Soldatul iernii

by Daniel Mason, Ruxandra Toma (Translator)

Roman premiat cu Northern California Book Award

Best of 2018 pentru New York Times, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, NPR

Viena, 1914. Lucius are 22 de ani și e student la medicină când Primul Război Mondial cuprinde Europa. Dintr-un eroism romanțios, se înrolează în armată și ajunge într-un spital improvizat, într-o vale din Carpați. Toți ceilalți doctori au fugit, a mai rămas doar misterioasa asistentă Margarete. De la ea, Lucius trebuie să învețe repede și brutal meseria de medic în cele mai neprielnice condiții.

Într-o zi, un soldat inconștient, având buzunarele pline cu desene stranii, e adus mai mult mort decât viu. Ca să-l salveze, Lucius va lua o decizie care va schimba pentru totdeauna viața doctorului, a pacientului și a asistentei.

O poveste de război care ajunge din sălile de bal ale Vienei imperiale în pădurile de pe Frontul de Est, din sălile de operație improvizate în sate până pe câmpurile de luptă călcate de copitele cavaleriei.

„Pe fundalul disoluției Europei atât de bine cercetat și atât de meticulos descris, Mason găsește câteva suflete pierdute și le ghidează spre o pace relativă.“
New York Times

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, War, Historical, World War I, Book Club, Romance

400 pages, Paperback

First published September 11, 2018

About the author

Daniel Mason is a physician and author of The Piano Tuner (2002), A Far Country (2007), The Winter Soldier (2018), A Registry of My Passage Upon the Earth (2020)--a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize-- and North Woods (2023). His work has been translated into 28 languages, awarded a 2021 Guggenheim Fellowship, the Joyce Carol Oates Prize, the California Book Award, the Northern California Book Award, and a Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. The Piano Tuner was produced as an opera by Music Theatre Wales for the Royal Opera House in London, and adapted to the stage by Lifeline Theatre in Chicago. His short stories and essays have appeared in The Atlantic, Harper’s, Zoetrope: All Story, Zyzzyva, Narrative, and Lapham’s Quarterly, and have been awarded a Pushcart Prize, a National Magazine Award and an O. Henry Prize. An assistant professor in the Stanford University Department of Psychiatry, his research and teaching interests include the subjective experience of mental illness and the influence of literature, history, and culture on the practice of medicine.

Reviews

[Miranda Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

There was something quite primitive and horrid about it.

Lucius has always (always) wanted to be a doctor.

Despite his parents many objections, there was never any doubt in his mind what he was going to do.

Well, until WWI broke out.

Faced with the absolutely terrifying new world, Lucius takes an opportunity to obtain firsthand experience in the medical field by signing up for the war.

His parents? Less than pleased...but his mother ( oh that mother! ) decides to make the best of a bad situation.

For example, while her son may not fight in the front lines but at least he'll be doing something for the war.

So, his mother decides to commission a portrait of her son, to memorialize him.

When the painter was finished, his mother took it into the light. "More color to the cheeks," she said. "and his neck is thin, but not this thin. And truly are these the shape of his ears? Amazing! How extraordinary the things a mother over-looks because of love! But do even them out-his head looks like it's flying away. And this expression...Can you make him more...martial?"

Gratefully, Lucius escapes his home life and sets off to the war clinic.

Only, when Lucius arrived to his post, he finds that things aren't quite what he expected.

It was only a matter of explaining: he was not a true doctor yet...

Instead of assisting the current doctors, he discovers that everyone in the hospital were limping along under the firm, steady and practical hand of Sister Margarete.

She has a somewhat unique take on running the hospital, such as allowing guns in the hospital to keep away rats, subjecting everyone to the strictest of louse-regimes, and barring the doors.

"Oh, no, Pan Doctor. I barred the doors because of the wolves."

And her bedside manner is unusual to say the least...

"Corporal Sloboda, of a Czechbicycle infantry, another frostbite amputee. Tarnowski: left arm. Oh, dear, careful Corporal, keep it elevated - that's why God gave us slings.

but Lucius soon grows to rely on her.

Lucius, Sister Margarete and the other men under his care form a family of sorts. Sharing alcohol and memories to pass the time.

Lucius becomes wholly enamored with their little stories, such as

The Tale of the Mysterious Tinned Sausage. The Stewed Boot... The Hungarian Platoon That Convinced Their Austrian C.O. a Pornographic Novel Was a Copy of the Catechism so They Could Read It All the Time...

And when Margarete wasn't around: Margarete and the Cussing Husar. Margarete and the Fate of the "French" Postcard. Margarete and the Perfectly Capable Slovene Who Wouldn't Clean His Tin.

But their little island of peace is interrupted by war, time and time again, until Lucius is all that's left of the hospital - and he frantically searches for his lost patients, assistants and above all, Margarete.

In short - I was addicted.

From cover-to-cover, I was wholly and completely addicted.

I loved the gruesome medical details - the period appropriate diagnoses and treatments were absolutely fascinating.

And the characters were really well done - the way Lucius would light up as he and Margarete discussed the patients really warmed my heart.

Also, I felt like this was a "good" war book. So many war books make war view it through rose-tinted - this was not one of those books. This one kept things absolutely and heartwrenchingly real - but it also did not turn into a depressing novel.

And my favorite part? Absolutely tied between any scene starring Lucius's mother's or Sister Margarete.

His mother was one to beat all mothers. She was ruthless - she knew what she wanted and she was going to get it.

"Smile," she told him. "You're going to a matchmaking, not an exorcism."

But, even better than a pushy mom, was Margarete - the way she handles mouthy or rebellious patients - she could not be any more perfect.

"Tell the doctor. 'Do you need anything, soldier?' is an innocent question, isn't it Sergeant?"

"That is correct, Sister. It is a medical question."

...When they were out of earshot, Lucius said, in a low voice, "He seems chastened. If I may ask..."

Her eyes flickered. "As I said earlier, Doctor, God has given his children morphine. But He has also given the discretion to withhold it, too."

This is definitely one to check out - ASAP!

With thanks to Little Brown and Company for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

All quotes are from an uncorrected proof and are subject to change upon publication.

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[Canadian Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was easily a hands down 5 star and what a phenomenal story. I’m speechless and wowed.

And thus begins the life of a physician. Not even completed his training, Lucius is pulled into the war in 1914, romanticizing the opportunity to finally practice on real patients.
But the reality wasn’t the medicine he was hoping to practice. It was a fix them as best you can to send them back to the front to fight. And the ones who came back with no visible wounds were the ones that deeply disturbed him the most. And the nurse who assisted him during the most gruesome times gave him the most joy. Then the war came closer and they became separated.

OH, the writing; the war; the love story that makes it all the more bearable until that love is interrupted and the heartbreak is palpable. The reconciliation of love and guilt.

Be still my beating heart as this one will be an all time fave.
This one, my friends, you must read.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Angela M · Rating 4 out of 5]

4+ stars.
Historical fiction is a favorite genre for me, but I have not read a lot of books about WWI. While this is a war story, it doesn’t take place on the battlefield field. The majority of the story takes place at a field hospital in a church in a place called Lemnowice, in the Carpathian Mountains. Twenty two year old Lucius Krzelewski is a medical student from a well to do Polish family in Vienna in 1914. He has a passion for his medical studies, and sees the war as a disruption, but history intervenes and he finds himself in the dismal conditions of this makeshift hospital performing the horrific yet vital amputations, with the unmerciful lice infestations bringing typhus, the staff having to carry a rifle not as protection from a human enemy, but from the rats. Even though he has not completed his medical studies, he learns to amputate limbs, taught by the enigmatic nurse, Sister Margarete, since the other doctors have left or are dead. Another medical condition is front and center here, nerve disorders as a result of the horrors of the war, what we today know as PTSD.

