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Moed!
Bij het uitbreken van de Tweede Wereldoorlog besluit Mary North zich diezelfde middag nog als vrijwilliger te melden bij het ministerie van Oorlog.
Tom Shaw, die haar minnaar én werkgever wordt, probeert in eerste instantie de krijgsdienst te ontwijken, tot zijn beste vriend Alistair zich aanmeldt en hij de oorlog niet langer kan ontkennen.
Als Mary en Alistair elkaar ontmoeten, raken de levens van de drie jonge mensen met elkaar verstrengeld. Het is de oorlog die het drietal passie en geweld leert kennen, vriendschap en verraad, dromen en teleurstellingen.
Moed! is een hartverscheurende roman met tegelijk fijnzinnige humor, waardoor de bijna fatale blokkade van Malta en de dodelijke bombardementen op Londen toch kunnen worden verdragen. Tegen de achtergrond van de dramatische wereldgeschiedenis zijn het misschien wel de intieme verliezen, de kleine gevechten en de dagelijkse menselijke overwinningen die onze levens het diepgaandst beïnvloeden.
Chris Cleave (1973) brak in 2008 internationaal door met zijn roman Kleine Bij, het betoverende verhaal over een zestienjarige asielzoekster uit Nigeria, een moeder uit Engeland en het geheim dat hen bindt.
Beide grootvaders van Chris Cleave vochten in de Tweede Wereldoorlog. Hun levensverhalen, en die van zijn grootmoeders, inspireerden Chris Cleave tot het schrijven van zijn nieuwe roman.
Over Kleine Bij:
'Fantastisch boek. Mooi, prachtige dialogen, grappig, maar ook ontroerend met fantastische wendingen.' Paul de Leeuw
Over Moed!:
'Verslavend, je móet verder lezen. Cleave schrijft met een meeslepende intensiteit, een vastbeslotenheid grote morele kwestie aan te kaarten en een bereidheid risico's te nemen.' The Sunday Times
'Deze voortreffelijke roman, losjes gebaseerd op de verhalen van de grootouders van de auteur, blaast nieuw leven in een vaak meedogenloos scenario. Bijzonder overtuigend wordt getoond hoe oorlog de ziel in sijpelt en die verandert. Prachtig geschreven, geestig, onthutsend en vooral oprecht.' The Daily Mail
Tom Shaw, die haar minnaar én werkgever wordt, probeert in eerste instantie de krijgsdienst te ontwijken, tot zijn beste vriend Alistair zich aanmeldt en hij de oorlog niet langer kan ontkennen.
Als Mary en Alistair elkaar ontmoeten, raken de levens van de drie jonge mensen met elkaar verstrengeld. Het is de oorlog die het drietal passie en geweld leert kennen, vriendschap en verraad, dromen en teleurstellingen.
Moed! is een hartverscheurende roman met tegelijk fijnzinnige humor, waardoor de bijna fatale blokkade van Malta en de dodelijke bombardementen op Londen toch kunnen worden verdragen. Tegen de achtergrond van de dramatische wereldgeschiedenis zijn het misschien wel de intieme verliezen, de kleine gevechten en de dagelijkse menselijke overwinningen die onze levens het diepgaandst beïnvloeden.
Chris Cleave (1973) brak in 2008 internationaal door met zijn roman Kleine Bij, het betoverende verhaal over een zestienjarige asielzoekster uit Nigeria, een moeder uit Engeland en het geheim dat hen bindt.
Beide grootvaders van Chris Cleave vochten in de Tweede Wereldoorlog. Hun levensverhalen, en die van zijn grootmoeders, inspireerden Chris Cleave tot het schrijven van zijn nieuwe roman.
Over Kleine Bij:
'Fantastisch boek. Mooi, prachtige dialogen, grappig, maar ook ontroerend met fantastische wendingen.' Paul de Leeuw
Over Moed!:
'Verslavend, je móet verder lezen. Cleave schrijft met een meeslepende intensiteit, een vastbeslotenheid grote morele kwestie aan te kaarten en een bereidheid risico's te nemen.' The Sunday Times
'Deze voortreffelijke roman, losjes gebaseerd op de verhalen van de grootouders van de auteur, blaast nieuw leven in een vaak meedogenloos scenario. Bijzonder overtuigend wordt getoond hoe oorlog de ziel in sijpelt en die verandert. Prachtig geschreven, geestig, onthutsend en vooral oprecht.' The Daily Mail
409 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 2, 2016
2590 people are currently reading
53756 people want to read
About the author
Chris Cleave
28 books3,283 followersDr Chris Cleave is a New York Times #1 bestselling novelist, a chartered psychologist and a psychotherapist. He writes a weekly piece on humanity and healing at http://chriscleave.substack.com
Chris was born in London and spent his early years in Cameroon. His novels are:
INCENDIARY
LITTLE BEE
(THE OTHER HAND)
GOLD
EVERYONE BRAVE IS FORGIVEN
He lives in London with his wife and some of their three adult children.
Website at http://www.chriscleave.com
Chris was born in London and spent his early years in Cameroon. His novels are:
INCENDIARY
LITTLE BEE
(THE OTHER HAND)
GOLD
EVERYONE BRAVE IS FORGIVEN
He lives in London with his wife and some of their three adult children.
Website at http://www.chriscleave.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 5,514 reviews
May 2, 2016
Oh dear! I must be living in another reality because Everyone Brave Is Forgiven did not work as well for me as it seems to have worked for others. Chris Cleave is a very skilled writer -- his prose is truly beautiful. But the story and characters in Everyone Brave Is Forgiven seemed flat and pastiche like compared to many other books I have read set in WWII. And it wasn't assisted by its length. The story focuses on a handful of characters in London starting at the beginning of the war. Mary is the wealthy naive daughter of a politician who wants to help with the war effort. Tom and Alistair are friends who are both taken by Mary. Zachary is a young black American that Mary takes under her wing. And the book focuses on the development of these characters as the war unfolds. There's nothing objectionable about the story, but to me the characters really lacked real depth -- which seems like a real flaw when writing about a topic like war. The dialogue read more like clever repartee than real or sincere interaction. And even when the characters were affected by dramatic events or the nasty consequences of war, their reactions felt unidimensional and predictable. In a foreword, Cleave mentions that he wrote this book to honour his grandfather who was stationed in Malta during the war and charged with watching over Churchill's son. Cleave admits that the story deviates significantly from his grandfather's story. Ironically, I think his grandfather's actual story may have been more engaging. Having said all of this, reading other GR reviews makes me feel like an outlier on this one. I suspect that there are many people who will like it far more than me -- I tend to be very hard on historical fiction. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an opportunity to read an advance copy.
