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122nd out of 3,139 books
—
13,768 voters
Stones from the River
by
Ursula Hegi
From the highly acclaimed, award-winning author of Floating in My Mother's Palm comes a stunning novel about ordinary people living in extraordinary times.
Trudi Montag is a Zwerg—a dwarf—short, undesirable, different, the voice of anyone who has ever tried to fit in. Eventually she learns that being different is a secret that all humans share—from her mother who flees int...more
Trudi Montag is a Zwerg—a dwarf—short, undesirable, different, the voice of anyone who has ever tried to fit in. Eventually she learns that being different is a secret that all humans share—from her mother who flees int...more
Paperback, 525 pages
Published
March 1st 1995
by Scribner Paperback Fiction
(first published January 1st 1994)
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This was an excellent book. I was astounded by Hegi's ability to capture both the everyday life of Germans over the 20-year span leading up to the end of WWII and the experience of a woman with dwarfism. Not once does she dramatize for the sake of Hollywood-like entertainment. Considering the standard treatments for both the topics of dwarfism and WWII, this is indeed a rare accomplishment.
I myself have dwarfism and am usually sick of the average portrayal of dwarfs in the media as either amusi...more
I myself have dwarfism and am usually sick of the average portrayal of dwarfs in the media as either amusi...more
Sul come la recensionista sbarazzina si lasci andare a rivelazioni autobiografiche che vanno ben oltre i suoi dati anagrafici
Quando andai a Trieste per l'Università, non so se per la legge degli opposti, o per la tendenza bislacca della vita a scherzare coi pardossi, mi ritrovai a frequentare assiduamente due bellezze indigene.
La Betta e La Claudia erano due valchirie alte 1,80 ciascuna, bionde, fascinose, giunoniche e con proporzioni da manuale.
Il primo anno eravamo inseparabili. Ma ovviamente...more
Quando andai a Trieste per l'Università, non so se per la legge degli opposti, o per la tendenza bislacca della vita a scherzare coi pardossi, mi ritrovai a frequentare assiduamente due bellezze indigene.
La Betta e La Claudia erano due valchirie alte 1,80 ciascuna, bionde, fascinose, giunoniche e con proporzioni da manuale.
Il primo anno eravamo inseparabili. Ma ovviamente...more
I found this book at a library sale, and ended up buying it because I like the way the first page read. Unlike many of the people who have reviewed this book I loved it from the beginning. Trudi's insight into the world is amazing, and while very mature for her age, with a slight mental leap, completely believable.
Ultimately this is a book about differences. When we begin the story, Trudi and her friend Georg are the outcasts, but as the plot progresses-- as the Nazi's gain more power and WWII...more
Ultimately this is a book about differences. When we begin the story, Trudi and her friend Georg are the outcasts, but as the plot progresses-- as the Nazi's gain more power and WWII...more
Right from the start I need to preface this review with the fact that I know my review will not do this story justice. It is a most eloquent story told through Trudi, a dwarf born in a small German town during WWI. This story actual begins during the first World War and continues through the second World War.
Trudi struggles with being a dwarf and hangs from her hands to stretch her body and tightly ties scarves around her head to keep it from getting any bigger. She yearns for love and believes...more
Trudi struggles with being a dwarf and hangs from her hands to stretch her body and tightly ties scarves around her head to keep it from getting any bigger. She yearns for love and believes...more
Intro
Although I often read history, especially books regarding World War II and Germany, memoirs, collected memories, analysis into the various horrors and sheer arrogant stupidity of what the Nazis and others did, I seldom, if ever, read fiction books about those times.
This book, however, caught my eye because the central character was a Zwerg, or dwarf, one of the many groups considered “unfit to live” which were summarily done away with under the Nazi regime. Secondly, this character, Trudi M...more
Although I often read history, especially books regarding World War II and Germany, memoirs, collected memories, analysis into the various horrors and sheer arrogant stupidity of what the Nazis and others did, I seldom, if ever, read fiction books about those times.