The story is intense, brutal and yet beautifully written and there are moments of joy and satisfaction that I didn’t expect to find here. The experience there, of course shapes Lucius’ life. How could it not? There are two people who impact who he is and who he becomes after the war - Sister Margarete and Horvath, the patient who is the winter soldier. You will wince and maybe want to skip some passages because nothing is held back in the descriptions of the conditions.

Mason is a physician, a psychiatrist and his knowledge may account for how he helps us understand what some of Lucius’ patients experience as well as Lucius himself. His talents as a writer and storyteller are obvious here as I found myself heartbroken, shaken, as Lucius was . It did take me a little while to get into it since it felt a little slow at first but then I was absorbed in the story and invested in these characters. It’s been a while since I read The Piano Tuner but I would recommend that one as well as this.


Thanks to Little, Brown and Company for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! No sepia colored historical fiction here. We are talking graphic. The writing here will have you squirming. The scenes etch themselves into your brain.

It’s the beginning of World War I. I’ve always considered WWI a complicated mess of a war. It’s known for its high casualties and gruesome war fare. The 1915 winter campaign in the Carpathian Mountains was a disaster for the Austrio- Hungarian forces fighting the Russians. Ill equipped for battle, let alone winter, they struggle to hang on to their frontline.

Lucius is a young medical student who gets sent to the front as a doctor before he has graduated medical school. Instead of the regional war hospital he envisions, where he expects to learn from real doctors, he finds a “freezing first aid station with an armed, half mad nurse and an operating table salvaged from the pews” of the church the building formerly was. He is the only “doctor”. He’s never operated on anyone prior to his arrival. He struggles to deal with typhus, frostbite, lice, rats and what we now call PTSD.

Sister Margarete, the nurse, is an angel, a strict disciplinarian and a great teacher. She wields a gun to shoot the rats and is capable of performing an amputation.

With the new methods of fighting, “war nerves” were seen in ever greater numbers and at a level of intensity previously unknown. The army was loath to acknowledge the problem and the doctors had no idea how to treat them. Some of the cures were probably worse than the problem. Mason himself is a physician and associate professor of psychiatry. He helps us to understand what the soldiers and their doctors were dealing with.

What makes this book work is the characters. You come to care for each of them, just as they come to care for each other.

The book deals with hubris, guilt and the ability to forgive oneself. It’s a well paced book with enough tension to keep you flipping the pages. It would make a great book club selection, especially as we come up on the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day.

My thanks to netgalley and Little, Brown for an advance copy of this book.

[Susanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars

The year is 1914. Lucius is a young medical student in Vienna, when the war breaks out and he immediately becomes a “War Doctor.”

Lucius is sent to Lemnowice in the Carpathian Mountain, where the conditions are barbaric: Amputations, Gonorrhea, Lice and Typhus - to name a few. The “Hospital” is infested with rats and the situation is deplorable. Truth be told, he is completely unprepared. Thankfully, Sister Margarete, the nurse on the premises, teaches him everything she knows and it is because of her, that he becomes “a doctor.” Years later, Lucius get separated and ends up back at the University, working at the Hospital. He is however, forever haunted: by thoughts of Lemnowice, of a former patient named Horvath and by Margarete.

“The Winter Soldier” is a novel about the tragedy of war, human nature, love, loss and forgiveness. It is about accepting one’s limitations and about finding peace within. Though this novel was a bit long and was a bit hard to read at times, (based on the atrocities of war) I found it to be quite well done. There was a moment where tears fell from my eyes quite unexpectedly, it happened almost out of the blue and I was not prepared. That may sound silly considering that this is a war story, but in truth, most of the novel wasn’t “touching” per se, but then there was this incident and I just lost it, and I was verklempt. Even now, thinking about it, tears form in my eyes. The characters here, Lucius, Margarete, and a few others, they creep into your heart and your soul and make a mark. In my case, they are still here.

A huge thank you to NetGalley, Little, Brown and Company and Daniel Mason for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Published on NetGalley, Goodreads, Amazon, Twitter and Instagram on 9.23.18.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars rounded to 5 stars (December 2018). I am returning on June 5, 2022 to upgrade my rating to a full 5 stars as I still think about it even 3 1/2 years later.

5 stars

I have expanded my reading horizons this year by being open to other genres and writing styles that are rather new for me. By doing so, I have read a number of books that I would not have even considered just months prior. I’m amazed to think what I would be missing by not taking some chances!

I was attracted to Winter Soldier because of its title and cover and because of the medical theme. It looked more literary that what I usually read so I downloaded the first chapter to take a look. Yes, it is literary, but I was intrigued from the start.

This is a beautifully written book with beautiful people and a beautiful plot. Being set during World War I, it is, of course, fraught with difficult scenes and has a continual overlying pall. What makes the beautiful people beautiful is not their appearances, but their souls. What makes the beautiful plot beautiful is certainly not the killing and the maiming and the horrendous suffering of the times, but the journey taken by our protagonist, Polish medical student Lucius Krzelewski.

Lucius has laid hands on only two patients by the time he is summoned to be the sole physician at a military field hospital, which is set in an old church in a remote valley of the Carpathian Mountains. The setting is primitive. His help consists of one nurse (Margarete), a couple of orderlies and a cook. The learning curve for Lucius is steep in many ways. We follow Lucius for the next four years as he struggles with innumerable hardships, deep regrets, and matters of the heart.

The language, I must admit, is lush. Fortunately, I read the book on an e-reader, which allowed me to quickly check definitions of one to two words on each page. I was so pulled into the setting and the times that I was eager to “learn the language” and didn’t mind the breaks in flow to look up things up. I decided to take my time.

Lucius’ character is so well developed. I agonized with him, cheered his small victories, and fervently wished him peace and happiness. I won’t say anything about the end except that it is good, very good. But it isn’t Hollywood, also a good thing. There are a few things left unanswered, but I found that was okay too. Like real life, which this book certainly is.

A number of reviewers found this a very hard read. I didn’t think that, perhaps because of my extensive experience in the medical field. All I’m saying is don’t let the reviews prevent you from at least starting this novel. If you can get through it, and many have, it will likely be one you will remember for a very long time. I know I will.

Many thanks to Net Galley, Little Brown and Company, and Daniel Mason for an advanced copy of Winter Soldier. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way.

[Jeffrey Keeten · Rating 4 out of 5]

”He made a strange twisting motion as if he were attempting to free his feet from where they had frozen to the ground. The skin began to tear, but he didn’t seem to feel it. Spit froze to his lips, his muscles shook, and his penis had shrunken into his pubic hair. HIs pale skin turned yellow, then blotched with white and pink, and then pink began to retreat to pallor once again. The entire scene seemed leached of any color, the church walls clad in ice, the courtyard bare, even the tree trunk dusted white with snow, as Horvath vanished into it, leaving only a pale pink froth at his feet.”

One moment Lucius Krzelewski is taking x-rays of fake mermaids as a prank at medical school in Austria, and the next moment he is in the Carpathian Mountains playing doctor in a field hospital.

Wars have a tendency to stop one life and start a new one rather abruptly. This war is supposed to be the war that ends all wars because the participants of World War One think that, after the devastation of this war, no one will ever want to fight another one again.

