My Rating: 3.0
At age 16, Cilka ends up in a concentration camp and, when she is singled out by the Commandant,quickly learns that power, whether chosen or not, can help her survive. After the war is over and the camp is liberated, Cilka is sent to another camp under charges of sleeping with the enemy. This is her story in the Siberian Camps.
This is was about a part of history I wasn't familiar with - after WWII in the Siberian Prison Gulags. I don't deny that the author researched this part of the book very well. What rang so false for me was that, despite spending 10+ years in concentartion camps, Cilka radiated beauty, is amazingly smart and has so much compassion and patience. I am surprised she wasn't wearing wings. It felt so manipulative and patronizing for the author to put Cilka in circumstances beyond her control to gain our sympathy and then continue to wring us dry with how perfect Cilka was in every way. The writing also felt flat and didn't convey and depth - whether the Siberian cold, the hunger or guilt - so I didn't feel for Cilka. There are so many other books that have such amazing depth and capture this horrific period of time. I would recommend skipping this one
At age 16, Cilka ends up in a concentration camp and, when she is singled out by the Commandant,quickly learns that power, whether chosen or not, can help her survive. After the war is over and the camp is liberated, Cilka is sent to another camp under charges of sleeping with the enemy. This is her story in the Siberian Camps.
This is was about a part of history I wasn't familiar with - after WWII in the Siberian Prison Gulags. I don't deny that the author researched this part of the book very well. What rang so false for me was that, despite spending 10+ years in concentartion camps, Cilka radiated beauty, is amazingly smart and has so much compassion and patience. I am surprised she wasn't wearing wings. It felt so manipulative and patronizing for the author to put Cilka in circumstances beyond her control to gain our sympathy and then continue to wring us dry with how perfect Cilka was in every way. The writing also felt flat and didn't convey and depth - whether the Siberian cold, the hunger or guilt - so I didn't feel for Cilka. There are so many other books that have such amazing depth and capture this horrific period of time. I would recommend skipping this one
No comments:
Post a Comment