Ladysmith

by giles-foden

The year is 1899, and Boer forces have surrounded the small South African town. As shells and shrapnel rain down, British soldiers and townsfolk dig themselves in. Waiting for rescue, they try to keep up their spirits with parties and cricket matches. But General Buller's relief column can't break through...

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Africa, South Africa, Historical, War, Military Fiction

362 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1999

Reviews

[The Final Chapter · Rating 5 out of 5]

SJC Review: 5.59.

The seige and defence of Ladysmith was of momentous import to the preservation of the ideals which underpinned the British Empire, amidst a conflict which brutally exposed the outdated approach of the Crown's forces. Set in 1899, this novel brilliantly evokes the suffering of the beseiged as they await the relief column which is pinned down by Boer forces en route. Many reviewers appear to regard the multitude of characters confusing and revealing a lack of depth of characterisation, but in this reader's opinion, Foden has expertly crafted an engrossing and accurately detailed novel. Part of the novel's strengths is the fact that it is composed of snapshots of the distinct political and social forces which were converging as Victorian society brushed against the harsh realities of modernity - the war correspondents such as George Steevens facing censorship and the need to report news; the political awakening of the Zulus and Irish characters; the feminist attitudes displayed by Bella; but most of all the brief cameos by Churchill and Gandhi which determine their future trajectories. Historical fiction at its best.

[Lily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ladysmith suffers from a complete lack of subtlety, both in the heavy-handed characterizations and the predictable relationships and plot. It earns its two stars for a.)the descriptions of siege conditions, which are horrifying and vivid, and b.)being engaging enough a read, if unsubstantial.

[D · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wouldn't recommend Ladysmith. I found the lead up to the siege enjoyable. I enjoyed bouncing between narrators But a siege is boring and claustrophobic by its nature and therefore isn't particularly enjoyable to read about. The dialogue and characters are stilted. The plot is predictable. The novel is at its best when cycling through different characters and at its worst towards the end when it stalls on the main character and her romantic interests. Fodor also imposes modern attitudes on 19th century characters. Too many relationships seem completely improbable. The addition of historical characters like Churchill and Gandhi felt contrived but was better than the romance. The plots climax is utterly ridiculous but by that point you're so happy the siege is over you don't care. I wouldn't recommend it but it wasn't so bad I didn't finish it. I enjoyed learning more about the Boer war and wished that it rather then just the seige of ladysmith had been its focus.

[Dana Jennings · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started from a place of ignorance, knowing little about the Boer war in South Africa and so struggled to get traction with the story at the outset. Based in part on the letters of Foden's great-grandfather, a British trooper, the story is stunning and tender, romantic and tragic. Foden describes the conflict of 1899 from the voice of different recurring characters, a number of whom are nonfictional including Winston Churchill, Mahatma Ghandi and the renown British journalist, Henry Nevenison. The siege lasted 120 days and left the military and townspeople in Ladysmith in wretched circumstances.

[Felicity · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic piece of historical writing on a war I know so little about. The fictional story strands are cleverly & engagingly woven amongst the well- documented stories of real actors of the period. The lead-up to the siege, the horrors of the siege itself and the post-war testimonies all make for a truly impressive and ultimately sad read.

[Hugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this powerful book. Particularly like his writing style of short sharp chapters from the perspective of different characters on both sides of the war and siege of Ladysmith.

Portrays the pure misery of a poorly run war where disease is allowed to flourish and rations are low. The context of the book is particularly significant, with the interweaving of the Irish conflict, South African struggle against apartheid and Indian struggle for independence. A great fiction to understand the realities of imperial Britain.

The characters on are easy to relate to and empathise with which gives the book real balance entertainment.

A heavy longish read but would highly recommend.

[Philip Tidman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this somewhat disappointing after the excellent Last King of Scotland. In comparison Ladysmith is quite poorly written, with strangely incomplete characters and real historical figures such as Gandhi, Churchill, Generals Buller and Kitchener, seemingly added at random to give authority to the author’s version of events. I like the way Foden gives different perspectives on the siege but it just doesn’t quite work. Not recommended.

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A chilling account of the Boer War Siege that narrates the horrors, heartbreak, courage, and choices made when a cataclysmic event occurs. Not for the feint of heart who wish a happy tale. It poses the eternal question of what is goodness or normalcy for survival in the face of catastrophe and chaos. Three cups of tea, straight and strong, no sugar or cream.