Tragically, they are wrong.

Lucius has no idea what he is doing. He has barely begun his studies as a doctor. Out of the ocean of things he needs to know, he has a thimbleful sloshing about in his mind. Fortunately for him and for the men who are being pulled maimed from the battlefield, they have Sister Margarete.

She has been running this field hospital without a doctor for some time, but when a doctor is there, she is observing and brilliantly retaining what she is seeing. Now she has Lucius.

”Perhaps in Vienna…

But in Galicia, it’s done like this.

Perhaps in Vienna they took off the whole foot when only a toe was needed.

Perhaps in Vienna they are stingy with their drains, and make messes out of everything.

Perhaps in Vienna they didn’t step away to sneeze.

But in Galicia…

He learned.”

Lucius learns about more than just medicine. He learns that to try to protect or to try to help can sometimes make things worse. He finds out his limitations every time the recruitment squads stop by to roust men who are far from healed to go back to the trenches. Instinctively, those of us who care about other people want to extend our good fortune of health, wealth, or favor to others, but sometimes by interceding, we don’t make people’s lives better. In fact, we make their circumstances go from bad to dreadful. Lucius learns this lesson in stark technicolor.

Sister Margarete, who has done so much for him, is an enigma. A woman dynamo beneath a wimple. ”Margarete with her heavy soldier’s boots and greatcoat. Mannlicher over her shoulder, her fingers still muddy from rummaging for roots.” They become closer, not because she has shared her life or past with him, but because the spectre of death adds immediacy and shatters the normal precepts with which people formulate their lives.

”He noticed then the lashes of her eyes, and the way the grey iris seemed to capture the green of the glen. Her fingers stained with berries, a tiny mark of violet on her lip.”

She cautions him, but the heart will do what the heart will do. “One should not grow attached to other people, Doctor.”

When Lucius becomes separated from the hospital and from Margarete, he will have some tough decisions to make about who he is now and who he wants to be.

I kept thinking about how difficult it is for people to find one another in the chaos of war. Families are pulled apart and then spend years trying to find one another or at least find out what happened to those they cared about. Soldiers evaporate on the battlefield as if they had never existed at all, especially if their platoon is decimated and there is no body to be found. Women are left behind who move on with their lives, not knowing if they will ever see their husband or lover again. It is hard for us to conceive all this while living in an era where it is almost impossible to vanish without a trace.

World War One ended on November 14th, 1918. We have been celebrating or at least looking back reflectively on the centennial of the beginning and end of the conflict that many hoped would end war forever. Reading this book will allow you to experience what it is like to try to have any semblance of a life when the whole world is being obliterated by chaos, fire, rubble, death, hunger, and disease.

May we never see the like again.

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

[JanB · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I'm conflicted on my rating because the first 1/2 to 3/4 of the book was easily a 5 star read, but then it took a turn I didn't care for. My cursor hovered over 3 or 4 stars. I don't consider 3.5 a "bad" rating. It means I enjoyed it but there were a few elements that didn't work for me. I listened to the majority of it on a long drive and the narrator, Laurence Dopbiesz, was excellent, making it easy to listen to for long hours.

I was captivated by this story from the first pages. I had watched the excellent Apocalypse: World War I on the National Geographic channel and the images and stories were vivid in my mind as I read.

Lucius is an inexperienced physician from a wealthy family when he enlists to serve as a way to gain hands-on experience under experienced physicians. Imagine his surprise when he learns he is the only doctor at a remote post in the Carpathian Mountains. Lucky for him that he has the tough, experienced gun-toting nurse, Sr. Margarete, assigned to the same post. She had seen and done it all. Together they make quite an interesting team.

The author does a great job describing the horrors of war and the effects on the soldiers, both physical and mental. They practiced field medicine the best they could with minimal supplies, deplorable conditions, and punishing winters. The author is a physician, a psychiatrist, and it shows as he graphically describes the treatments, diseases, and surgical procedures. Some of the soldiers suffer from “shell-shock”, a condition that was unknown at the time but that we now call PTSD. I loved this section of the novel.

Even in the midst of the horrors of war the author wisely chose to add occasional subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) wit and humor. Most notably, some of the interactions of Lucius with his parents and Margarete’s description of the louse had me chuckling.

The writing, the characters, and the story was totally absorbing. However, it fell apart for me when it turned into a romance novel. I understand the author wanted to highlight the human side of the war and the regrets, sacrifices and hopelessness that prevailed. But it just didn’t hold my interest and the abrupt ending was a disappointment.

This is still a good read and I’m glad I read it. Recommended for those who enjoy historical fiction with a side of romance. Many readers who enjoy the romance genre a bit better than I do loved the story. I do think it would make an excellent movie.

This was a buddy read with Marialyce.

[Phrynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been hesitating for ages with my fingers hovering over the keyboard. How shall I rate this book? I took a look at the reviews and they are predominately five and four star. I think I am feeling three. I might write the review first and then choose my rating.....

On the good side was the beautiful writing. No one can question the author's talent at setting the scene and describing the action. The characters are well drawn too particularly Lucius, his mother and Margarete. Especially Margarete. I can just see her in a movie of the book bossing her way around the field hospital and shooting any rat that dared to show its face. In fact the book could make a brilliant movie BUT

There would have to be a lot more action. I found the story plodded along in parts even when the author was injecting as much grossness as he could into the time at the field hospital. Too much of something makes the observer immune and by the time we got to Horvath I was losing involvement.
The romance would have to be a bit deeper. This one just seemed to be a case of who was available and I never felt it at all.
The ending would need to be rewritten. The book goes out on a whimper which is a pity because a really good ending is what you remember after you close the book.

In other words I liked the book but was not really affected by it. Three stars it is.

[Dem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent Historical Fiction Story from the gilded ballrooms of Imperial Vienna to the frozen forests of the Eastern Front. The Winter Soldier is a story of war and medicine, of finding love when one least expects it, a story of the mistakes we make and how we try to atone for them.

I really enjoyed this novel and I picked this one up in the book store purely because I could not resist the stunning cover.
image: The front cover of the novel I own as above is taking from a painting (as stated on inside cover) " Entry of the wedding procession of Constance of Austria and Sigismund III into Cracow, artist unknown. I dont have any information about this painting but I absolutely love it.
Imagine how happy I was when I read the blurb and realised this was set in 1914 and was described as "part mystery, part War Story, part romance.

Well I am happy to say, I really enjoyed this book. This is a powerful and thought provoking story with vivid and often graphic scenes of the medical practices In War time. Great character development of the main protagonist. Daniel Mason I believe is a Professor of Psychiarty himself and he appears to have done a great deal of research for this novel . Vivid and descriptive writing that at times made my skin crawl, some scenes had me wincing and exclaiming out loud but a book that I will remember for quite a while.
A very well written historical fiction novel that I think many readers will enjoy.

I had a look at the discussion question for this book and I really think this would make a terrific book club discussion book.

[TXGAL1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE WINTER SOLDIER, by Daniel Mason, is a historical fiction work that takes place during World War I for the most part.

A third-year student of medicine, Lucius volunteers his services when the war breaks out. Polish and living in Vienna, Lucius feels he can gain better experience helping soldiers of the Austrian-Hungarian forces in the field. His blue-blood family are all for his taking his rightful place to achieve growth and glory.

Lucius’ assignment takes him to a small village where the regimental hospital is just getting by in a small church that leaves a LOT to be desired in more ways than one.

Honor, humanity, humility, desperation and pride are brought to the fore as the wounded and those attending them experience war on a daily close-up basis.

