New York Times, Aug. 12, 1917. Retrieved from ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851–2005).
• "A new novel by a new author" [Review of the book Christine]. New York Times, July 29, 1917. Retrieved from ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851–2005).
• "Fact and fiction" [Review of the book Christine]. New York Times, Sep. 23, 1917. Retrieved from ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851–2005)
• "Germany vividly portrayed in fiction"] [Review of the book Christine. New York Times, Aug. 5, 1917. Retrieved from ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851–2005)
• Read "Christine" by Alice Cholmondeley [Review of the book Christine]. New York Times, Sep. 15, 1917. Retrieved from ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851–2005)
• "Recent noteworthy fiction" [Review of the book Christine]. New York Times, Dec. 17, 1917. Retrieved from ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851–2005)
• "To-day's most eagerly discussed novel Christine by Alice Cholmondeley" [Review of the book Christine]. New York Times, Aug. 25, 1917. Retrieved from ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851–2005)

[Bunny · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 *

Forse il più classico dei libri della Von Arnim, il più drammatico, il meno ironico, molto autobiografico. Christine è una ragazza inglese che si reca in Germania per prendere lezioni di violino da un grande maestro. Il suo talento è innegabile e ha davanti a sè un futuro di successo nel mondo della musica. Conosciamo la sua storia attraverso le lettere che scrive alla sua adorata madre e il loro rapporto è davvero indissolubile e pieno di sincero amore. Dalle lettere traspare l'animo di una ragazza giovanissima che fa fatica a staccarsi dalla madre ma che al contempo ha fiducia nel futuro, guardiamo alla società tedesca attraverso i suoi occhi critici e scopriamo com'era la vita a Berlino alla vigilia della prima guerra mondiale. Fin dalla primissima pagina sappiamo che Christine morirà a Stoccarda e che la madre ha deciso di dare alle stampe le sue lettere. La Von Arnim ha scritto questo libro in seguito alla tragica e simile morte toccata alla sua giovane figlia Felicitas, scomparsa in Germania a soli 16 anni. Ecco perchè qui troviamo questa atmosfera colma di cattivi presagi.

[Mighty Aphrodite · Rating 3 out of 5]

Il sogno di Christine sembra essere sul punto di realizzarsi, quando la giovane arriva a Berlino piena di speranze e buoni propositi. Dalla morte del padre, lei e sua madre non hanno avuto più nessuno a cui appoggiarsi e la casa nel Sussex nella quale vivevano è ormai solo un lontano ricordo.

La loro situazione economica è incerta, ma Alice – la madre di Christine – riesce a garantire un viaggio in Germania alla figlia per un intero anno, affinché la giovane abbia la possibilità di studiare violino con un grande concertista tedesco, Kloster. Il desiderio di Christine, infatti, è quello di diventare a tal punto brava a suonare il violino da poter girare il mondo come concertista e dimenticare le preoccupazioni economiche che assillano lei e la madre.

All’inizio della sua permanenza a Berlino, Christine alloggia in una modesta pensione, retta dalla ligia Frau Berg, un donnone pieno di spirito patriottico. Durante i pranzi ai pensionanti si uniscono anche i lavoratori del quartiere e la giovane non può fare a meno di notare che i discorsi dei tedeschi non fanno altro che girare intorno a un unico argomento: la patria e la lealtà dovuta al Kaiser. Da buona inglese Christine vede a quelle conversazioni roboanti come a inspiegabili esagerazioni, non comprende come persone all’apparenza così razionali possano lasciarsi andare a sentimenti e parole dal sapore nettamente melodrammatico. Allo stesso tempo, però, la sua posizione di straniera le permette di dare voce ad un punto di vista privilegiato: ridotta al silenzio dalla sua scarsa conoscenza del tedesco, ma capace di comprendere la lingua, osserva i berlinesi con imparzialità e uno sguarda sagace, attraverso il quale smaschera le loro debolezze e le loro contraddizioni.

