The Harrowing

by Robert Dinsdale

The Harrowing [Paperback] Dinsdale, Robert

Genres: Fiction, Historical

307 pages, Paperback

First published June 18, 2009

About the author

Robert Dinsdale was born in North Yorkshire and currently lives in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.

He is the author of PARIS BY STARLIGHT, THE TOYMAKERS, GINGERBREAD, LITTLE EXILES and THE HARROWING

Reviews

[Maya Panika · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed it certainly, on one level; the time, the place, the horrors of war, the friends and enemies in the town and the trenches - but the story skims the surface like a stone, never touching down long enough in any one place to gain any depth. Why does one brother attack the other? Why do the family react like as did, past and present? Why does anyone do any of the things they do? There’s a real lack of inner voice and personality with all the characters which left me confused and unsatisfied more often than not. There is the potential for a much better book about forgiveness and redemption, but this version never gets deep enough into its very sketchy characters to really deliver.

I wasn’t even sure what happened at the end. Was all well? (and if so, why?) did they return home blameless or die and return as ghosts? I couldn't quite work it out. Maybe the uncertainty was a part of the author’s plan, but if so, it left me not thinking but simply baffled.

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book surprised me. I was expecting to find it an average read and it turned into quite a deep, engaging book.

The driving force in the back of this tale is the characters. William wakes up after being clobbered over the head by his estranged brother Samuel, who has ended up enrolling for the army, lying about his age and running off to the trenches. William then sets off on a mission to find his brother and bring him back.

The start of the story is slow. William isn't particularly engaging as a protagonist. We don't really get much motivation for his task. We are only seeing his perception of the brother's relationship - we've never seen it ourselves and William just seems a bit bland at this stage - nothing to make it seem like he would be the type of person to chace off after his brother.

Then, once we get to the second part of the book and we switch to Samuel's narration, the story really does pick up. Unlike his brother, Samuel is a very deep and driving character. We get lots of internal monolouge and reasoning and it sson becomes clear how much self hatred Samuel has. Most likely as a result of his upbringing and the events at the start of the book start to come together a bit more clearly.

The description in this section is amazing. For a time, the story parts from the plot of the brothers and moves to the narration of the experiences of Samuel in the war. It's frank, stark and very well done. So much so that when we switch back to William as a narrator, it's almost disappointing, but the final third of the story stands up on it's own to feet very well, and William too comes into his own as a character. The characters however, work so much better together, and that is where the real heart of this story lie. In the interactions of the brothers and the events and discussions that follow. In a way, the main plot line of the story - the event on the moor - becomes irrelevant, and the situation the boys are in and the war surrounding them becomes what a lot of the rest of the story is about.

I also loved the last few lines or so. Sometimes taking a step back with the writing is the best way to make friends with the reader, and this book does that very well.

[Dianeblack7 · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I enjoyed this book, I felt in never really came to grips with the motivations of the characters with many questions that could have/ should have been addressed. Again, my concerns about the way that authors end stories is raised. I never really connected with either of the characters and felt that the world in which they lived was quite " flat".

[Tuuli Platner · Rating 4 out of 5]

The characters have so much potential, but I never feel I can really see through their eyes at all, they always seem disconnected somehow from the story they find themselves in. The ending was a little flat too, a bit too dramatic maybe, with little to support it in the run up.

[Reece Willis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Robert Dinsdale shines his light of poetic creativity throughout The Harrowing in such a unique way that only he can. In the darkest corners of this beautifully told story of the horrors of war, a warm embrace of commitment, friendship and trust shines on.