A solid story.

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lucius Krzelewski, born to a wealthy Polish family, has been raised in Vienna. He chooses to study medicine instead of living a pampered life. Lucius lives and breathes medicine. After six semesters of study, he wants to examine and treat patients. He has yet to use a scalpel. With two years of study remaining, the Archduke of Sarajevo is assassinated. In 1915, during the Great War, medical students are offered early graduation if they enlist. Physician shortages mean that students like Lucius can become medical lieutenants and be offered positions in garrison hospitals serving entire regiments.

Lucius enlists and arrives at his post in Lemnowice in the Carpathian Mountains with a broken wrist. Discovering that he will be the only doctor and will work with only one nurse, a nun named Sister Margarete, he feels that he has been sent to a "...freezing, first-aid station with an armed, half-mad nurse and an operating table salvaged from the pews" (of the church) Why tote a gun? he asks. To shoot the rats! For months, Sister Margarete has performed amputations and dealt with lice and typhus with limited medical supplies. Lucius watches and learns from Margarete until his wrist heals. Doctors and nurses are ordered to "patch and send" men back to the front as quickly as possible. A new patient arrives from the battlefield in a wheelbarrow. He is in a fetal position and is unable to communicate. No injuries are visible. Lucius's diagnosis is "nerve shock". What treatment plan can Lucius use to help Jozsef Horvath, a soldier suffering from shell shock (PTSD)? Lucius dreams of being able to see how Jozsef thinks.

"The Winter Soldier" by Daniel Mason is a work of historical fiction that takes us to makeshift hospitals and first aid stations where we view the devastating injuries suffered by soldiers and the complications created by doctor shortages and inadequate medical supplies. The emotional upheaval as suffered by Jozsef Horvath is arguably representative of many returning from the front. Lucius's decisions consume his very existence as he tries to atone for a misjudgement. Love and war are strange bedfellows. Can a wartime romance be rekindled after the war? Author Daniel Mason has written an excellent, insightful, very moving masterpiece.

Thank you Little, Brown and Company and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "The Winter Soldier".

[Marialyce · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

***THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS
War and its consequences, not only does it take lives, its takes limbs, minds, and the will to carry on. Yet, it also gives some strength they never knew they possessed. It is the strength of the gods, the stamina of the brave, the courage of the undaunted, and the determination of the strong to carry on where others would fail.

Lucius Krzelewski is a Polish medical student. He came from a wealthy family, a quiet introspective young man, a stutterer, a man unsure of where he was going until he found the desire within to become a surgeon. Lucius is unprepared, never having placed a scalpel into his hand, when the winds of war blow mightily in his direction. He is assigned to a remote hospital nestled in the Carpathian Mountains and there he meets an indomitable crew, few in number, to tend the sick, the wounded, and the dying. His aid is a nun, Sister Margarete, and when Lucius arrives at the hospital, she is the one who will train him, who will guide him, who will be the one he falls in love with.

The hospital, its environment is one of a nightmare scenario. Short staffed, with limited ways to allay suffering, it is a place where rats, lice, and disease run rampant. The way to treat limbs that are wounded is often to lob them off leaving the men if they should survive without the ability to function as once they had. It is the place where one's mind is eaten away from thoughts sights and occurrences that create mental illnesses that defy what is known and which attracts Lucius to discover the why of things, the PTSD happenings before that label was used to what soldiers experienced.

It is a sad emotional story, one that over the years and the wars has been told many times. It is a place where death waits at the doorway, where hope seems to have taken a hiatus, where people are pushed to the limit of themselves, and yet come back each and every hour to save lives, to offer solace, to allow the dignity of death to roam. It's a story of savagery, of the need for some to push these men into service even after they had lost so much. It is the story of how many lose their humanity, lose their ability to see suffering, and only see a body holding a rifle.

There were quite a few lapses in the story however, that, I felt, needed further explanation. It was not clear why Margarete did assume the role of a nun, as well as the inclusion of Lucius's marriage. The ending was a bit abrupt, and after all that searching for Margarete, Lucius just left and simply bid her farewell. I think I was looking for a sort of Casablanca ending. It did seem we needed more of their interaction at the end. I would have also wanted the shell shock or as we now call it PTSD better explored as an offshoot of the theme.

However, this story was told with an eye to the impossible job that people do when called to action, we see what is the best in people like Lucius and Margarete. They are there always to bring the human into the inhumane. They fall in love not only with what they do, but also with one another. They too, become two spirits lost in the tempest of war, searching to bring meaning to carnage, to find love in the ruins of the flurry of war.
This was another book that Jan and I shared.
My reviews can also be seen here: http://yayareadslotsofbooks.wordpress...

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twenty-two-year-old Lucius was deeply into his medical degree when war exploded across Europe. It was 1914 and his life in Vienna felt a long way from the front. Enlisting in the medical field, he expected to be assisting doctors and nurses at a field hospital. But his arrival at the small village of Lemnowice made him realise his expectations were far from the truth. Sister Margarete was in charge; she did the surgery, nursed the patients, administered the care. A few ex-soldiers helped out – and Lucius was now the doctor; a man who had never held a scalpel was expected to operate on the poor souls that were delivered to the renamed church high in the mountains where the snow was feet deep in the midst of winter.

Margarete could see Lucius was struggling – he observed; took note of everything she did; learned quickly. Then it was him who was operating. They fought against typhus, hunger, cold and lack of medical equipment. But the terribly wounded soldiers still came. Feelings for the woman he worked beside rose unbidden while Cossacks ransacked and looted nearby. The day the winter soldier arrived into their care, everything changed…

The Winter Soldier by Daniel Mason is an intriguing, brutal and unforgettable story set during the first world war, (I haven’t read many fiction books set in this era, usually it’s WWII). There can be nothing good about what happened in this period of history, as there is nothing good about any war, yet the horror for Lucius was fresh and real. His youth was against him; the mistakes he made; the rapid growing up he had to do. All would be the same for any young man sent to war. Heartbreaking and traumatic. Highly recommended.

With thanks to Pan Macmillan AU for my ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

[Oleh Bilinkevych · Rating 4 out of 5]

Upd: книгу видали, тепер можна насолодитися українською🔥

Щиро здивований, що книгу досі не видано українською. 80% сюжету відбувається на території Івано-Франківської та Львівської областей, а такі міста як Надвірна чи Коломия більше фігурують ніж той же Відень, звідки походить сам герой.
Це збіса цікава історія, яка показує побут у австрійському польовому шпиталі в час Першої Світової. Якщо коротко, австріяки геть не були готові до війни, з військом було проблематично, з медиками взагалі була біда, брали всіх кого можна було. Луціуса, молодого студента, направляють на ближній тил до фронту, щоб опікуватись пораненими. Поруч з ним працює юна сестричка (монахиня?), яка у свою чергу йому допомагає дати раду з ампутаціями та супутніми травмами. Окрім того, він вперше зіштовхується з ПТСР у солдат, намагається це якось лікувати, але в нього це сутужно виходить, ще й бідолах звинувачують у дизертирстві, розцінюючи їх стан як непокору та симулювання. Одним словом, повний хаос.
Тут війна така, якою вона є, де мало геройства, багато болю, страху та втоми.
Можливо, щоб додати руху на завершення, автор вирішив зробити розвʼязку динамічною, так щоб герої розімнули мʼязи. Вона видається трохи незграбною, але на війні пиздець приходить як сніг у квітні, тому, не мені судити.
Раджу, книга чудова!