Ad aiutarla nel decifrare la vera natura dei tedeschi e il loro precoce indottrinamento alla religione dello stato, ci pensa il suo insegnante di violino, Kloster, artista geniale inviso alla corte del Kaiser per le sue opinioni forti e anticonformiste. Con lui Christine sente di poter essere sé stessa e, grazie al suo aiuto, sa di poter diventare una brava concertista, di poter dare vita col violino a una musica magica e inebriante, capace di trascinare chi la ascolta in mondi lontani e fantastici.

Continua a leggere qui: https://parlaredilibri.wordpress.com/...

[Wanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recommendation through Laura. Thank you, Laura

Free download here: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/12683

19 SEP 2020 - an epistolary novel sharing correspondence from Christine of her experiences in Berlin and the surrounding towns to her mother living in England. Christine shares the good (her violin lessons with the Master, her travels to the countryside) and the bad (her unfair treatment for being English) with her Mother. Christine tells her mother that it is only a matter of months before she, Christine, will return to England having achieved mastery of the violin, the ability to perform in concert halls receiving good pay, and caring for her Mother the rest of her days. Christine is optimistic about her future and only wants to return to her Mother. Alas, she does not.

This novel is written based on personal experiences of Ms. von Armin - her daughter, Martin, died in Germany at the age of 17.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book claimed to be actual letters written by a young Englishwoman in Germany to study violin just as WWI was beginning. Nothing in it stated that it was a work of fiction. As anti-German propaganda, it really deserves 5 stars. Although I had doubts as to its authenticity because it was so well written and the Germans were so consistently unlikeable, it was very convincing. I read the original 1917 edition, which made it seem even more convincing.

[Xenja · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prima di tutto è la storia vera, semplice e triste di una ragazzina uccisa nel fiore degli anni, una ragazzina che amiamo attraverso le sue lettere, perché è intelligente e dolce e ironica e appassionata e man mano che si va avanti diventa sempre più doloroso sapere che morirà a sedici anni. In secondo luogo il romanzo è estremamente interessante come testimonianza storica del clima di quegli anni, clima che portò alla prima guerra mondiale. Memorabile l'episodio del discorso rivolto alla folla dal Kaiser, incredibile e terribile (non posso dire di più) il finale.
Da leggere. Da comprare. I libri di Bollati Boringhieri costano parecchio, ma va detto che sono curatissimi in ogni dettaglio, la traduzione è perfetta, e non troverete mai un errore di stampa.

[Charlene Mathe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This brief book is wonderfully written. I would give it five stars if the author did not sometimes stretch credibility with features of this faux-dairy. For instance, the reader quickly wonders what sort of daughter mails her mother several letters a day. Despite these misgivings, I gave way to thinking I was reading real letters from the era preceding the First World War. My first thought upon realizing that the entire diary was fiction was chagrin, and remorse that I had wasted two hours reading a fantasy -- and a fantasy I am unlikely to forget!
But I am rethinking my guilt. True, the story provided stereotypes of German society that served as a form of propaganda during the war. Fiction it was, but with a 1917 publication, was it not also prophecy? Isn't it remarkable that the (exaggerated) national characterizations the author elaborated, just one generation later exploded as she described in cultural detail, as the Third Reich! Much of her description matched closely what I read in Eric Metaxas' 2011 book on Bonhoeffer. The scenes were so familiar to me from "Bonhoeffer," and many other books I have read over the years about German society during World War Two, that in reading "Christine" I constantly had to remind myself that I was reading a book published in 1917, not 1940. The uncanny precognition of this fiction speaks to the significance of "the artist as social prophet."