September 23, 2016
A character driven novel, a slow read and a quiet one. Had a little trouble connecting in the beginning, seemed to lack depth but I reminded myself to trust this author whose books I have read and loved in the past, so I did and am glad I did so. Loved reading how theses characters were changed during the war, not all for the good but change they did. Lost their innocence to a certain extent, their naivety. And in the end I loved them all. From the time I met Alastair, he became and remained my favorite but it was Hilda and Mary who changed the most. Events happening around them, the London blitz, issues of class and race, they suffer heartache, and yet as people they grew. The war in Malta where Alastair is stationed, it is here we meet the very upper class Simonson, who is at turns amusing and anguished.
A novel of love and longing, of terror and joy and a very personal one for this author as he writes in his preface. So a slow, lighter start but much meatier as it progresses. Loved this quote that Mary writes in a letter to Alastair, "We live you see, and even a mule like me must learn. I was brought up to believe that everyone brave is forgiven, but in wartime courage is cheap and clemency out of season."
Not just in war I think but maybe in life as well. Beautiful prose, beautiful lines and ultimately I found a beautiful story.
A novel of love and longing, of terror and joy and a very personal one for this author as he writes in his preface. So a slow, lighter start but much meatier as it progresses. Loved this quote that Mary writes in a letter to Alastair, "We live you see, and even a mule like me must learn. I was brought up to believe that everyone brave is forgiven, but in wartime courage is cheap and clemency out of season."
Not just in war I think but maybe in life as well. Beautiful prose, beautiful lines and ultimately I found a beautiful story.
March 28, 2017
3.5 stars
Everyone brave is indeed forgiven – but the bravery depicted in this novel is often distinguished by an impulse to break down social prejudice, notably racism and class snobbery, rather than heroics on the battlefield. The EU referendum has very much raised the issue of where each of us in this country, as individuals, draw our boundaries, where our loyalties lie in terms of community. Of course it’s easy to locate our first boundary – it encompasses our friends. “If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.” So said EM Forster and though no one in this novel betrays their country this is very much a novel that exalts the primacy of friendship. The second boundary is much more difficult to draw. Is it around some cherished idea of national identity or does it extend further afield to encompass a more egalitarian set of principles? War, of course, drew that boundary for everyone. But that doesn’t mean we have to feel an allegiance with everything within that boundary and the underpainting of this novel is of a nation with some very unpleasant social issues – especially, as I said, class snobbery and racism.
The novel follows the experiences of four friends through the early years of the second world war. This involves dramatizing London during the Blitz and Malta during its siege by the Axis powers. Mary, an entitled young debutante, is going out with Tom who works at the Home Office and tries to set up her best friend Hilda with Tom’s best friend, Alistair. Except Mary and Alistair fall in love, just before he is posted to Malta. Mary teaches a small class of misfit children, left behind in the evacuation; she especially warms to a young black orphan Zachary; Alistair distinguishes himself as an officer by showing kindness to his men (though this is often told rather than dramatised effectively). Both Alistair and Mary therefore address problems of social injustice while Tom and Hilda are more inclined to conform to the norm. So far, so good.
But this is an odd rather disjointed novel. At times brilliant and very engaging; at others rather meandering, overly self-conscious and sometimes sentimental with an identity crisis at its heart. One minute we think we’re in a Nancy Mitford novel of breezy social comedy; the next there are moments of high harrowing drama and then the social comedy returns again. Some of the comedy is very good but some is just meaninglessly excessive and often I found myself wishing his editor had told him so.
One problem is that every character shares the exact same sense of humour, to the point where it often becomes irrelevant who is saying what. The joke is more important than character development. In fact, there’s generally a lack of contrast in this novel, a sense of everything holding up a mirror to everything else. It’s perhaps one of those novels in which the author is too present – it’s his wisdom after the event the characters sometimes implausibly articulate regarding social issues and it’s his sense of humour they all repetitively ape. The situation in London during the Blitz isn’t very different to the situation in Malta – in both cases a population was rendered virtually helpless by relentless air attacks. Again, little contrast. And all the characters are essentially of one mind, some a little more evolved than others. Conflicts, when they come, are therefore quickly and perhaps a little sentimentally resolved.
The pivotal moments of this novel are all brilliant; in fact there are a couple of the most memorable scenes I’ve encountered this year – the best kiss of life I’ve ever read for example. The relationships too are often moving. But on the whole it failed quite to fully engage me emotionally - the overly self-conscious prose, the excessive and often meaningless banter connecting the pivotal dramatic moments, like commercial breaks, kept jettisoning me out of the narrative. Also it ends very suddenly and unsatisfactorily, as if punctured rather than resolved. Having begun with a broad canvas, the magnitude of social injustice at the heart of a nation at war, Cleave eventually narrows it all down into a rather bog-standard love story between two people of the same race and class.
Everyone brave is indeed forgiven – but the bravery depicted in this novel is often distinguished by an impulse to break down social prejudice, notably racism and class snobbery, rather than heroics on the battlefield. The EU referendum has very much raised the issue of where each of us in this country, as individuals, draw our boundaries, where our loyalties lie in terms of community. Of course it’s easy to locate our first boundary – it encompasses our friends. “If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.” So said EM Forster and though no one in this novel betrays their country this is very much a novel that exalts the primacy of friendship. The second boundary is much more difficult to draw. Is it around some cherished idea of national identity or does it extend further afield to encompass a more egalitarian set of principles? War, of course, drew that boundary for everyone. But that doesn’t mean we have to feel an allegiance with everything within that boundary and the underpainting of this novel is of a nation with some very unpleasant social issues – especially, as I said, class snobbery and racism.