[Libby · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the things I like most about ‘The Winter Soldier’ by Daniel Mason is the authenticity of descriptions of medicine during World War I. Lucius is twenty-two years old and a student who enlists in the army as a medical lieutenant. Even though he hasn’t completed his medical studies, there is a shortage of doctors and a friend convinces him that he will see cases that otherwise would take years to experience in general practice. On the way to the Carpathian Mountains, the hussar who is his guide becomes unable to urinate, likely Lucius thinks due to urethral obstruction caused by gonorrhea. Using a pistol rod and gun oil, Lucius clears the obstruction. A doozy of an introduction to field medicine.

Arriving at a church in the village of Lemnowice, he is greeted at the door of the church that has been given over to care of the sick and wounded by Sister Margarete. All the other nurses and two doctors have died or fled. She along with some orderlies are the sole caregivers. Margarete describes the infestations of lice that have occurred as their greatest scourge. The last doctor, she says, would even begin to twitch in the middle of his surgeries. When patients are brought in, the fist order of business is to delouse them. Lucius being inexperienced with surgeries of any kind, depends on Margarete to teach him. She has done the last 40 amputations since the last doctor left. Sister Margarete gives God the credit for guiding her hand; she learned by assisting the previous doctors.

Sister Margarete is a wonderfully complex female character. She’s feisty and driven, warm and caring, curious about the science behind pathologies. She is a decision maker and takes Lucius’s education in hand without a stutter; he is pleased to have someone so anointed with the expertise he is lacking. Lucius is obsessed with medicine as well, so they are perfect companions for the work that is needed. When there is downtime, Margarete takes Pan Doctor and some of the others on excursions to collect wild edibles. Mason is particularly good at describing their working relationship and how it develops into something more, as well as friendships developed with the orderlies, the cook, and others.

Then one day, a soldier shows up in the dead of winter. There are no physical wounds. They’ve had others that had ‘shell shock’ and were traumatized by their war experiences, but none so demoralized as this soldier. They find pages of his artwork; he’s brilliant, draws a picture of Margarete as he begins to recover. As he slowly begins to mend under Lucius and Margarete’s watchful eye, there will be a disagreement as to the course his treatment should take. This will play into what happens to the winter soldier. Mason has very carefully set the two men at extremes of temperament. Lucius with his science is often somewhat distant emotionally while the soldier is sensitive, artistic.

Themes in this story are looking for love and looking for forgiveness and atonement. Even though beautifully written, there is a heavy weight to the story. People of medicine are meant to cure and first, do no harm. But, as I well know, having worked in the medical field for 36 years, it is almost impossible to never have a bad judgment, never make a mistake. One character in the book describes the pain of a medical misjudgment and irreparable harm as similar to the phantom pain of an amputated limb. Never have I heard it described better. It is always there, as much a part of a person as a hand or foot used to be.

I'm grateful I had the opportunity to read this story.

[Veronica ⭐️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

*https://theburgeoningbookshelf.blogsp...
This is my favourite type of Historical Fiction. Stories that follow ordinary people caught up in extraordinary events during the war. Be they doctors, soldiers, nurses or civilians, everyone has a story that needs telling.

This story follows Lucius Krzelewski, from a well-off Austrian family, through his years of medical training. Mason highlights how training during this time was not hands on but merely observation only. When the war breaks out the students are fast tracked to doctor status and sent straight to remote makeshift hospitals treating an endless run of wounded soldiers. Lucius is sent a converted church in a remote area of Northern Hungary.

The majority of the story takes place during Lucius’ time at the makeshift hospital in Lemnowice, Hungary and how the doctor, nurse and orderlies deal with the terrible wounds, rats , plague, soldiers with shell-shock, typhus, louse, lack of food and the freezing conditions. As the small group of medical staff bond we also get to learn about their lives, their triumphs and their failures. With one particular failure having far-reaching effects and will linger with Lucius long after he leaves the hospital.

There is much to this novel with mentions of early medical practices and experimental medical procedures, the food shortages and the black market. The social aftermath of the war is highlighted by a greater divide between the haves and have-nots and the need for arranged marriages.

The story is sombre and atmospheric, quite often harsh and brutal. There are tender moments dispersed throughout with an underlying story of love and loss.

The ending was bittersweet. A twist I certainly didn’t see coming.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy to read and review.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Winter Soldier is one of the most beautifully written examples of historical fiction I’ve ever read: the details, the authenticity, and the clarity are remarkable. Every image is jaw-droppingly vivid. But more than that are the heartbreaking stories of Lucius and Margarete, a doctor and a nurse, as they try to piece together the soldiers who pass through their First World War aid station as the Austro-Hungarian Empire crumbles around them. I was reminded, in all the best ways, of The English Patient and Dr. Zhivago.

[Майя Ставитская · Rating 5 out of 5]

Daniel Mason is a professor of clinical psychiatry at Stanford University, and it's understandable why he turned out to be good with a medical novel. It is unclear how he manages such a cinematic text. While listening, I kept catching myself that every scene visibly, in the smallest details, rises before my eyes in IMAX resolution. Despite the fact that this is never descriptive prose. Somehow, he manages to use one or two details with pinpricks or injection (if mechanical associations are closer to you), start the imagination machine and generate "my own movie" for the reader.

Here is an anatomical theater, a student with his eyes closed, has to identify the bones of the skeleton of the hand by touch; here the same student and professor kidnap a "mermaid" from the Kunstkammer to examine in the rays of an X-ray machine, and here is a meeting with Marie Curie, and you see her, laugh at a funny scene. But you and your father dress up in the uniforms of the winged hussars, and you almost fall - these ceremonial plumes of feathers turned out to be so heavy. You have already, unbeknownst to yourself, become him, a hero, Lucius.

The best books have this property, to turn the reader into a character. Everything that will happen to a nobleman from an old aristocratic family who became a doctor and went to war - all this will happen to you. The book has the highest level of immersiveness (immersion with the effect of presence). For the fact that this involvement and complicity work so well in Russian, many thanks to the translators, Alexandra Borisenko and Viktor Sonkin. And of course, to my beloved Phantom for the opportunity to read.

The novel continues the tradition of prose, imbued with humanism and pathos of service, healing, salvation, whose heroes are doctors. Chekhov and Bulgakov, Cronin and Verghese. Not all of it was written by doctors - Pasternak was not a doctor, I remembered "Doctor Zhivago" not by chance, "The Winter Soldier" is in many ways a homage to the great predecessor, maybe not obvious, but the plot, images, the theme of the search and "Roman nevstrech" surprisingly coincide. It is not surprising if we remember that in the world, unlike Russia, "Zhivago" is understood and loved.

A strong, deep romance with an incredible immersion effect.

Способность проникать под кожу
Ампутация ноги и руки. Покажите доктору, сержант. Видите, как хорошо заживает? Но мы помогли ему не только с физическими недугами, пан доктор, но и с духовными тоже. Когда сержант Черновицкий прибыл к нам, он не знал, как правильно обращаться к сестре милосердия. Но мы научились! Мы усвоили, что сестра милосердия – не девка из кабака, с которой можно позволять себе вольности. Верно, сержант?
– Совершенно верно, сестра, – отвечал солдат, опустив глаза.
– Вижу, вы его усмирили. Могу я спросить...
Ее глаза сверкнули.
– Как я уже сказала, доктор, Бог дал Своим чадам морфий. И Он же дал право лишить морфия.
Она такая, сестра Маргарета. В обаянии, яркости, пассионарности ее образа львиная доля притяжения романа. Я боялась брать "Зимнего солдата" из-за названия, даже зная, что между нами и событиями книги сто лет. Это Первая Мировая, а если я сейчас скажу, что роман не страшный, по большому счету не про войну и вынесенного в заглавие солдата, а про медицину и любовь - вы ведь не поверите?