[Sara Booklover · Rating 4 out of 5]

E’ una storia epistolare a senso unico, dove il lettore può leggere le lettere che una figlia scrive alla madre. La ragazza protagonista (ovvero Christine) è una giovane talentuosa, piena di vita e carica di speranze, che va a scontrarsi con una realtà di cui ignorava l’esistenza.
La storia si compone lettera dopo lettera, in maniera lenta ma inesorabile e anche se la scrittura il più delle volte è vivace si riesce comunque a percepire un senso crescente di apprensione.
L’unica cosa che non ho apprezzato è che fin dall’inizio del libro il lettore saprà come andrà a finire.
Io non ve lo dico, il finale è già scritto nel prologo e questo toglie la sorpresa, forse sarebbe stato meglio saltare il prologo e leggerlo alla fine (io vi consiglio di fare così!!!!) io non non sapevo e l’ho letto, ma ciò nonostante sono rimasta comunque colpita e impressionata da questo libro.
E’ un romanzo davvero amaro, non mi aspettavo dalla Von Arnim un romanzo dai toni così cupi, perché di solito scrive commedie intelligenti ma leggere, e solo successivamente ho appreso che si tratta di un episodio accaduto veramente nella vita dell’autrice. Anche se in questo libro vi sono elementi romanzati, la storia di base è realmente accaduta e ammetto di esserne rimasta quasi sconvolta, dato che è una di quelle storie che sembra impossibile che sia potute succedere davvero.

[Bettie]

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/12683

[Michael Kott · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all what is it about?

Amazon's hardcover version description only says this:
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.
This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.
Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.

We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

The Paperback description says this:

Pre-WWI anti-German propaganda written in an epistolary form. "Letters of Christine, a young girl, who went to Germany to study the violin, to her mother. They tell the story of her art, the people she meets and of her love affair with a German officer, and give a vivid picture of German character and life in the days just before and after the outbreak of the war. Christine died in a German hospital when she was attempting to leave the country. Personal names have been altered in the narrative."

So what is it?

The author is Alice Cholmondeley which is a pen name of Elizabeth von Arnim. It reads like it was true. Was Christine actually Elizabeth's daughter? It would be interesting to know.
Alice, through Christine's letters, paints a gloomy picture of the German citizenry just before World War I.
While it ends with her last letter written, we are told in the form of a letter by Alice Cholmondeley that the last two letters arrived after news of her death and that Christine died in a hospital while trying to leave Germany with no other details.

Very interesting and strange novel.

[Emanuela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Deludente. Il libro di per sé è molto interessante nonostante sia un romanzo epistolare, cosa che di solito non amo tanto; bella la storia e anche la narrazione, buona caratterizzazione dei personaggi e anche lo stile un po’ adolescenziale della scrittura e dei pensieri e moti d’animo di Christine, dato che in fondo è solo una ragazza di 16 anni. Tratto dalla storia vera della scrittrice, la cui figlia è andata davvero in Germania per studiare musica e vi è morta. Molto interessante la descrizione dei comportamenti e degli atteggiamenti dei tedeschi, che ci svela come, già molto prima della seconda guerra mondiale e del nazismo, avessero già questi aneliti profondamente nazionalisti e belligerante con qualsiasi nazione gli stesse intorno, solo per affermare la loro supremazia su tutti. Fa molto arrabbiare il voltafaccia improvviso di tutti quando reputano che siano diventati gli inglesi i nemici. Ed anche il fatto che Bernd non abbia in fondo reazioni e che, nonostante la vita da militare non sia ciò a cui aspiri per sé, e nonostante sia “diverso” nel modo di pensare e di comportarsi dagli altri, poi in fondo si pieghi al volere del Kaiser e del generale nell’episodio finale, solo per dovere e per “il buon nome della famiglia”. E anche il fatto che Kloster, tipo che non la manda a dire fin dall’inizio a nessuno, all’improvviso cambi e si faccia irretire dall’inganno per spaventarlo e tirarlo dalla propria parte e renderlo innocuo. Ma la cosa che ho odiato più di tutto è il modo in cui finisce! È vero che conoscendo come siano andate le vicende reali si può immaginare comunque l’evoluzione dei fatti, ma ciò non toglie che questo lasciare in sospeso senza alcun senso il racconto, toglie tutto il valore e la bellezza al libro, lasciandolo una sterile raccolta di lettere di una meravigliosamente dotata violinista inglese di 16 anni che, dal suo soggiorno di studio in Germania, ci regala uno spaccato storico della vita politica e sociale dei tedeschi in quegli anni....nulla di più!