The novel follows the experiences of four friends through the early years of the second world war. This involves dramatizing London during the Blitz and Malta during its siege by the Axis powers. Mary, an entitled young debutante, is going out with Tom who works at the Home Office and tries to set up her best friend Hilda with Tom’s best friend, Alistair. Except Mary and Alistair fall in love, just before he is posted to Malta. Mary teaches a small class of misfit children, left behind in the evacuation; she especially warms to a young black orphan Zachary; Alistair distinguishes himself as an officer by showing kindness to his men (though this is often told rather than dramatised effectively). Both Alistair and Mary therefore address problems of social injustice while Tom and Hilda are more inclined to conform to the norm. So far, so good.
But this is an odd rather disjointed novel. At times brilliant and very engaging; at others rather meandering, overly self-conscious and sometimes sentimental with an identity crisis at its heart. One minute we think we’re in a Nancy Mitford novel of breezy social comedy; the next there are moments of high harrowing drama and then the social comedy returns again. Some of the comedy is very good but some is just meaninglessly excessive and often I found myself wishing his editor had told him so.
One problem is that every character shares the exact same sense of humour, to the point where it often becomes irrelevant who is saying what. The joke is more important than character development. In fact, there’s generally a lack of contrast in this novel, a sense of everything holding up a mirror to everything else. It’s perhaps one of those novels in which the author is too present – it’s his wisdom after the event the characters sometimes implausibly articulate regarding social issues and it’s his sense of humour they all repetitively ape. The situation in London during the Blitz isn’t very different to the situation in Malta – in both cases a population was rendered virtually helpless by relentless air attacks. Again, little contrast. And all the characters are essentially of one mind, some a little more evolved than others. Conflicts, when they come, are therefore quickly and perhaps a little sentimentally resolved.
The pivotal moments of this novel are all brilliant; in fact there are a couple of the most memorable scenes I’ve encountered this year – the best kiss of life I’ve ever read for example. The relationships too are often moving. But on the whole it failed quite to fully engage me emotionally - the overly self-conscious prose, the excessive and often meaningless banter connecting the pivotal dramatic moments, like commercial breaks, kept jettisoning me out of the narrative. Also it ends very suddenly and unsatisfactorily, as if punctured rather than resolved. Having begun with a broad canvas, the magnitude of social injustice at the heart of a nation at war, Cleave eventually narrows it all down into a rather bog-standard love story between two people of the same race and class.
Read
March 28, 2018The Hook - Not only did Everyone Brave Is Forgiven come with rave reviews all around but it was another of the chosen Genealogy Gems BookClub Reads. I'm really enjoying reading these as I continue to explore my DNA and do a bit of family history.
The Line(s) -
“But what good is it to teach a child to count, if you don't show him that he counts for something?”
“Who knows which takes more courage—to die in battle, or to live in vain”
The Sinker This is a war story pure and simple It is also a love story, a descriptive rendering of the London home front and its people fighting the Germans. It is horrific at times, but is balanced with humor, and superbly written scenes. As you'd think, given its title, it is a story of bravery under grim circumstances.
I believe what makes this book particularly special is the how the author came to write it. His inspiration comes from conversations with his grandparents. Both grandfathers served in the artillery. His maternal Grandfather, Captain Hill of the Royal Artillery, was assigned the task of minding Randolph Churchill, the son of Winston. This and many other conversations led to this extremely well researched accounting of this period of World War II. Cleave was able to to go to the exact places his grandfather was billeted as well as military cemeteries and to interview surviving veterans. Both of Cleave's grandmothers inspired the character Mary, a piece of the love triangle at the center of the story. Mary, a feisty young woman, not content to sit on her hills while a war is going on. She comes from wealth but leaves her finishing school to do what she can for the war effort. This eventually leads her to teaching school which becomes difficult when her charges are dispatched to the countryside, Cleave's maternal grandmother, Mary West was a teacher. Later she takes the more dangerous position of ambulance driver, one that Cleave's paternal grandmother, Margaret Slater, actually held. Cleave is quick to point out that the characters in his book are fictional other than the similarities as described above.
Told in chapters with monthly titles beginning in September 1939 and ending just after America joins the fray I highly recommend Everyone Brave Is Forgiven Cleave's ability to capture the London Blitz, this period of history and to create characters that we grow to love makes this a winner.
The Line(s) -
“But what good is it to teach a child to count, if you don't show him that he counts for something?”
“Who knows which takes more courage—to die in battle, or to live in vain”
The Sinker This is a war story pure and simple It is also a love story, a descriptive rendering of the London home front and its people fighting the Germans. It is horrific at times, but is balanced with humor, and superbly written scenes. As you'd think, given its title, it is a story of bravery under grim circumstances.
I believe what makes this book particularly special is the how the author came to write it. His inspiration comes from conversations with his grandparents. Both grandfathers served in the artillery. His maternal Grandfather, Captain Hill of the Royal Artillery, was assigned the task of minding Randolph Churchill, the son of Winston. This and many other conversations led to this extremely well researched accounting of this period of World War II. Cleave was able to to go to the exact places his grandfather was billeted as well as military cemeteries and to interview surviving veterans. Both of Cleave's grandmothers inspired the character Mary, a piece of the love triangle at the center of the story. Mary, a feisty young woman, not content to sit on her hills while a war is going on. She comes from wealth but leaves her finishing school to do what she can for the war effort. This eventually leads her to teaching school which becomes difficult when her charges are dispatched to the countryside, Cleave's maternal grandmother, Mary West was a teacher. Later she takes the more dangerous position of ambulance driver, one that Cleave's paternal grandmother, Margaret Slater, actually held. Cleave is quick to point out that the characters in his book are fictional other than the similarities as described above.