И будете правы. Можно не показывать сражений, не расписывать диспозиций и маневров, но если про военную медицину и про любовь во время войны, про ампутации оторванных снарядами и обмороженных конечностей, про голод, беженцев, эпидемии, последствия глубоких контузий, известные теперь как ПТСР - это все равно про войну.

Дэниел Мейсон профессор клинической психиатрии Стэнфордского университета, и понятно, почему он оказался хорош с медицинским романом. Неясно, каким образом ему удается такой кинематографичный текст. Пока слушала, все время ловила себя на том, что каждая сцена зримо, в мельчайших подробностях встает перед глазами в IMAX-разрешении. При том, что это ни разу не описательная проза. Как-то ему одной-двумя деталями удается точечными уколами или инжекторным впрыском (если вам ближе механические ассоциации), запустить машину воображения и сгенерировать читателю "свое кино".

Вот анатомический театр, студент с закрытыми глазами, на ощупь должен определить кости скелета руки; вот тот же студент и профессор похищают из кунсткамеры "русалку", чтобы исследовать в лучах рентгеновского аппарата, а вот встреча с Мари Кюри, и ты видишь ее, смеешься над забавной сценкой. А вот вы с отцом обряжаетесь в обмундирование крылатых гусар, и ты чуть не падаешь - до того тяжелыми оказались эти парадные плюмажи из перьев. Ты уже, незаметно для себя, стала им, героем, Люциушем.

У лучших книг есть это свойство, превращать читателя в персонажа. Все, что будет происходить со шляхтичем из старинного аристократического рода, который стал врачом и пошел на войну - все это будет происходить с тобой. Уровень иммерсивности (погружения с эффектом присутствия) у книги высочайший. За то, что на русском эта сопричастность и соучастие так великолепно работают, огромная благодарность переводчикам, Александре Борисенко и Виктору Сонькину. И конечно, любимому Фантому за возможность прочесть.

Роман продолжает традицию прозы, проникнутой гуманизмом и пафосом служения, целительства, спасения, герои которой врачи. Чехов и Булгаков, Кронин и Вергезе. Не вся она написана медиками - Пастернак врачом не был, "Доктора Живаго" вспомнила не случайно, "Зимний солдат" во-многом оммаж великому предшественнику, может быть, не очевидный, но сюжет, образы, тема поиска и "романа невстреч" удивительно совпадают. Неудивительно, если вспомнить, что в мире, в отличие от России, "Живаго" понимают и любят.

Сильный, глубокий роман с немыслимым эффектом погружения.

[Bam cooks the books · Rating 4 out of 5]

*4-4.5 stars. An excellent novel of historical fiction set during WWI. Lucius is the son of a wealthy Polish family living in Vienna. His parents are confounded when he decides to go to school to become a doctor. When he is told he could get his medical degree early if he volunteers to serve in the war effort, he jumps at the chance even though he has had little hands on experience.

After many delays, he is finally posted to a field hospital in Galicia in the shadow of the Carpathian Mountains in the dead of winter. He assumes he will be working with a team of doctors, but when he arrives he learns it will be just him and a young Catholic nun who has been working alone since the last doctor took off. It is painfully obvious that Lucius has no clue what to do with his patients' massive wounds and the competent Sister Margarete must take him under her wing.

So just who is 'the winter soldier,' you might ask? He is a patient named Sergeant Jozsef Horvath, an Hungarian from Budapest, who is brought in curled up in a wheelbarrow and who seems to be suffering from nervous shock. Lucius and Margarete work together to try to help him recover but what happens to Horvath is the stuff of nightmares which will come to haunt Lucius long after Horvath leaves their care.

"Now, with each day that passes, I feel more and more like some of my soldiers, who seemed forever stuck in their eternal winters."

If you are looking for a WWI story to read in honor of the 100th anniversary of the end of the war, this would be an excellent choice. It has drama, adventure, a bit of gore, and even some romance. The ending has quite an ironic twist that you won't see coming!

I received an arc of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley for my honest review. Many thanks for the opportunity.

[Diane Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're in the mood for a war novel (WWI), they don't get much better than this. A medical student assigned to a forsaken outpost in the Carpathian Mountains, a strange little nun, both performing amputations and treating amputees and shell shock and frostbite, along with battling lice and rats and sadistic officers; well, let's just say that it's full of the action and gut-wrenching drama you would expect from such a situation. There's guilt and love and redemption in addition, making this a little reminiscent of both "A Constellation of Vital Phenomena" and " All the Light We Cannot See". The amount of research on the part of the author is impressive, although he is a doctor himself. I couldn't quite get to 5 stars for this one, but it is a very close 4.5. A great read.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

War novels – the good ones, at least – are never about the tactical battles of war; that’s best left for historians. Really good war literature (and I’m thinking of Kevin Powers’ The Yellow Birds, for example) are about the psychic scarring of those who participate in wars and what it does to one’s moral core.

The Winter Soldier is that kind of book—plot-driven, for the most part, but also insightful in its focus on what happens to those who pay witness to the war as medics and nurses.

Well-to-do Viennese-born medical student, Lucius Krzelewski, is sent to the field hospital in Lemnowice in eastern Europe at the start of World War I. Woefully unprepared for what he finds, he is assisted in his ministrations by a feisty nun named Margarete, who schools him in the real-world amputations and typhoid cases he encounters. Any observant reader will know that a love affair will soon ensue.

Lucius is particularly intrigued by those who suffer psychically (PTSD has not been defined quite yet, but he knows the mind is playing tricks on some soldiers). After a slow boil, the plot heats u immensely when they are compelled to treat a damaged soldier with shell shock. The soldier is very much a character but also a symbol (Lucius eventually muses, ‘Now, with each day that passes, I feel more and more like some of my soldiers, who seemed forever stuck in their eternal winter.”)

Every step of the way, Daniel Mason immerses the reader in the ravages of war: the lack of supplies, the botched-up operations and chain of commands, the barely-functioning operating rooms, the lice (I dare you not to itch at some of the descriptions), the woefully inadequate medicines of over a century ago. Within this tableau, he introduces readers to universal questions: how does one move on from internal battles once the external battles cease? What does it take to atone and forgive oneself? Can one ever be at peace? It’s a fine read.

[switterbug (Betsey) · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Winter Soldier, not for the faint of heart, is less an historical war novel—although that is certainly apropos—but more a study of individuals in the practice of healing that are caught up in war’s impossible circumstances, with outmoded resources and learn-at-the-hip medicine (think MASH unit without the laughs). The boundary between doctor and patient that is taught in academics is difficult to uphold when surrounded by harrowing injuries, sickness, and death, day after day after day, for months and even years. The psychological damage to all concerned corresponds remarkably to the physical environment of things such as wounds, amputees, lice, typhus, and pneumonia.

Lucius Krzelewski is from a wealthy Polish family and was born and raised in Vienna, but seeks a way out of his sheltered and pampered life, and decides to study medicine. In 1915, during the Great War and after six semesters of medical school, Lucius enlists, expecting to be sent to a garrison hospital with four or five doctors and a full staff of nurses. Instead, during the winter, he is deployed to a sub-zero temperature field hospital, where they “patch and send” the patients, in the Carpathian Mountains.

