Reading the 20th Century discussion

I'm posting this nomination thread a bit before the end of the month as our January 2019 discussions seem to be winding down so there's a bit of a lull before our February discussions kick off. What better way to fill that lull than with nominations and discussion about a future group read?

As you know, every month we discuss a book on a specific era or a theme.

This book will be the winner of a group poll.

Our theme for April 2019 is World War Two

If you feel inspired, please nominate a book about World War Two that you would like to read and discuss.

It can be either fiction or non-fiction.

Please supply the title, author, a brief synopsis, and anything else you'd like to mention about the book, and why you think it might make a good book to discuss.

If your nomination wins then please be willing to fully participate in the subsequent discussion.

Happy nominating.

I'd like to nominate a book by one of my favourite authors, Alexander Baron, but one that, inexplicably, I have yet to read despite it being arguably his most celebrated book.

My nomination is....

From the City, from the Plough. by Alexander Baron

When it was published in 1948, it sold over a million copies and was hailed as a masterpiece on both sides of the Atlantic.

From the City, from the Plough. is a novel about the Fifth Battalion, the Wessex regiment (and which is based on the Wiltshire regiment). The regiment took men from rural Somerset and the East End of London - hence the book's title.

From the City, from the Plough. follows the men of the Fifth Battalion from the waiting and preparation for D-Day, across the channel and into France, culminating in the taking of a hill called Pincon.

Alexander Baron had been in the Young Communist League in the 1930s and had been active in the East End opposing Mosley’s Blackshirts. He broke with the communists following Hitler’s pact with Stalin, but remained left wing.

Alexander Baron wrote from his own experience. He was a sapper in the Pioneer Corps (being too short-sighted to be trusted with a rifle). The Sappers were first on the beaches on D-Day where they cleared barbed wire and dug up mines to allow the main force through. He never rose above the rank of corporal and one of the characters is based on him.

Many people whose opinion I esteem have told me this is one of the all time great war novels.

Here's the blurb....

The story of soldiers of the Fifth Battalion, the Wessex Regiment, in the run up to and aftermath of D-Day. Although fictional, it comes directly out of the author's own experience and is regarded as one of the most accurate and unsentimental portrayals of the ordinary soldier's life anywhere in fiction. First published in 1948, there have been enthusiastic endorsements from soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, confirming Alexander Baron's uncanny knack of capturing the soldier's experience.

Nigeyb wrote: "I'd like to nominate a book by one of my favourite authors, Alexander Baron, but one that, inexplicably, I have yet to read despite it being arguably his most celebrated book.

My n..."

A little pricey in the States - Amazon has it at $472, Abebooks at $167. Other online used books stores didn't have it.

I'd like to nominate HHhH by Laurent Binet

HHhH: "Himmlers Hirn heisst Heydrich", or "Himmler's brain is called Heydrich". The most dangerous man in Hitler's cabinet, Reinhard Heydrich was known as the "Butcher of Prague." He was feared by all and loathed by most. With his cold Aryan features and implacable cruelty, Heydrich seemed indestructible—until two men, a Slovak and a Czech recruited by the British secret service, killed him in broad daylight on a bustling street in Prague, and thus changed the course of History.

Who were these men, arguably two of the most discreet heroes of the twentieth century? In Laurent Binet's captivating debut novel, we follow Jozef Gabcik and Jan Kubiš from their dramatic escape of Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia to England; from their recruitment to their harrowing parachute drop into a war zone, from their stealth attack on Heydrich's car to their own brutal death in the basement of a Prague church.

A seemingly effortlessly blend of historical truth, personal memory, and Laurent Binet's remarkable imagination, HHhH—an international bestseller and winner of the prestigious Prix Goncourt du Premier Roman—is a work at once thrilling and intellectually engrossing, a fast-paced novel of the Second World War that is also a profound meditation on the nature of writing and the debt we owe to history.

The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb by Neal Bascomb. I saw him on CPSAN's BOOK-TV. Very engrossing. Shortly thereafter I saw a film on Netflix/Hulu by, I think, Norwegian-British film company and actors, a co-operative, on the same subject. Excellent production - sorry I don't remember the name. It must have been a mini-series - 4 episodes - which I binge-watched.

"It’s 1942 and the Nazis are racing to build an atomic bomb. They have the physicists. They have the will. What they don’t have is enough “heavy water," an essential ingredient for their nuclear designs. For two years, the Nazis have occupied Norway, and with it the Vemork hydroelectric plant, a massive industrial complex nestled on a precipice of a gorge. Vemork is the world’s sole supplier of heavy water, and under the threat of death, its engineers pushed production into overtime. For the Allies, Vemork must be destroyed. But how would they reach the castle fortress high in a mountainous valley? The answer became the most dramatic commando raid of the war. The British Special Operations Executive together a brilliant scientist and eleven refugee Norwegian commandos, who, with little more than parachutes, skis, and Tommy Guns, would destroy Hitler’s nuclear ambitions and help end the reign of the Third Reich. Based on exhaustive research and never-before-seen diaries and letters of the saboteurs, Story about a group of young men who endured soul-crushing setbacks and Gestapo hunts and survived in one of the coldest, most inhospitable places on earth to save the world from destruction."