[Iain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Turn of the century Ladysmith, South Africa, and four months of stalemate, death and wholesale destruction provide an excellent backdrop for the wonderful character studies which are the thumping heart of Foden's deft dramatisation of the siege. A page turning and evocative read.

[Archie Ferrier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very slow, but it is an account of a siege. Some interesting characters involved on both sides that would become famous or infamous. The letters in the last chapter, Monologues of the Dead put it into some sort of perspective.

[Jansie Both · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another brilliant account from a brilliant story teller.

[Paschalis]

elibrary

[Abigail Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quirky.

[Peter Nowakowski]

this book was never boring and never exctining but easy to read and the end turned out to be very very good so i was a little surprised at how much i liked it.............

[Eugène L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ледісміт - англомовне містечко у Південній Африці. У 1899, під час Англо-бурської війни, його оточили бурські війська і почали обстрілювати шрапнеллю з найсучасніших (на той час) гармат. Але місто витримало 3 місяці осади і так і не здалося.

Про це можна було б написати примітивну і нудну книжку, тіпа: "А наші по ним - тра-та-та-та-та!" із детальним описом зброї і військових стратгій.

Фоден пішов іншим шляхом: він писав про людей. Людей, як опинилися у цій ідіотській катавасії - часто мимоволі. Людей, які через цю війну втратили сім'ї, які ховали друзів. Людей, які через ту війну зустрілися і закохалися.

Пролог до роману міг би стати окремим оповіданням. Він справді бере за душу.
Якщо ви хоч колись були закохані, та/обо мали діти, та/або в вас була батьківщина, пролог не залишить вас байдужим.
Книжка, до речі, також.

Герої дуже різні. Ірландський патріот, в якого вбили дружину, залишився з двома дочками і мав емігрувати до Півненної Африки.

До 1899 дочки встигли підростиі - ясна річ - закохатися в інших героїв.

Наприклад, у англійського солдата - простого незлого хлопця, який по дурості (тобто з патріотизму) записався до війська і потрапив у цю м'ясорубку. Або самий під кулями, або має палити бурські ферми.

З іншої лінії фронту - бурський лікар: його жінку забрали англійці, і він молиться, щоб вона вижила.

Африканець, якого насильно відірвали від дружини і сина.

Знаменитий журналіст, який вмирає від лихоманки, поки на вулиці рветься шрапнель.
Ця війна стала прототипом Першої світової. Гармати та кулемети перетворювали поле битви на м'ясорубку. Попри це, люди намагалися залишитися людьми...

Британська імперія представлена у "всій красі". Але автор не звинвачує конкретних людей: люди просто опинилися там, де опинилися, кожен зі свого боку...

У тій війні брали участь деякі з тих, хто визначив перебіг подій ХХ століття.

Наприклад, Ганді: тоді - молодий юрист, який пішов добровольцем до санітарного загону і виносив поранених з-під вогню.

Чи Черчіль - тоді журналіст, що мріяв про політичниму кар'єру.

Обидвоє стали другорядними персонажами роману.

На відміну від більшості з тих європейців, хто пише про Африку, автор її знає. Він прожив там багато років.

Власне, "Ледісміт" написано, частково, за фронтовими листами його прадіда, який був солдатом на цій війні. Також було використано мемуари очевидців та історичні документи.
Але, повторюю, автор знав, про що пише. Це не "кабінетний пригодницький роман".
P.S. Книжку краще читати англійською

[Babak Fakhamzadeh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Foden's second outing is not as enthralling as his first, the award winning The Last King of Scotland, but still a very interesting read. Set during the siege of Ladysmith, around the turn of the previous century, when the Boers, fighting the British aggressors, managed for almost four months, to squeeze the town nearly dry.
The story, historical fiction, is roughly based on a series of letters from his great-grandfather which Foden accidentally stumbled upon. Whereas Foden, in The Last King of Scotland, had a character he could easily identify with, to the extent where the tale was so extremely credible, for most of the novel, that it made the reader wonder whether it was actually a biography, there isn't a central character in Ladysmith who matches Nicholas from The Last King. Perhaps the exception being one of the journalists, which Foden seems to be the most comfortable with.
However, all the journalists are only minor characters in this story. As a result, the story feels less authentic, though it possibly is more so.