[Tracey · Rating 2 out of 5]

A young woman travels to Berlin to improve her ‘fiddling’ skills before the commencement of World War One and through her letters to her mother we witness her hopes, dreams and how they are all shattered as war begins.
This is not a long novel about 140 pages but at times it can drag. Really drag. I found the difficulty in the voice of Christine especially when she goes on and on about her relationship with her mother. I know it is a different time, a different age but her attachment to Mother is like being doused in sugar. It is nauseating as she drones on about how close they are, how she is the only one and a lot of the letters are padded out with this waffle.
Once you get over the saccharin relationship you begin to see the hatred of Germany. It starts early with little descriptions such as Berlin described as ‘There is no mystery about it, no atmosphere; it just blares at you’ or how German children are so depressed they are self-harming ‘ They commit suicide, schoolchildren and even younger ones, in great numbers every year.’ There is nothing nice about Germany and you feel the book is a form of propaganda. This element of the book has caused some controversy in that Von Arnim eventually wrote the book under a pseudonym and was passed off as an actual eye-witness account to these events.
The character of Christine is crafted to illicit a sympathy from the reader. She struggles to adapt to her new environment, adapted to the language, the people and the culture. As she does come to terms, her social circle expands and she meets the love of her life a German soldier. As war comes closer, the difficulty to remain in Germany becomes difficult and she flees for safety. If you cannot connect with Christine the novel does become tedious.
It was an interesting read.

[Elena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Christine è una giovanissima violinista inglese che corona, grazie a molti sacrifici, il sogno di perfezionarsi in Germania con un rinomato maestro. Siamo nel 1914 e, non appena arrivata a Berlino, percepisce con disagio l'ostilità mostrata dai suoi ospiti tedeschi nei suoi confronti. Tuttavia Christine si impegna nello studio e conosce un ufficiale di cui si innamora perdutamente ma, a un passo dal coronare le sue ambizioni e i suoi sogni, gli avvenimenti della storia sono destinati a imprimere una svolta tragica alla sua vicenda personale. La narrazione si ispira a fatti realmente accaduti: la storia di Christine ricalca quella di una figlia della Arnim, che morì di polmonite dopo essere rimasta bloccata in Germania in seguito allo scoppio della prima guerra mondiale. Dato questo presupposto, è facile comprendere le motivazioni che spinsero l'autrice a tracciare del popolo tedesco un ritratto così negativo: i tedeschi sono tronfi, xenofobi fino al midollo, incapaci di guardare oltre il proprio fanatismo, stolidi nell'obbedienza e nella crudeltà. Gli inglesi, ovviamente, sono tutto l'opposto: difensori del bene e della pace, democratici e onesti. Ma è proprio questa dicotomia nettissima tra il bene e il male, incarnati dalle due nazionalità senza sfumature, a collocare la Arnim sullo stesso piano di coloro che disprezza in modo tanto radicale.

[Liedie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Da dieser Roman nicht mein erstes Buch von Elizabeth von Arnim ist, wusste ich von vornherein, dass er mir gefallen wird. Allerdings hatte ich nicht mit der Thematik gerechnet und schon gar nicht damit, dass mich dieser Roman so aufwühlen würde. Die Briefe von Christine an ihre Mutter (Mai bis August 1914)sind zu Beginn sehr fröhlich, aber schon bald zeichnet sich ab, dass der 1. Weltkrieg unvermeidbar scheint. Was Christine als Engländerin in dieser Zeit in Deutschland erlebt und warum Elizabeth von Arnim dieses Buch unter dem Namen Alice Cholomdeley geschrieben hat, möchte ich hier nicht verraten. Ich kann nur empfehlen, dieses Buch zu lesen und am besten eine Biografie der Autorin noch hinterher.