Told in chapters with monthly titles beginning in September 1939 and ending just after America joins the fray I highly recommend Everyone Brave Is Forgiven Cleave's ability to capture the London Blitz, this period of history and to create characters that we grow to love makes this a winner.
October 3, 2023
“Everyone Brave is Forgiven” is an outstanding work of historical fiction. Author Chris Cleave writes beautifully, and his dialogue skills are remarkable. This will be one of the best novels, and historical fiction novels of 2016.
The story takes place when Britain declared war in 1939. The female protagonist is a plucky wealthy young socialite named Mary North. Mary, at age of 18 was in finishing school, and decided that she wanted to be part of this war; that it would be intriguing. In fact, she saw herself as a spy. Well, the War Office had other ideas for Mary and that was teaching children. Thus begins Mary’s life during wartime in London. The story was inspired by author Chris Cleaves grandparents. Mary is inspired by Cleaves paternal Grandmother, Margaret Slater who drove ambulances during the Blitz, and by his maternal Grandmother Mary West, who was a teacher and ran her own school during the war.
Cleaves Grandfather inspires the male protagonist, Alistair Heath,
Captain Hill. Captain Hill was part of the two-year stranglehold in Malta where the garrison and islanders starved. Cleaves spent time in Malta, where his grandfather was stationed as an attempt to understand his grandfather’s experience.
Cleaves explores how the war affected Britain’s citizens differently. Mary’s family, living in the countryside was immune to the damaging affects. Mary lived in the city and lived through the ugly transition of wartime London. Cleaves brilliantly shows how optimistic Mary metamorphosed from a sheltered and altruistic young woman to a realistic and weary woman.
Alistair’s life as an officer is stressful and life transforming. The Malta segment is particularly tragic. As historical fiction goes, this is a great story illuminating the harsh conditions both military and civilians lived through.
It’s also a love story, one that is hindered and stressed under wartime conditions. Every one is changed; and through that transformation the question of love becomes different.
I highly recommend this novel for those who enjoy historical fiction and for those who want an engrossing read. If I could give 10 stars, I would!
The story takes place when Britain declared war in 1939. The female protagonist is a plucky wealthy young socialite named Mary North. Mary, at age of 18 was in finishing school, and decided that she wanted to be part of this war; that it would be intriguing. In fact, she saw herself as a spy. Well, the War Office had other ideas for Mary and that was teaching children. Thus begins Mary’s life during wartime in London. The story was inspired by author Chris Cleaves grandparents. Mary is inspired by Cleaves paternal Grandmother, Margaret Slater who drove ambulances during the Blitz, and by his maternal Grandmother Mary West, who was a teacher and ran her own school during the war.
Cleaves Grandfather inspires the male protagonist, Alistair Heath,
Captain Hill. Captain Hill was part of the two-year stranglehold in Malta where the garrison and islanders starved. Cleaves spent time in Malta, where his grandfather was stationed as an attempt to understand his grandfather’s experience.
Cleaves explores how the war affected Britain’s citizens differently. Mary’s family, living in the countryside was immune to the damaging affects. Mary lived in the city and lived through the ugly transition of wartime London. Cleaves brilliantly shows how optimistic Mary metamorphosed from a sheltered and altruistic young woman to a realistic and weary woman.
Alistair’s life as an officer is stressful and life transforming. The Malta segment is particularly tragic. As historical fiction goes, this is a great story illuminating the harsh conditions both military and civilians lived through.
It’s also a love story, one that is hindered and stressed under wartime conditions. Every one is changed; and through that transformation the question of love becomes different.
I highly recommend this novel for those who enjoy historical fiction and for those who want an engrossing read. If I could give 10 stars, I would!
July 8, 2018
3.5 stars. This WWII novel is set in the earlier days of the war, focusing on its effect on four young Brits: Mary North, a lovely and privileged but rebellious young woman who is earnestly trying to do her part to both help the war effort and combat prejudice, especially against blacks; Mary's best friend Hilda, quick with a joke but always feeling overshadowed by Mary, who always seems to attract the men that Hilda is interested in; Tom Shaw, head of the local education authority who gives Mary a teaching job and then becomes her lover; and Tom's best friend Alistair Heath, who works at the Tate museum restoring paintings, but quickly joins the army when the war begins.
The novel alternates primarily between Mary and Alistair's viewpoints, with Mary experiencing the London Blitz firsthand as a teacher and then as an ambulance driver, and Alistair caught in the siege of Malta, where the British military was holed up, trying to maintain control of the strategic island while being constantly bombed by the German and Italian air forces. It also combines the trials of their star-crossed love -- complicated by Mary's prior relationship with Tom, and Hilda's interest in Alistair -- and the far worse travails of war, particularly as Alistair is deployed to Malta and conditions for the soldiers there degenerate to really harrowing depths, between the high mortality from the constant bombing and the near-starvation from lack of adequate food and water on the island.
This novel is comparable to other recent WWII novels like All the Light We Cannot See and Code Name Verity, though it was perhaps not quite as successful for me as those. It does offer a few unusual takes on the war experience: the siege of Malta, where Cleave's own grandfather served, the problem of morphine addiction due to injury, and the deep-held prejudices against blacks in WWII-era London. Chris Cleave writes well, with sympathy for the characters but not holding back on the bleakness and horrors of war. The ending was rather indeterminate, which is certainly fitting given the themes of the novel, but did leave me feeling a little dissatisfied.
I received this as a free ebook from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for a review. Thanks!
The novel alternates primarily between Mary and Alistair's viewpoints, with Mary experiencing the London Blitz firsthand as a teacher and then as an ambulance driver, and Alistair caught in the siege of Malta, where the British military was holed up, trying to maintain control of the strategic island while being constantly bombed by the German and Italian air forces. It also combines the trials of their star-crossed love -- complicated by Mary's prior relationship with Tom, and Hilda's interest in Alistair -- and the far worse travails of war, particularly as Alistair is deployed to Malta and conditions for the soldiers there degenerate to really harrowing depths, between the high mortality from the constant bombing and the near-starvation from lack of adequate food and water on the island.