The last chapter is taken up with short chapters where characters surviving the siege recount particular experiences. One stretches 60 years ahead to the trial which included Nelson Mandela, after the Sharpeville Massacre. Perhaps a tad constructed, but also lending the story more urgency due to its link with the latter day apartheid state. One of the more urgent, as well as sobering, moments is Foden's description of the aftermath of the battle of Spion kop.
But, also, Foden implicitly admits his inability to help the reader understand war by reading about it: "No wonder that the armies of the past vanish, their ancient dead only rising from the furrows of buried time to laugh, invisibly, at the very pageants of memory by which we seek to summon them."

Churchill and Ghandi make an appearance.

[Richard Gullickson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Giles Foden does a masterful job of illuminating the foundation of South Africa by telling the story of the siege of the British Army at Ladysmith by the Boers in the Anglo-Boer war in 1899. Towns people, British soldiers, war correspondents, native Africans, and Boer family prisoners were surrounded and besieged by the Boer army for 118 days while a British column sent to the rescue struggled. Based on the letters home written by Foden's grandfather, "Ladysmith" does a capable job of telling everyone's story as the town of Ladysmith is reduced to rubble and the motley mix of the besieged die from starvation, disease, and constantly exploding shells. Foden succumbs to the temptation of every writer of historical novels to include famous historical figures in the story including war correspondent Winston Churchill and stretcher barrier Mahatma Gandhi. The roots of apartheid and modern day conflict and reconciliation are evident in this compelling and well written story.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book tells the story of the siege of Ladysmith during the Boer war. I found the book quite slow and laborious to start off with, but after a bit of perseverance things do start to pick up. Following several different characters, the reader gets a good impression of what life was like during the siege; it was pretty grim for natives, colonists and soldiers alike. However because of the flitting back and forth between characters, it is hard to feel any particular connection to any of them.

What Ladysmith does do successfully is portray how the Boer war was the point of a changing tide from old Colonial values, and also how Britain's struggle to maintain control of southern Africa changed how we were perceived by other nations, eventually leading to the decline of the Empire.

[Sue · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a fictionalized account of the actual siege of the town of Ladysmith from Nov 1899 to Feb 1900.
I enjoy historical fiction partly because it gives me an opportunity to learn something in an enjoyable way. This did not meet that wish, however. I had a very hard time following it from the start - each chapter seemed to introduce new individuals with no sense of how they relate to those already part of the story. I get the idea that the residents were trying to make the best of the situation and move on with their lives in spite of the battle that rage around them, yet I couldn't seem to find a continuous thread throughout that brought it all together.

[Alistair · Rating 3 out of 5]

i enjoyed this story about the siege of ladysmith in the Boer war but in all honesty it is not great literature with the writer trying to get too many angles into the novel
a bit of adventure , a bit of politics with ghandi and churchill making cameo appearances , a bit of love and slap and tickle , a few noble natives , and a bit of cruelty . the horror of the siege is well described but the characters do not come to life and are flat
passed a few hours easily on a long flight .

[Effie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book by the author of the better known "The Last King of Scotland." I enjoyed learning about this episode of South Africa history and appreciated how he was able to tell the story from various perspectives.

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Foden really brings the reality of the siege to life - the conditions, the action, drama, suffering, personal conflicts. I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I agree with The Times critic: It is at once a good adventure and a fascinating account of an historical period.

[Marissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved Foden's Last King of Scotland so my expectations were a bit high. Interesting time period to learn about but I found the narrative difficult to follow so it wasn't the smoothest or most enjoyable read for me.

[Karen Spach · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is by the same author as Last King of Scotland. I really enjoyed learning about that time period. It was not a typical love story as described on the back cover.

[Lorna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. A really good battle - a bit like reading a very good western.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost in the same league as The Siege of Krishnapur. Look up Foden’s first book - The Last King of Scotland - as well.

[Karen Stubenvoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting historical novel set in the Boer War.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read on the back of reading another of his books . . . I really enjoyed this factional story of a siege that i knew little or nothing about.

[Andrée · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great fictional account of an historical event. Full of horribly realistic detail. Can.t wait for the film version. Recommended

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good history lesson in this fiction, but hard to follow narritive.