This book, however, caught my eye because the central character was a Zwerg, or dwarf, one of the many groups considered “unfit to live” which were summarily done away with under the Nazi regime. Secondly, this character, Trudi M...more
This was the first book I read with my new book club and I feel I need to rationalize the four- instead of five-star rating. The story is so important, and so deftly told, and the author does a great job of capturing the lives of citizens in a small German town from post-WWI through post-WWII. I felt like I came to know many of the characters personally. I cried several times. I had to really rethink what I know about history. And there were moments in the book where I literally had to stop read...more
I loved this book from the beginning. The anger and passion of Trudi captivated me from beginning to end, and I had a hard time putting this book down.
I found that I had to concentrate harder on this book due to the number of characters, and with all of the german names. This made it much harder to rush through the book, which ultimately should be cherished anyway.
I loved Trudi's strengths as a story teller, and her understanding of her surroundings that bordered on magical realism.
Will read...more
I found that I had to concentrate harder on this book due to the number of characters, and with all of the german names. This made it much harder to rush through the book, which ultimately should be cherished anyway.
I loved Trudi's strengths as a story teller, and her understanding of her surroundings that bordered on magical realism.
Will read...more
This book brought home what it was like to live in World War II era Germany and gave me new understanding of the Nazi takeover and what it meant for German residents. It was also somewhat spooky in that regard, that some people were so wholeheartedly caught up in the militaristic regime, and that it was not safe for others to speak out. It made me think of that line from poetry, what we at first abhor we first come to tolerate, and then embrace. Excellent book.
THis is a book about world war II and about being different. It is frighteningly honest. It is just brilliant and unlike anything else I have read. It is about a little person!
great book...interesting main charater
This is a book that I would not have picked out for myself to read if it weren't for my mother in-law.
The story, set in German in the early 1900's, is about a courageous blond, blue eyed girl named Trudi Montag who just happens to be a dwarf. Over the course of 4 decades, Trudi, tells you the story of her town, her friends, her physical limitations, her jealousy, and most importantly the Hitler reign that sweeps through her town exterminating all Jews and anyone who tries to help them.
I enjoye...more
The story, set in German in the early 1900's, is about a courageous blond, blue eyed girl named Trudi Montag who just happens to be a dwarf. Over the course of 4 decades, Trudi, tells you the story of her town, her friends, her physical limitations, her jealousy, and most importantly the Hitler reign that sweeps through her town exterminating all Jews and anyone who tries to help them.
I enjoye...more
OK, yesterday I finished the book....... and I am having a very hard time choosing the stars and knowing what to say! Yes it is a very, very good book, BUT STILL it only received 4 rather then 5 stars. The positive first! The book is speckled with marvelous lines that get you thinking. For example - "by getting closer to a smaller world, she had found a larger world." Think about that and how true it is! Trudi, the main character's father has died. She says, "What she missed most was the certain...more
Some books disappoint on a second reading, but not this one. When it came time for my book club to read this book I was very excited, because I remembered that I really liked it the first time I read it. And I was not disappointed. I think I liked this book at least as much the second time around as the first.
This is a story with two contrasting themes. One is difference. Told mostly from the perspective of Trudi, a dwarf, who feels how different she is from the members of her community on a dai...more
This is a story with two contrasting themes. One is difference. Told mostly from the perspective of Trudi, a dwarf, who feels how different she is from the members of her community on a dai...more
I am lucky that I was trapped on a train for six hours going to Hartford and back, or I think I would have had a hard time getting into this one. Ultimately, it was a lovely and rewarding book-- but the first couple of hundred pages are all setup and a bit difficult to sludge through.
The book is about Trudi Montag, a young dwarf in rural Germany born to a WWI soldier and a crazy woman who grows up to defy the Nazis during WWII in her small town. The WWII portion of the book is fascinating and gr...more
The book is about Trudi Montag, a young dwarf in rural Germany born to a WWI soldier and a crazy woman who grows up to defy the Nazis during WWII in her small town. The WWII portion of the book is fascinating and gr...more
This book is amazing. It gives you a new perspective on what hardships are and how we live our lives. I found it to be a tough read but in a good way. It really made me think and feel.