This book has been sitting unread on my Kindle for a couple of years. Not sure why I haven't read it yet. He has written at least one book since then.

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "I'd like to nominate HHhH by Laurent Binet
"

I *love* that book and its sophisticated approach towards writing history - I'd certainly reread if it wins.

I loved HHhH too, and would love to re-read it.

Sadly, From the City, From the Plough looks to be out of print in the UK too and most secondhand copies appear to be £50 plus (unless I'm failing to spot an edition) - it must deserve a reprint, surely!

There are other wartime books by him which are much cheaper, though, There's No Home and The Human Kind. Have you read either of these, Nigeyb?

Musing aloud... I'm thinking about The Invisible Bridge, The Unwomanly Face of War, or Schindler's Ark (also published as Schindler's List), none of which I've read. But I'd also like to reread HHhH... decisions...

Roman Clodia wrote: "Musing aloud... I'm thinking about The Invisible Bridge, The Unwomanly Face of War, or Schindler's Ark (also published as [book:Schindler's List|375013..."

I read Schindler's List fairly recently. It was excellent - better than the film, I thought. I am not a re-reader, but as I read it recently enough, I would be very interested in any discussion, should it be nominated and win.

Wow. Okay. I bought a copy a few years back for a modest amount. I knew it had been republished in 2010 so just assumed that it was still readily available. I'm stunned it's become so rare and expensive.

So, yes, I'll retract my From the City, from the Plough. nomination and try and come up with something else instead.

I have indeed read The Human Kind Judy, but not the other one.

I've also read HHhH - I liked it

Thanks for The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb nomination Jan

NOMINATIONS SO FAR....

ELIZABETH: HHhH by Laurent Binet
JAN: The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb by Neal Bascomb

Roman Clodia wrote: "Musing aloud... I'm thinking about The Invisible Bridge, The Unwomanly Face of War, or Schindler's Ark (also published as [book:Schindler's List|375013..."

I also have The Unwomanly Face on my wish list and I would find a place in April for it.

How in-tune we are this month, Elizabeth :)

I've never even seen the film of Schindler's List, somehow.

I won't nominate this because it is enormously long, but I've just started reading the Persephone book Few Eggs and No Oranges: The Diaries of Vere Hodgson 1940-45.

She describes it on the title page as "A diary showing how Unimportant People in London and Birmingham lived through the war years 1940-45 written in the Notting Hill area of London."

Another war-themed book waiting patiently on my shelf is Winter in Madrid by CJ Sansom (GR seems to have gone wrong and can't find the title), but again this is massively long and also looks to be about both the Spanish Civil War and WW2. So I won't nominate that either and will keep thinking! :)

In the meantime ...

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8...

such a great theme - so many books I'd happily read.

Thanks Elizabeth - it just kept searching for the title, going round and round, so I thought I would lose my post in a minute!

Sounds really good, Judy. Not on kindle, but now, definitely on my TBR list :)

I have been trying to think of something. I considering The Warsaw Anagrams, but perhaps it is not literary enough. Still considering...

Susan wrote: "Sounds really good, Judy. Not on kindle, but now, definitely on my TBR list :) ..."

It's extremely readable and quite witty - might not take me as long as I had been thinking! Some Persephone books are on Kindle, so maybe they will gradually add others. I'm still considering too...

Riiiiiight, after much assiduous research and associated chin stroking, and having checked availability, I am now pleased to unveil my nomination....


To Die in Spring (2017) by Ralf Rothmann

The final weeks of the second world war are hauntingly portrayed in a German novel that bears comparison with Erich Maria Remarque and Günter Grass

Click here to read The Guardian review


A mere 208 pages


Here's the blurb....

Walter Urban and Friedrich 'Fiete' Caroli work side by side as hands on a dairy farm in northern Germany. By 1945, it seems the War's worst atrocities are over. When they are forced to 'volunteer' for the SS, they find themselves embroiled in a conflict which is drawing to a desperate, bloody close. Walter is put to work as a driver for a supply unit of the Waffen-SS, while Fiete is sent to the front. When the senseless bloodshed leads Fiete to desert, only to be captured and sentenced to death, the friends are reunited under catastrophic circumstances.

In a few days the war will be over, millions of innocents will be dead, and the survivors must find a way to live with its legacy.

An international bestseller, To Die in Spring is a beautiful and devastating novel by German author Ralf Rothmann.


To Die in Spring (2017) by Ralf Rothmann


NOMINATIONS SO FAR....

ELIZABETH: HHhH by Laurent Binet
JAN: The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb by Neal Bascomb
NIGEYB: To Die in Spring by Ralf Rothmann

Ooh, looks good, Nigeyb. As do the other two suggestions. I have added both The Winter Fortress and To Die in Spring to my lists.

One I did think of was The Camomile Lawn by Mary Wesley But I will be away most of April so I don't think I could fully participate

I loved both HHhH and The Tin Drum, which To Die in Spring is compared to, so would be happy to read either. Unusually for me I have also seen the film "The Heroes of Telemark", but not read a book about them.