[Irene Palfy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Being German of course I partly found the anti-German sentiments partly really hurtful - probably also because some wh found myself in them. Keeping in mind that this book was written in 1917 and Elizabeth von Arnim's own background story it was understandable though. (Still I think all in all there was not one single likeable character because also Christine herself was not a very charming young lady in my admittedly quite naïve and narrow-minded opinion.) I still consider myself a fan of Elizabeth von Arnim. Her descriptions of nature always make me dream. And I will go on reading more and more books by her. I am looking forward to the next coming my way.

[Gwynplaine26th · Rating 3 out of 5]

Romanzo epistolare ambientato nel 1914, grazie alla Von Armin veniamo catapultati poche settimane prima dell'inizio della prima guerra mondiale che vide la Germania e l' Inghilterra su fronti contrapposti.

Nelle lettere alla madre, speranze per il futuro, impressioni e commenti sul noto periodo storico. Differente da altri Von Armin, altrettanto prezioso.. e personale.

[Laura]

Free download available at Project Gutenberg.

[Francesca · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5-4/5

[Debbie Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helped me learn more about WWI. (ebook Project Gutenberg)

[Luana Milella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Credo sia l’unico romanzo della Von Arnim epistolare e non ironico, ma malinconico e drammatico.
Già dalla prima pagina l’autrice ci mette al corrente del destino di Christine. Ho apprezzato questa scelta perché è proprio questa notizia che da al romanzo un sapore diverso, non stucchevole. Tutto prende una piega diversa conoscendo il triste epilogo di Christine, dei suoi sogni infranti, di quella giovinezza rubata.
La Von Arnim ha scritto questo libro in ricordo di sua figlia Felicitas morta giovanissima per una polmonite fulminante, dopo essere rimasta bloccata in Germania a seguito dello scoppio della guerra. Christine la rappresenta in tutto. È una ragazza dotata di un grandissimo talento, suona il violino in modo sublime e per questo si reca a Berlino a studiare presso un famoso violinista che le da lezioni due volte alla settimana. Ha davanti a se un futuro roseo. Dalle lettere traspare la sua gioia di vivere, la voglia di amare e il forte legame con la madre a cui deve tutto e che vuole ricompensare per i sacrifici fatti in onore di quel talento che possiede.
Attraverso i suoi occhi scopriamo il clima che si respirava a quel tempo a Berlino. Lettere capaci di ritrarre lo stato d’animo del popolo tedesco alla vigilia della prima guerra mondiale e che ci fanno ben capire il loro assoluto nazionalismo, la voglia di affermare a tutti i costi la loro supremazia sul resto del mondo, sentimento estremo che pone le basi al disastro umano che seguirà venticinque anni dopo.
Ho trovato il romanzo delicato, toccante e bello nella sua semplicità. Una ragazzina che ho amato fin da subito, intelligente, ribelle e appassionata.
Man mano che si prosegue con la lettura diventa più doloroso leggere le sue lettere così piene di gioia e ricche di sogni, sogni che non si realizzeranno mai.
Ho voglia di approfondire la conoscenza di questa scrittrice definita “la donna più intelligente della sua epoca”. C’è qualcosa che mi ha colpito in questo romanzo, che mi fa venire voglia di entrare nel suo mondo.

[Felicity · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't recall reading another epistolary novel featuring a single side of the correspondence, and this one does not encourage exploration of the subgenre. Christine's unilateral declaration of the perfect symbiosis of her relationship with her cloyingly sweet mother becomes increasingly nauseating with each repetition. Suffer ye little children but not their dear little mothers! How strange, then, that the daughter who decries the 'extreme sentimentality of the Germans' should commit the identical offence in her copious correspondence. Her unflattering descriptions of the German character, assassinated long before the Crown Prince, provides plenty of ammunition if not for His Majesty, aka the 'S.M.', then for the recipient of the letter, the aforementioned Sweet Mother. The dispenser of all this unpalatable sweetness nevertheless objects to being treated 'as if I were six, and made of sugar'. From my reading of various studies of Von Arnim's life, I gather that the real-life relationship between mother and the daughter who died prematurely was not all sweetness and light, which may account for this hyperglycaemic case-history. Mercifully for the reader, with the outbreak of hostilities, failure of negotiations and declaration of war, the insufferable sweetness is rationed and replaced by Christine's unadulterated response to the prospect of death, destruction and permanent displacement. Unable to locate an original edition of this text, I was reduced to reading an uncorrected OCR imprint (not the one that appears above) disfigured by the appearance of many unrecognised characters and the conspicuous absence of umlauts and accents. Ah well, the writing may have been beneficial for the bereaved author, but the text hardly merits reprinting.