Here in this outpost, Lucius is confronted with a church-turned-hospital that has been without a doctor for months, and maintains only one nurse, a Polish nun, Sister Margarete, an excellent nurse who has been functioning as surgeon, nurse, and triage specialist. She becomes Lucius’ teacher, as he has never even held a scalpel before. They soon are learning from each other, and together with their patchwork of orderlies and a cook, make an admirable team, considering the scarcities of fundamental tools and medicines of the trade.

Lucius is forced to practice limb removals much like a butcher or, at best, a veterinarian, due to the very limited supplies and modalities at his disposal. The “hospital,” when not redolent of disease and death, is punctuated by the smell of creosote, lime, and carbolic acid, the main weapons they have against germs, lice and typhus. In this subpar facility, with punishing winters and scant modern supplies, they must make snap decisions and use their imagination and skills to save lives.

The central character—the one the novel is named for—is a man brought in by wheelbarrow from the field. He doesn’t talk, and he is in a quasi-fetal position. There are no visible wounds and—alas!—no need for amputation. This new patient and how to treat him consume Lucius, who determines that he has “nerve shock.” These were the years before PTSD and shell shock diagnoses; however, these kinds of patients had been observed during wartime, with a unique and specific set of symptoms. And it is the nexus of doctor, nurse, and especially this patient that propel a large part of the story.

Daniel Mason, an author and psychiatrist that has studied the influence of culture, literature and history on the practice of medicine, captures the intersection of war and field medicine in all its horror and humanity. He possesses a formidable talent for describing the acute moments of human tragedy in wartime, and the melancholic ravages that it subsequently inflicts upon those who experienced it firsthand. Writes Lucius in a letter, “Now, with each day that passes, I feel more and more like some of my soldiers, who seem forever stuck in their eternal winters.”

War heightens emotions, as survival is uncertain and dread is the norm. This is illuminated in Lucius’ story, which is underscored with the search for love among the ruins, as well as redemption, atonement, and forgiveness. This novel is a slow burn, just as a previous book by Mason, “The Piano Tuner,” was (fans of this book must read it!), and patience for the reader is worth the journey.

Moreover, even in this dramatic setting and story, the author provides gallows and subversive humor, and a pitch perfect and unpredictable ending that is worth the wait. Mason’s character portraits are granular and original—no cutouts here, not even in minor characters. His prose is eloquent, with an intimacy that installs you in every crisis, in every conflict. He spares no images of war, but it is never gratuitous. It's as razor-sharp, incisive, and penetrating as a surgeon's scalpel.

This will surely be in my top five reads of the year.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

“…he found shelter in Medicine’s routine.” (3.5 stars)

Daniel Mason’s novel THE WINTER SOLDIER is a tale that weaves together historical detail and emotional depth. Set against the backdrop of World War I, the story follows Lucius, a young medical student thrust into the chaos of a field hospital in the remote Carpathian Mountains. Mason’s ability to bring the stark realities of war to life is evident in his vivid descriptions of the hospital’s primitive conditions and the challenges faced by both the medical staff and their patients.

What kept me engaged throughout the novel was Mr. Mason’s attention to historical accuracy and his integration of medical and military details into the narrative. The depiction of wartime medicine adds a compelling dimension to the story. I also appreciated Mason’s portrayal of Vienna society and Polish culture, which enriched the backdrop of the novel. Despite considering the book average overall, there was a quality in the text that kept me turning the pages.

While I admired Mason’s craftsmanship, the book didn’t fully captivate me. The pacing felt uneven, with moments slowing the narrative’s momentum. Even so, Mason’s lyrical prose and his ability to evoke a strong sense of place helped mitigate these shortcomings, adding depth and atmosphere to the story.

The central relationship between Lucius and Margarete, the enigmatic nurse who becomes his partner and guide, serves as the emotional core of the novel. However, the pivotal event meant to profoundly transform Lucius’s life felt unconvincing to me. It lacked the emotional weight the author seemed to intend, occasionally pushing the narrative into melodramatic territory.

Quotes:
• “Our exotic things are always female.”
• “But most advances in medicine involved some serendipity.”
• “He now understood why one might die for someone else. It wasn’t mercy; it was torture to remain.”
• “If anything, there was something in the very denial of the flesh that acknowledged the power of flesh’s pleasures.
• “…who seem forever stuck in eternal winters.”
• “Marriage is a market, like any other. And a very liquid market, I should add.”
• “…for she smiled with a smile that only the very beautiful can mage, wicked and conciliatory at once.”
• “But now, they both had retreated from whatever dream they’d tested.”
• “But what he was seeking was forgiveness and atonement, and he couldn’t think of any worthy offering to give.”

I will add that the last 20 pages beguiled me. I was caught up in them, and it was nice to be swept up in such a manner.
Ultimately, THE WINTER SOLDIER is a read for those who enjoy richly detailed historical fiction. It may not have gripped me as deeply as I had anticipated, but the thoughtful writing and immersive historical context made it a worthwhile experience.

[Marius Citește · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Soldatul iernii", un roman ce mi-a plăcut enorm. Este nou apărut, deosebit de frumos și bine scris, emoționant și profund, cu ecouri din "Pacientul englez" al lui Michael Ondaatje și din "Ispășire" a lui Ian McEwan.

O carte despre tragedia războiului și a sechelelor din urma sa, despre natura umană încercată și expusă la situații extreme, despre iubirea reciprocă și intensă, despre pierdere și iertare, dar și o poveste despre maturizare plasată în timpul Primului Război Mondial.

În vâltoarea narațiunii, autorul ne plimbă prin spitale improvizate de campanie și puncte de prim ajutor unde sunt tratați răniții aduși de pe câmpurile de luptă și ne înfățișează totodată amărăciunea și complicațiile cauzate de lipsa personalului medical.

Protagonistul, Lucius, un tânăr student la medicină în Viena, provenind dintr-o familie poloneză înstărită, decide să se ofere voluntar într-un spital de campanie așezat într-o vale din Carpați, în apropiere de Sighetul Marmației.

Aici o cunoaște pe sora medicală Margarete, o călugăriță misterioasă, cu care leagă o poveste de dragoste, poveste cu care destinul se joacă până când cei doi se pierd unul de celălalt, iar Lucius ajunge să facă eforturi disperate pentru a o găsi pe Margarete.

Cum îi sunt răsplătite dorința de regăsire și iubire, speranța și ardoarea, rămâne să fie revelat numai cititorului.

[Ron Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beauty of Daniel Mason’s new novel, “The Winter Soldier,” persists even through scenes of unspeakable agony. That tension reflects the span of his talent. As a writer, Mason knows how to capture the grace of a moment; as a doctor, he knows how wrong things can go.

And just about everything goes wrong for Lucius, the young medical student at the center of this historical novel set during World War I. The scion of a wealthy family in Vienna, Lucius has disappointed his ambitious mother and his patriotic father by pursuing such a lowly career as medicine. When hostilities break out, they’re relieved that their son may finally have a chance to distinguish himself in the glories of battle. “The celebrations were hard to ignore,” Mason writes. “The entire city reeked of rotting flowers.” Lucius’s father arranges toy soldiers on an antique map and dresses up in a suit of armor. His parents can’t know — or don’t want to admit — just how much. . . .

To read the rest of this novel, go to The Washington Post:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/entert...

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inside the covers you'll find a map. Remember those? And such capital-R Romantic locations, too! Galicia, Cracow, the Carpathian Mountains, Budapest, Vienna, the Vistula and the Dnieper. Hungary's empire, you see, just before it all went kablooey.