Judy wrote: "I won't nominate this because it is enormously long, but I've just started reading the Persephone book Few Eggs and No Oranges: The Diaries of Vere Hodgson 1940-45.

She describes it..."

I started reading that a year or so ago but was unable to finish it. I had it on an interlibrary loan and didn't have enough time. Enjoyed what I did read though!

Who else is considering a nomination?


NOMINATIONS SO FAR....

ELIZABETH: HHhH by Laurent Binet
JAN: The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb by Neal Bascomb
NIGEYB: To Die in Spring by Ralf Rothmann
SUSAN: Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 by Julie Summers

So many good nominations already. However, to throw another book into the ring, I will suggest:

Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945

Not only does it have a great title, but I found it an excellent read.

The compelling true story that inspired the hugely successful major ITV drama series HOME FIRES – now in its second season.

The Second World War was the WI's finest hour. The whole of its previous history - two decades of educating, entertaining and supporting women and campaigning on women's issues - culminated in the enormous collective responsibility felt by the members to 'do their bit' for Britain. With all the vigour, energy and enthusiasm at their disposal, a third of a million country women set out to make their lives and the lives of those around them more bearable in what they described as 'a period of insanity'.

Through archive material and interviews with many WI members, Julie Summers takes us behind the scenes, revealing their nitty-gritty approach to the daily problems presented by the conflict. Jambusters is the fascinating story of how the Women's Institute pulled rural Britain through the war with pots of jam and a spirit of make-do-and-mend.

That is another good choice.

As we don't have a book from outside the European theatre yet, I will nominate Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard.
Ballard's family lived in Shanghai when he was a boy and this novel is partly based on his experiences during the Japanese occupation.

Thanks Susan - and thanks Val.


I remember really enjoying Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard when it came out


NOMINATIONS SO FAR....

ELIZABETH: HHhH by Laurent Binet
JAN: The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb by Neal Bascomb
NIGEYB: To Die in Spring by Ralf Rothmann
SUSAN: Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 by Julie Summers
VAL: Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard

Oh, go on then, I'll nominate Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally for its complicated and un-sentimental (allegedly, I haven't read it) look at rescuing Jews during the Holocaust. I'm guessing it needs no more introduction than that...

I read Searching for Schindler: A Memoir and loved it, RC, but I haven't actually read the original! Oh, so many great choices - which to pick?!

I've got Searching on audiobook but don't want to start it till I read the original. I know, such hard choices - I haven't read Empire of the Sun and would like to, plus HHhH...

Thanks Roman Clodia


NOMINATIONS SO FAR....

ELIZABETH: HHhH by Laurent Binet
JAN: The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb by Neal Bascomb
NIGEYB: To Die in Spring by Ralf Rothmann
SUSAN: Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 by Julie Summers
VAL: Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard
ROMAN CLODIA: Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally

I won't nominate this time, as there are so many good choices to choose from already.

Thanks Judy.


Who else is nominating?

Or have we got all the nominations now?

The poll is up....


https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1...

Currently looking good for....


Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 by Julie Summers

....still time to vote though....

https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1...

With all the exciting titles, I am quite proud that the W.I. have done well, even if their lead doesn't last :)

Loving the posters too!

Yes, the posters are fantastic, and I remember enjoying Jambusters after you recommended it, Susan. :)

I have Jambusters and was going to read it in February but I’d much rather read it with all of you!

That's nice to hear, Sue :)

High drama. Roman Clodia has changed her vote. It's neck and neck atop the poll....

Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 by Julie Summers 4 votes, 30.8%
Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard 4 votes, 30.8%

...still time to influence the outcome....

https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1...

The drama continues, with less than a day left
Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 by Julie Summers has edged ahead of Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard


Vote here....

https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1...

Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 has won the poll


Congratulations to Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 by Julie Summers and to Susan for this nomination

Thanks to everyone who got involved in the nomination and voting processes.

Here's to another wonderful discussion in April 2019

The Second World War was the WI's finest hour. The whole of its previous history - two decades of educating, entertaining and supporting women and campaigning on women's issues - culminated in the enormous collective responsibility felt by the members to 'do their bit' for Britain. With all the vigour, energy and enthusiasm at their disposal, a third of a million country women set out to make their lives and the lives of those around them more bearable in what they described as 'a period of insanity'.

Jambusters: The Women's Institute at War 1939-1945 tells the story of the minute and idiosyncratic details of everyday life during the Second World War for the 5,546 Women's Institutes and how they helped to improve the lot of millions of their fellow Britons. Big pictures and bravery are fashionable and exciting but it was the behind-the-scenes, nitty-gritty approach to the daily problems presented by the war that were at the heart of what the WI did to make a difference. Making jam, making do and mending, gathering rosehips, keeping pigs and rabbits, housing evacuees, setting up canteens for the troops, knitting, singing and campaigning for a better Britain after the war: all these activities played a crucial role in war time.

Such great choices this month - I would happily have read any of them.

Yes indeed. We were certainly spoiled for choice with some mouth watering selections to consider.


Bravo RTTC.