[Isabella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elizabeth wrote Christine during the Great War under the pseudonym, Alice Cholmondeley.
As an English woman married to Count Henning von Arnim-Schlagenthin, a Prussian Junker, in the years immediately before the First World War, her writing offers particular insights into the culture and politics of the pre-war period and in the midst of the Great War.
When Christine was published, the book became the subject of sustained critical interest in Britain and the US. Many considered the book a compelling and valuable first person account of life in Berlin at the outbreak of war.
While the book is predominantly about the lead up to the war, which I found an interesting and informative account of that era, there are still plenty of lovely descriptions of nature and the countryside which is one of the reasons I love Elizabeth's writing.

[SueLucie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every lady, he said, should have some knowledge of history, and sufficient acquaintance with the three kinds of politics,—Politik, Weltpolitik, and Realpolitik, to enable her to avoid wrong and frivolous conclusions such as the one the young Fraulein had just informed them she had reached, and to listen intelligently to her husband or son when they discuss these matters. He said a great deal more, about a woman knowing these things just enough but not too well, for her intelligence must not be strained because of her supreme function of being the cradle of the race; and the cradle part of her, I gather, isn’t so useful if she is allowed to develop the other part of her beyond what is necessary for making an agreeable listener.

[Yesenia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is by far my least favorite Elizabeth von Arnim read--I skimmed some parts, to get to the end. To be fair, it is a piece of propaganda, so it's not actually literature... but, to be objective, it is a bit boring. It need not have been boring to be propaganda. It was a hit in the US when it was published, but readers weren't aware that it was von Arnim, and weren't binge-reading von Arnim, so they had no expectations and were therefore not disappointed. I, however, was disappointed. ..

[Lola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Non posso dare né più né meno di tre stelline perché come idea è carina e apprezzo sempre l'avanguardia della Von Armin in termini di pensiero. Non posso dare di più perché non mi ha trasmesso molto.
Si tratta di un romanzo epistolare unilaterale. Ho trovato un po' ridondante certi aspetti legati all'amore filiale e in generale è stata una lettura senza colpi di scena, un pochino piatta.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The history of this work makes it so much more fascinating (written under a pseudonym, originally passed off as historical, but actually anti-German war propaganda). Interesting to compare with von Armin's other works.

[Unalettriceatokyo · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5 ⭐️

[Simona F. 'Free Palestine, Stop Genocide' · Rating 4 out of 5]

Questo breve romanzo è stato una piacevole scoperta. Partiva in svantaggio in quanto romanzo epistolare, genere che non amo particolarmente, e l'inizio mi ha seriamente preoccupata con l'insistenza quasi ossessiva riguardo l'amore filiale fra la protagonista Christine e la madre.
Questo particolare aspetto rimane fino alla fine ma dopo le prime lettere, il racconto delle vicende che accadono a Christine prende il sopravvento e abbassa un po' quel tono eccessivamente stucchevole.
A parte questo aspetto, però, mi è piaciuto molto lo stile della Von Armin, molto fluido e ricco di immagini e figure retoriche legate al mondo della natura. Mi è piaciuta molto anche l'evoluzione di Christine che, da ingenua e ottimista ventenne (o poco più), prende coscienza del carattere di un intero popolo e realizza l'inevitabilità della guerra, pur restando sempre sé stessa, integra ed entusiasta della vita.

[Cecilia Li · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful writing