I'm talking 1914. The War to End All Wars. And why, may I ask, is war so capital-R Romantic when it's in the rearview mirror? Isn't Hell hell from any angle? I thought so.

Anyway, what we have here is Dr. Zhivago Light, my friends. At 22, Lucius Krzelewski of Poland hasn't even graduated from medical school when he is pressed into unexpected service by the tides of history. (Zhivago is facing the same deal a country or two over.)

Eventually, Lucius lands in Lemnowice (in his alliterative way), in a damaged church being used as a makeshift "hospital." Thing is, the old doctor is not in the house. Fled for the hills. So tough-as-church-nails Sister Margarete is beyond ecstatic to have Pan Doctor. Trouble is, the good nun knows more than this green "doctor" does. Still, there's nothing like on-the-job training and no lack of patient soldiers to practice it on. Amputations, chiefly. But the usual diseases, too: typhus, cholera, and the lot.

You don't need me to spell out that young Pan Doctor falls in love with young nun-of-that Margarete. There's nothing like taking off limbs together, after all. But falling in love with nuns---especially in close quarters around so many other men---is less than ideal. Still, points (and page turns) for trying.

Yes, yes. Plot. This is one of those "War and Peace (Read: War and Love)" books. Margarete as Lara. Lucius as Dr. Z, only without the domestic baggage (you know, a wife back home). But more than one person can harbor a secret, especially on the messy chessboards of war where every premeditated move must be kept secret.

Did I turn pages? Oh, yes. And enjoy the exotic locales? Decidedly. Did the plot hit some speed bumps along the way? And did a few landmines (I call them "eye-roll coincidences") detonate, too, with unfortunate results? Boy, howdy.

But I kept reading. And I felt, as I went, despite all that, that most others would buy-in big, too, many even 5-starring it as an "old-fashioned" type pleasure. Please, God, I hear these fellow readers saying, anything but another Yuppies in American Suburbia Tale! I'll take sawbones over navel-gazing solipsism any armistice of the week! (#metoo)

And so it went. Without regret. And with recommendations. If you feel like your emotions are being played like a harp as you read, oh well. Enjoy the music! And if you feel the author is crassly writing with film rights in mind, what can I say? Zhivago rode those rails, too. And the music was pretty. As was Julie Christie. Very. (But there I go again, revealing my own capital-R Romantic weaknesses. Easy to do when escapist literature is in such high demand, given goings-on in this World-To-End-All-Worlds appearing on a front page near you.)

[Maria Roxana · Rating 4 out of 5]

O poveste de neuitat!

”Se gândea: aș putea să-i spun lui Zimmer că știu un doctor tânăr care se simte vinovat și care are coșmaruri și vedenii. Și că doctorul ăsta se îndrăgostise și că iubirea l-a salvat, dar apoi a pierdut-o pe femeia pe care o iubea. Și i-aș mai spune că o simțea mereu alături de el, urmărindu-i toate gesturile, cerându-i să aibă răbdare cu soldații suferinzi, minunându-se când vedea câte o rană vindecată. I-aș spune că îi este dor de ea. Și că își petrece fiecare oră liberă rătacind aiurea, întrebându-se cum ar putea să o ia de la capăt...”

[Sergio · Rating 5 out of 5]

- Libro Acquistato a maggio 2021 -
Il racconto della I Guerra Mondiale non può che essere un racconto di orrori: giovani uomini armati di fucile e baionetta mandati allo sbaraglio contro un muro di mitragliatrici che sparano ininterrottamente ad “alzo zero” distribuendo orrende ferite e morte, soldati nascosti in trincee impietosamente umide e gelide d’inverno e insopportabilmente torride e pullulanti di insetti d’estate, sotto il tiro di cecchini, in preda ai terrori quotidiani di una guerra che sembra non finire mai e che, come se non bastasse, è avvelenata dalle esalazioni di gas all’iprite capaci di deturpare, piagare e infine uccidere soprattutto per i gravi danni inflitti ai polmoni.
Ma questo romanzo di Daniel Mason non racconta direttamente quello che ho scritto: narra invece le conseguenze fisiche e mentali che quello scenario di guerra causò ai giovani soldati sopravvissuti alle ferite e menomazioni sul campo di battaglia e che raccolti dalle ambulanze furono inviati nelle retrovie per essere curati e possibilmente rimandati al fronte guariti nel corpo se non nell’animo. Protagonista di questo romanzo è il giovanissimo studente di medicina Lucius Krzelewski che giunge quasi al termine del suo percorso universitario indeciso tra la pratica di medico internista e psichiatra quando la guerra, appena scoppiata, sembra precludergli questa opportunità con il suo invio in un piccolo paesino vicino al fronte dove, in una chiesa trasformata in ospedale di campo, grazie anche all’esperienza e alla costante vicinanza morale di suor Margarete, giovane infermiera di buona conoscenza medica e d0tata di grandi qualità umane, egli prenderà dimestichezza con la pratica di chirurgo ma affinerà anche le sue conoscenze psichiatriche e le sue qualità umane di pietà ed empatia provando a curare l’ anima ferita e sconvolta di tanti giovani suoi coetanei che hanno vissuto l’orrore del fronte e sono terrorizzati all’idea di tornarci una volta rimessi in piedi.
“Soldato d’Inverno”, finalista del Premio Pulitzer è un romanzo “forte” che ho amato durante la lettura e ancora a distanza di settimane dopo averlo terminato torna a presentarsi nei miei pensieri per la sua forza di dirompente umanità e la sua capacità di coniugare magistralmente le descrizioni degli orrori di una guerra, le sofferenze fisiche e le turbe psichiche dei giovani soldati minati dallo stress vissuto quotidianamente al fronte con la delicatezza con la quale narra l’anelito di vita e d’amore che nonostante tutto germoglia e crea solide radici anche là dove sentimenti e romanticismo sembrerebbero esiliati o sospesi.

[Chrissie · Rating 4 out of 5]

What stands out as special with this book of historical fiction?

* Its lyrical and descriptive prose.
*The storyline is unusual. The central character is a Viennese medical student, and the story is set during the First World War in a small mountain village in Galicia, and there, in a field hospital consigned to the village church. From here the story expands to other locations in Galicia.
*This is a love story, but here the angle is unusual too. Two people love not only each other but their jobs too. There is an overlap, and this changes everything. One is a doctor and and one a nurse.

The story views armed conflicts and that era’s Viennese society with a scathing, critical eye. Depiction of the killing and the brutality of war can be intimidating. Descriptive war scenes are grueling. Events unfold realistically and there is no fairy tale ending.

Strangely enough, despite that I enjoyed the story I recognized at the end that I had not come to feel attachment to the characters. Their life situation interested me and had me thinking but I failed to feel sad for them when things went wrong.

You learn about those on the loosing side of a war. You think about work ethics and the line drawn between one’s private life and one’s job. If you love your job and it is all to you, how does it impinge upon your private life? What choices remain when circumstances change?

The audiobook is narrated by Laurence Dobiesz. It is clear and easy to follow despite that the Polish, Czech and Hungarian names are in the beginning sometimes hard to distinguish. His voice is strong, and the pacing is good. He has a tendency to sing out the lines; I got used to this. The narration I have given four stars.

I definitely recommend this book. I will be reading all the books I can get by the author.

****************

The Winter Soldier 4 stars
The Piano Tuner 4 stars
A Far Country 4 stars