This book was long, and in parts tedious, and when I started it I was doubtful that I could relate to the primary character a dwarf with a chip on her shoulder. While her thirst for revenge was understandable, it was also difficult to read. Much of the novel was difficult due to the subject and the times. We expect heroism and compassion from the lead characters often, as we expect the same in life from those we know.Great writing, excellent character development, didn't give it more stars due t...more
Trudi, la protagonista di questo libro, �� un���anima grande racchiusa in uno corpo troppo piccolo. Si perch�� Trudi in realt�� �� una Zweig, ossia una nana. Il suo corpo nel tempo �� cresciuto lentamente, per poi arrestarsi nella periodo adolescenziale, ad un���altezza irrisoria. Ma dentro di se la sua anima continua a crescere inesorabilmente, e pi�� si fa grande e pi�� desidera evadere da quella gabbia rosea, morbida e sproporzionata che la tiene costretta.
Cos�� la fantasia che non ha limiti...more
Cos�� la fantasia che non ha limiti...more
Although I've read (and seen) many pieces on living during the Nazi regime, this is actually the first time I got to read it from a German perspective. The main character, a "zwerg" (dwarf) named Trudi Montag is a wonderful person to center the novel around -- as the hub of her community, we're introduced to a variety of characters. Sometimes, Hegi tends to characterize to extremes -- I feel as though everyone in the book is either all good or all evil -- I would have appreciated some dynamism a...more
Trudi Montag, a manipulative, resentful, nosy dwarf uses the secrets she gathers to extract her revenge on the townspeople who consider themselves superior and shun her, during the period from the First to Second World Wars in Burgdorf, Germany. As far as synopses go, that would be pretty accurate but it wouldn't make you want to read the book. The main character may be less than sympathetic, but she is sharp and observant, and paints finely tuned, sensitive, and insightful pictures of her fello...more
Stones from the River is a book to set beside Diane Ackerman's The Zookeeper's Wife> although it is perhaps more fictionalized and thus less dependable for a sense of history than the Ackerman non-fiction. They are united in dealing with women non-combatants and
resisters in Europe during WWII. Of course there is also Corrie Ten Boom's Hiding Place>(exact title?).
Hegi's book is also of interest in that the woman narrator is a dwarf, who rather amazingly is not swept off to annihilation fo...more
resisters in Europe during WWII. Of course there is also Corrie Ten Boom's Hiding Place>(exact title?).
Hegi's book is also of interest in that the woman narrator is a dwarf, who rather amazingly is not swept off to annihilation fo...more
This is my second reading of Stones from the River. (3-15-2013) The book is a well-written adult novel.
The image of Gertrude hiding in the weeds as Leo held the baby, Trudi, ". . . in front of him much like a priest extending the sacrament." (p. 20) was a haunting one.
Gertrude shared with Trudi the fragments of gravel embedded in her knee. Trudi's reaction was, "It was smooth, the skin had closed across the tiny wounds like the surface of the river after you toss stones into the waves. Only you...more
The image of Gertrude hiding in the weeds as Leo held the baby, Trudi, ". . . in front of him much like a priest extending the sacrament." (p. 20) was a haunting one.
Gertrude shared with Trudi the fragments of gravel embedded in her knee. Trudi's reaction was, "It was smooth, the skin had closed across the tiny wounds like the surface of the river after you toss stones into the waves. Only you...more
Trudi is a Zwerg, a dwarf. This makes her something of an outsider, and what makes matters worse, her mother is crazy. As in, going to church and taking off all her clothes for the angels, crazy. Then she dies before Trudi is even four years old. Trudi learns to collect stories, and takes pride in retelling them, reshaping them, making them her own. She also has a touch of prescience.
The Jewish people in Burgdorf are an integral part of the town, initially. But slowly, over the course of years,...more
The Jewish people in Burgdorf are an integral part of the town, initially. But slowly, over the course of years,...more
Nov 13, 2012
Cheryl Gatling
added it
I have read many books about the experiences of the Jews in Hitler's Germany, not as many about the "ordinary" people. This book describes the fear that everyone lived with, Jews most especially, but non-Jews also, as friends and neighbors began to disappear, and it seemed there was absolutely nothing to be done, as protesting only got one imprisoned or killed. Most Germans tried to keep a low profile and not get themselves noticed. For the main character of this book, Trudi Montag, that wasn't...more
What was fascinating about this book was seeing the world from the perspective of someone who is culturally invisible - people look away from Trudy Montag because of her difference. As a dwarf in a town where there are no others, she is utterly alone.