This novel is comparable to other recent WWII novels like All the Light We Cannot See and Code Name Verity, though it was perhaps not quite as successful for me as those. It does offer a few unusual takes on the war experience: the siege of Malta, where Cleave's own grandfather served, the problem of morphine addiction due to injury, and the deep-held prejudices against blacks in WWII-era London. Chris Cleave writes well, with sympathy for the characters but not holding back on the bleakness and horrors of war. The ending was rather indeterminate, which is certainly fitting given the themes of the novel, but did leave me feeling a little dissatisfied.
I received this as a free ebook from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for a review. Thanks!
January 18, 2016
Chris Cleave is another one of those authors - who just can't do anything wrong in my book.... I simply adore this author.
I like 'all' of his styles of writing!
"Little Bee", was read by every book club in the Bay Area. A wonderful book!
Everyone was talking about it!!
When "Gold", came out...I JUMPED on it the week it was released. Paul, my husband, and I were also watching the 'real' Olympic events on TV. I had a blast with this story. Paul was competing as a cyclist in those days himself--having taken 1st place in the Sea Otters race in Monterey two years in a row. So... This book was pure fun ...
I STILL THANK Chris for writing it.... He gave Paul & I some enjoyable pleasures reading this together.
So...now, I just finished "Everyone Brave is Forgiven". *WOW*!
Its soooo loving and moving!!!!!!
The characters so real...
Extraordinary beautiful writing....
Powerful and subtle...
This would make 'such' a good movie!
Chris Cleave can write pretty much about anything ....he's a gentle spirited writer
that 'always' moves me.
The blurp describes enough.....so, being unapologetically direct: "You must 'experience' this novel"!!! A MUST READ!!
Thank You Simon & Schuster, Netgalley, and CHRIS CLEAVE!!!!
I like 'all' of his styles of writing!
"Little Bee", was read by every book club in the Bay Area. A wonderful book!
Everyone was talking about it!!
When "Gold", came out...I JUMPED on it the week it was released. Paul, my husband, and I were also watching the 'real' Olympic events on TV. I had a blast with this story. Paul was competing as a cyclist in those days himself--having taken 1st place in the Sea Otters race in Monterey two years in a row. So... This book was pure fun ...
I STILL THANK Chris for writing it.... He gave Paul & I some enjoyable pleasures reading this together.
So...now, I just finished "Everyone Brave is Forgiven". *WOW*!
Its soooo loving and moving!!!!!!
The characters so real...
Extraordinary beautiful writing....
Powerful and subtle...
This would make 'such' a good movie!
Chris Cleave can write pretty much about anything ....he's a gentle spirited writer
that 'always' moves me.
The blurp describes enough.....so, being unapologetically direct: "You must 'experience' this novel"!!! A MUST READ!!
Thank You Simon & Schuster, Netgalley, and CHRIS CLEAVE!!!!
March 14, 2016
This is the first novel of Chris Cleaves I've read and I can see why he has such devoted fans. This was a strikingly honest look at the changes war creates on a country's landscape and its people. These changes were so strongly shown by the progressive style of this novel. Bit by bit, we are privy to each characters transformation. I loved the fact that this was loosely based on Cleaves grandparents own story. What a great tribute to what they endured. War gives birth to many endings, also to many beginnings. Bitterly sweet. 4.5 stars.
May 31, 2016
Just when one thinks that there cannot possibly be a new angle with which to explore World War II, an author pens a book that has readers discovering all over again why this time period is the inspiration for so many meaningful books.
Chris Cleave, author of the eye-opening Little Bee (if you haven't read this one, do yourself a favor and add it to your TBR list today), gives us a view of the Second World War in London and Malta through the eyes of Mary and her friend Hilda (socialites who want to make a difference on the home front), Tom (a teacher and Mary's romantic interest), and Alastair (Tom's roommate who is sent to fight in Malta).
This novel's uniqueness lies not in the descriptions of the London Blitz, or the horrors of war -- though Cleave deftly handles these. The novel's beauty, for me at least, is the way Cleave used the character Mary to tell the story of the children of London who weren't sent away from the city to the country for safety -- and the uncomfortable truth of a Britain fighting against Hitler's idea of a "master race" while being unable to come to grips with their own society's views on class and race.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for a galley of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Chris Cleave, author of the eye-opening Little Bee (if you haven't read this one, do yourself a favor and add it to your TBR list today), gives us a view of the Second World War in London and Malta through the eyes of Mary and her friend Hilda (socialites who want to make a difference on the home front), Tom (a teacher and Mary's romantic interest), and Alastair (Tom's roommate who is sent to fight in Malta).
This novel's uniqueness lies not in the descriptions of the London Blitz, or the horrors of war -- though Cleave deftly handles these. The novel's beauty, for me at least, is the way Cleave used the character Mary to tell the story of the children of London who weren't sent away from the city to the country for safety -- and the uncomfortable truth of a Britain fighting against Hitler's idea of a "master race" while being unable to come to grips with their own society's views on class and race.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for a galley of this book in exchange for an honest review.
December 11, 2015
With a backdrop of World War II and the London Blitz, I expected more from this book. I found the character's flat and the story line recycled. Forbidden romance between members of different social strata, female ambulance drivers, evacuated children, destroyed buildings and the brutal horrors of war are all topics central to any WWII novel.
However, Cleave's treatment of these topics felt contrived and very thin. The author failed to give the story or characters any depth. Cleave's prose cannot be faulted but if you are looking for WWII historical fiction with some range and scope, best to pass on this one.
However, Cleave's treatment of these topics felt contrived and very thin. The author failed to give the story or characters any depth. Cleave's prose cannot be faulted but if you are looking for WWII historical fiction with some range and scope, best to pass on this one.