The book perhaps focuses on this a bit too much early on - had my book group not chosen this for its selection, I am not sure I would have kept reading.
But, had I stopped reading, I would have missed a remarkable experience. In 500 pages, U. Hegi co...more
The book perhaps focuses on this a bit too much early on - had my book group not chosen this for its selection, I am not sure I would have kept reading.
But, had I stopped reading, I would have missed a remarkable experience. In 500 pages, U. Hegi co...more
The cover blurb said this was an epic, which I thought would be an exaggeration. It wasn't. This was a very moving, troubling novel set during the rise and fall of the Third Reich. This is seen from the perspective of a young girl and her father who observe the others in their town getting caught up, first in the excitement of something new happening, then in the fear of falling afoul of the Nazis. It's an interesting examination of how really bad things can happen "when good people do nothing"...more
I LOVED this book. The imagery and metaphors are excuisite. The character of Trudi is so wonderfully complex and human (damaged yet lovable -- even admirable at times). The other characters are beautifully crafted and incredibly believable.The setting -- of Germany post WWI and during/post WWII -- incredibly done. It gave the reader a real comprehension of how the political situation took root and became what it ultmately was.
The story was both compassionate and yet judgemental. Honest but not...more
The story was both compassionate and yet judgemental. Honest but not...more
A thoughtful, insightful book of real characters and real lives in extraordinary times. Don't read it if you're looking for a plot full of suspense with Hollywood characters and a dramatic ending.
The main strength of the book is its ability to build real characters, rather than caricatures. The main character, Trudi, is a dwarf. Her struggle to come to terms with her condition which makes her so different and consequently the target of discrimination, in the form of taunts, pity or fear, allows...more
The main strength of the book is its ability to build real characters, rather than caricatures. The main character, Trudi, is a dwarf. Her struggle to come to terms with her condition which makes her so different and consequently the target of discrimination, in the form of taunts, pity or fear, allows...more
This tale follows the life of Trudi Montag, a Zwerg (dwarf) who we know spent at least the first 33 years of her life in pre- and post- WWII Germany. The changes in her town resulting from the horrors inflicted by war and time are all viewed through Trudi's eyes and the stories seem to be told from the perspective of a young woman whose differences set her apart from the other townsfolk from the moment of her birth.
As we are reminded of the atrocities committed in Nazi Germany to Jews and anyone...more
As we are reminded of the atrocities committed in Nazi Germany to Jews and anyone...more
This is a fascinating, dense and captivating narrative of a Trudi, a young girl who is a dwarf and growing up in a picturesque German village near Dresden, between World War I and II. Hegi is gifted at creating sensuous, three dimensional, delicate in its scale. This book follows Trudi’s life from her birth the moment her mother rejects her as a freak, to a woman in her mid twenties finding some normalcy in life after WW II. There are many, many characters, and much of the book is about Trudi’s...more
Trudi Montag's story begins just before her birth in the small town of Burgdorf, Germany in 1915. She is a dwarf, a Zwerg, born to Leo Montag, who runs a pay library, and his wife Gertrud, who is mentally ill. Trudi knows what it is like to be different, and she recognizes differences in others, even those who are "normal" Through her story we come to know the townspeople and their lives from post World War I though World War II and beyond. Trudi survives the early death of her mother, the torme...more
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Ursula Hegi is the author of Sacred Time, Hotel of the Saints, The Vision of Emma Blau, Tearing the Silence, Salt Dancers, Stones from the River, Floating in My Mother's Palm, Unearned Pleasures and Other Stories, Intrusions, and Trudi & Pia. She is the recipient of more than thirty grants and awards.
More about Ursula Hegi...
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“Now the purpose of her stories had changed. She spun them to discover their meaning. In the telling, she found, you reached a point where you could not go back, where—as the stories changed—it transformed you, too.”
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4 people liked it
“High in the hazy sky, the snowfkakes looked tiny and all alike, but as they drifted past the narrow window of the sewing room, all were unique - long or round or triangular - as if they'd borrowed their shapes from the clouds they'd come from.”
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2 people liked it
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Sep 04, 2011 09:44pm