April 8, 2021
Everyone Brave is Forgiven is a world war two novel set in London during the Blitz and Malta during the siege. It has a rather odd and awkward subplot dealing with racism - not though towards the Jewish race but towards a lone little African-American boy in London. It's frankly not very believable how widespread is the abuse this lone child has to endure from a British public subject to bombing raids every night. It felt like Cleave was manipulating history to suit his own agenda. I couldn't help wondering where Cleave got his evidence from. There were no black communities to speak of in Britain in the 1940s. A black face must have been a rare sight, exotic rather than threatening in any way. I've seen interviews with black American GIs saying how liberating it was in England not to face the prejudice they were accustomed to at home. I'm all for calling out racism, most pernicious, barbaric and maddening force in our world, but I'm not sure it helps anyone to self-servingly and melodramatically exaggerate it. Throughout this novel I felt Cleave was imposing a 21st century ideas on 1940s individuals and it frequently jarred. There was a fundamental failure of imagination on his part. Race relations and class distinctions in 1940s England are what Cleave wants to take issue with in the novel. But his understanding of class distinctions also seemed naïve and off to me. I found it hard to believe a woman shopper would slap in the face an upper class young woman because she walks arm in arm with a little black boy; equally implausible that a working-class cab driver would order her out of his car. The class system in Britain in the 1940s did not allow such violent transgressions of social etiquette. The upper classes were akin to royalty. You don't slap a royal in the face. But Cleave wants his heroine to earn our admiration and love so she alone treats her black charge humanely. And here is another problem. This novel rolls out a relentless charm offensive. His characters are overly and sentimentally loveable. Alastair, the hero, is kindness personified. He wouldn't hurt a fly. In other words of no use whatsoever in times of war. And for this reason he's not entirely plausible as a leader of men on the besieged island of Malta. His one and only engagement with the enemy is to save a downed wounded German bomber pilot from a baying mob with disastrous consequences to himself which kind of summed up his military ineptitude.
Then there's the fact that every relationship in this novel is a double act comedy routine and conforms to a kind of how-to-write-a-best-selling-novel formula - phase one: the bonding; phase two: the rupture; phase three: the reconciliation. All rather tiresomely neat and tidy. Much of this novel consists of dialogue - a lot of it excess baggage - and an awful lot of this dialogue is banter. So in tune are the characters with each other's sense of humour that often they seem like the same character speaking to a mirror. It's English stiff upper lip resolve turned into vaudeville slapstick.
There are good things, the writing itself, some of the wartime set-pieces, but the perspective and tone was too off kilter for me to ever feel immersed in this novel.
Then there's the fact that every relationship in this novel is a double act comedy routine and conforms to a kind of how-to-write-a-best-selling-novel formula - phase one: the bonding; phase two: the rupture; phase three: the reconciliation. All rather tiresomely neat and tidy. Much of this novel consists of dialogue - a lot of it excess baggage - and an awful lot of this dialogue is banter. So in tune are the characters with each other's sense of humour that often they seem like the same character speaking to a mirror. It's English stiff upper lip resolve turned into vaudeville slapstick.
There are good things, the writing itself, some of the wartime set-pieces, but the perspective and tone was too off kilter for me to ever feel immersed in this novel.
July 30, 2016
4.5 stars!
We live, you see, and even a mule like me must learn. I was brought up to believe that everyone brave is forgiven, but in wartime courage is cheap and clemency out of season.
My first novel by Chris Cleave. And it was beautiful in a way that made my heart ache. This was far from my first historical fiction novel centered around WW2. Some of my favorite novels are ww2 historical fictions, such as The Nightingale and The Storyteller, as well as All the Light We Cannot See. Each one might be centered around the same war, but that's where the similarities end. Each one has a very unique story to tell from very different places and times during the war and Everyone Brave is Forgiven was no exception.
This novel takes place mainly in London over the span of nearly 3 years, from September 1939 to June 1942. The day war is declared, Mary North enlists straight away.
War was declared at eleven-fifteen and Mary North signed up at noon. She did it at lunch, before telegrams came, in case her mother said no. She left finishing school unfinished.
She went straight to the War Office. The ink still smelled of salt on the map they issued her. She rushed across town to her assignment, desperate not to miss a minute of the war but anxious she already had.
Mary is only 18, has, so far, lived a life of privilege and she finds the idea of war to be glamorous. She's convinced that she'll be made a liaison or even a spy. What she gets instead is a teaching position. Within a week, the children are evacuated to the countryside and Mary North is told that she is no longer needed. She finds that though she wasn't excited about the prospect of teaching to begin with, she really misses it. She ends up coming into the life of Tom Shaw, the 23 year old head of the school district. She wants him to allow her to teach the children that were left behind from the evacuation and the ones that no one wanted to take in...namely the colored and the crippled. She becomes quite fond of a student named Zachary, a colored boy that has a very tough time being accepted in the countryside.
Tom is smitten with Mary from the beginning and gives in to her demands. Their relationship develops from their initial meeting. Tom has decided to ignore the war for a time...until he discovers that his roommate and good friend Alistair Heath has suddenly enlisted.
This story is mainly told from the perspectives of Mary and Alistair throughout the years.
Mary is in London throughout the Blitz and tries to help out in many different ways, from driving an ambulance with her good friend Hilda, to continuing to try and teach the children that British society has deemed unworthy. I liked that her character, despite trying to do a lot of good, had a lot of flaws. She experienced a lot of heartache and struggled quite a bit. It made her character much easier to relate to. Her attachment to Zachary and her determination to help him pit her against a large amount of racism, even from friends and family.
It was simply a peculiarity of the British that they could be stoical about two hundred and fifty nights of bombing, while the sight of her with a Negro child offended their sensibilities unbearably.
Alistair and Mary meet through Tom while Alistair is home on leave after being in France. He and Mary have an obvious chemistry together right away. But they part ways with nothing more than a friendly, if melancholy, goodbye.
Alistair ends up in Malta trying to defend the last piece of Allied land in the Mediterranean, but it's not long before their supplies are cut off by the enemy. With a dwindling food supply quickly leading to starvation and less and less ammunition to defend with each day, the situation quickly becomes dire.
The events in Malta were a part of WW2 that I hadn't read much about. As much as I've read on the subject, I'm always learning new things. This book was also inspired by the roles the authors grandparents played in the war and the love letters between his grandparents during this time, and it was nice to read the author telling a bit more about their history and how it inspired him.
This novel was beautifully written and very moving. A very realistic portrayal of a sad time in history and how it changed everyone, whether they were a soldier or a civilian.
We live, you see, and even a mule like me must learn. I was brought up to believe that everyone brave is forgiven, but in wartime courage is cheap and clemency out of season.
My first novel by Chris Cleave. And it was beautiful in a way that made my heart ache. This was far from my first historical fiction novel centered around WW2. Some of my favorite novels are ww2 historical fictions, such as The Nightingale and The Storyteller, as well as All the Light We Cannot See. Each one might be centered around the same war, but that's where the similarities end. Each one has a very unique story to tell from very different places and times during the war and Everyone Brave is Forgiven was no exception.
This novel takes place mainly in London over the span of nearly 3 years, from September 1939 to June 1942. The day war is declared, Mary North enlists straight away.
War was declared at eleven-fifteen and Mary North signed up at noon. She did it at lunch, before telegrams came, in case her mother said no. She left finishing school unfinished.
She went straight to the War Office. The ink still smelled of salt on the map they issued her. She rushed across town to her assignment, desperate not to miss a minute of the war but anxious she already had.
Mary is only 18, has, so far, lived a life of privilege and she finds the idea of war to be glamorous. She's convinced that she'll be made a liaison or even a spy. What she gets instead is a teaching position. Within a week, the children are evacuated to the countryside and Mary North is told that she is no longer needed. She finds that though she wasn't excited about the prospect of teaching to begin with, she really misses it. She ends up coming into the life of Tom Shaw, the 23 year old head of the school district. She wants him to allow her to teach the children that were left behind from the evacuation and the ones that no one wanted to take in...namely the colored and the crippled. She becomes quite fond of a student named Zachary, a colored boy that has a very tough time being accepted in the countryside.
Tom is smitten with Mary from the beginning and gives in to her demands. Their relationship develops from their initial meeting. Tom has decided to ignore the war for a time...until he discovers that his roommate and good friend Alistair Heath has suddenly enlisted.
This story is mainly told from the perspectives of Mary and Alistair throughout the years.
Mary is in London throughout the Blitz and tries to help out in many different ways, from driving an ambulance with her good friend Hilda, to continuing to try and teach the children that British society has deemed unworthy. I liked that her character, despite trying to do a lot of good, had a lot of flaws. She experienced a lot of heartache and struggled quite a bit. It made her character much easier to relate to. Her attachment to Zachary and her determination to help him pit her against a large amount of racism, even from friends and family.
It was simply a peculiarity of the British that they could be stoical about two hundred and fifty nights of bombing, while the sight of her with a Negro child offended their sensibilities unbearably.
Alistair and Mary meet through Tom while Alistair is home on leave after being in France. He and Mary have an obvious chemistry together right away. But they part ways with nothing more than a friendly, if melancholy, goodbye.
Alistair ends up in Malta trying to defend the last piece of Allied land in the Mediterranean, but it's not long before their supplies are cut off by the enemy. With a dwindling food supply quickly leading to starvation and less and less ammunition to defend with each day, the situation quickly becomes dire.
The events in Malta were a part of WW2 that I hadn't read much about. As much as I've read on the subject, I'm always learning new things. This book was also inspired by the roles the authors grandparents played in the war and the love letters between his grandparents during this time, and it was nice to read the author telling a bit more about their history and how it inspired him.
This novel was beautifully written and very moving. A very realistic portrayal of a sad time in history and how it changed everyone, whether they were a soldier or a civilian.
August 22, 2016
So much was written about this book already, so let me just say, this book was really entertaining. The level of cynicism and sarcasm is unheard of and unexpected in a book about Wold War II. Every conversation dripped with humor, insults and clever answers. I've read Everyone Brave is Forgiven on my electric device but I will be buying hard copy of this book for my library. Have to have it.
May 8, 2016
3.0 STARS – In the end this one just didn’t reach me!
All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr has been on the New York Times Best Seller list for a gazillion weeks. It’s that good! But wait! Isn’t this a review of Everyone Brave is Forgiven? It is but I wonder if Cleave noticed the meteoric success of ATLWCS and decided to capitalize on that success and write a knock off. Sad to say but it felt that way.
Let’s be clear. The book is very well written, full of juxtapositions, social and ethnic irony and youthful rebellion while coming of age in wartime Europe, and fully leveraged my insatiable appetite for all things WW2. After just a few short pages into it, I picked up some very positive vibes. But as the story progressed and tale of Mary North living in wartime Britain unfolded, I never got emotionally invested. The ATLWCS effect? Perhaps. The comparisons are inescapable. But something was just not right. The special sauce, the seasoning and spices that make a good dish great were just not there. This was a very good dish, one that could have been great!
Set in London during the onset of WW2 and the subsequent relentless Nazi bombing of military and eventually civilian targets during the Battle of Britain, the story centers on Mary North, the 18-year old daughter of an affluent British family living in the Pimilco section of London. North’s father is a political figure in the House of Commons while her mother carries on in her circle of the affluent and influential as if the war is a small distraction to their upper class life style. Despite the shortages of war time rationing, the North family always has fresh fruits and vegetables, opulent meals and fine liquor served by a full staff of house servants and an omnipresent butler.
Eager to do her part to serve her country and unbeknownst to her mother, the day war is declared Mary signs up to serve at the local War Office and is assigned a teaching role heading the Kestrel Class of thirty-one 8-10 year olds at the Hawley Street School. Taking the role of a common school teacher is the beginning of Mary’s rebellion against the affluence and racism of her family.
Mary truly enjoys being a teacher and when she is sacked by the head mistress of the school for being too kind and compassionate to her students, she returns to the War Office and then the Education Authority where she meets Tom Shaw and presses for a new teaching assignment in London. Tom becomes her love interest. Incensed by the fact that London Zoo animals are evacuated to the countryside to avoid Nazi bombing, along with London’s regular children, before those that are black or mentally and physically disabled, Mary insists Tom create a teaching role for her and her kids in the old abandoned Hawley Street School.
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Mary’s compassion and love for these children, subjected of overt racism and discrimination, drives her further from her family. Some of the irony and hypocrisy in this tale … British soldiers and civilians are dying to defeat the racism and generic superiority propagandized by Nazi Germany yet disabled and black children in London are subjected to disdain and segregation. Mary’s stand against these injustices and personal struggles to follow what her heart tells her is just and moral creates lots of tension between her and her family and forces some very difficult decisions.
The complexities of Mary’s push against social inequities and her relationship with twenty-three year old Tom Shaw are compounded by her relationship with Alistair Heath, Tom’s roommate assigned to defend Malta after surviving the evacuation of Dunkirk.
I loved the character of Mary North. She’s strong and driven and clearly sees the injustices in the world around her. Her courage and strength leads her to a tour of duty as an ambulance driver rescuing wounded citizens from buildings destroyed during the Nazi bombing raids. Her strong bond with her longtime childhood friend Hilda is severely tested by the pursuit of men and morphine addiction induced by the PTSD from her ambulance work; her heart aches for the welfare of her beloved student Zachary. All while London is devastated by Nazi bombing and the fear of German domination comes closer and closer to reality.
Despite all these obvious opportunities to become emotionally connected to Mary and the story, the connections were never made for me … frustrating! The war provided a compelling backdrop for this story and the historical references were perfect for any WW2 aficionados. I wanted more emotional meat on the bones of this war story.
The writing seemed labored, perhaps overwritten in places, verbose and over the top flowery in others, where simplicity would have been best. The London/British English was tough to follow at times, forcing me to re-read some sections over and over to understand what the heck the author was talking about! Despite all the efforts to engage me and draw me into the story, it felt like a forced effort just scratching the emotional surface without deep penetration or thorough emotional examination of the relationships between Mary and Tom, Alistair and Hilda. I felt the connections between Mary and Zachery but beyond that relationship, I longed for more.
I don’t know … perhaps I’m being far too harsh. Perhaps my judgment and emotions are impaired and distorted by the depression of A Little Life and the lofty comparisons to ATLWCS. Perhaps it is impossible for me to be completely objective on this one.
Read this one for yourself … you decide!
A special shout out to the Westfield Athenaeum www.westath.org for providing me an Advanced Reader's Edition of this book!
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All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr has been on the New York Times Best Seller list for a gazillion weeks. It’s that good! But wait! Isn’t this a review of Everyone Brave is Forgiven? It is but I wonder if Cleave noticed the meteoric success of ATLWCS and decided to capitalize on that success and write a knock off. Sad to say but it felt that way.
Let’s be clear. The book is very well written, full of juxtapositions, social and ethnic irony and youthful rebellion while coming of age in wartime Europe, and fully leveraged my insatiable appetite for all things WW2. After just a few short pages into it, I picked up some very positive vibes. But as the story progressed and tale of Mary North living in wartime Britain unfolded, I never got emotionally invested. The ATLWCS effect? Perhaps. The comparisons are inescapable. But something was just not right. The special sauce, the seasoning and spices that make a good dish great were just not there. This was a very good dish, one that could have been great!
Set in London during the onset of WW2 and the subsequent relentless Nazi bombing of military and eventually civilian targets during the Battle of Britain, the story centers on Mary North, the 18-year old daughter of an affluent British family living in the Pimilco section of London. North’s father is a political figure in the House of Commons while her mother carries on in her circle of the affluent and influential as if the war is a small distraction to their upper class life style. Despite the shortages of war time rationing, the North family always has fresh fruits and vegetables, opulent meals and fine liquor served by a full staff of house servants and an omnipresent butler.
Eager to do her part to serve her country and unbeknownst to her mother, the day war is declared Mary signs up to serve at the local War Office and is assigned a teaching role heading the Kestrel Class of thirty-one 8-10 year olds at the Hawley Street School. Taking the role of a common school teacher is the beginning of Mary’s rebellion against the affluence and racism of her family.
Mary truly enjoys being a teacher and when she is sacked by the head mistress of the school for being too kind and compassionate to her students, she returns to the War Office and then the Education Authority where she meets Tom Shaw and presses for a new teaching assignment in London. Tom becomes her love interest. Incensed by the fact that London Zoo animals are evacuated to the countryside to avoid Nazi bombing, along with London’s regular children, before those that are black or mentally and physically disabled, Mary insists Tom create a teaching role for her and her kids in the old abandoned Hawley Street School.
Mary’s compassion and love for these children, subjected of overt racism and discrimination, drives her further from her family. Some of the irony and hypocrisy in this tale … British soldiers and civilians are dying to defeat the racism and generic superiority propagandized by Nazi Germany yet disabled and black children in London are subjected to disdain and segregation. Mary’s stand against these injustices and personal struggles to follow what her heart tells her is just and moral creates lots of tension between her and her family and forces some very difficult decisions.
The complexities of Mary’s push against social inequities and her relationship with twenty-three year old Tom Shaw are compounded by her relationship with Alistair Heath, Tom’s roommate assigned to defend Malta after surviving the evacuation of Dunkirk.
I loved the character of Mary North. She’s strong and driven and clearly sees the injustices in the world around her. Her courage and strength leads her to a tour of duty as an ambulance driver rescuing wounded citizens from buildings destroyed during the Nazi bombing raids. Her strong bond with her longtime childhood friend Hilda is severely tested by the pursuit of men and morphine addiction induced by the PTSD from her ambulance work; her heart aches for the welfare of her beloved student Zachary. All while London is devastated by Nazi bombing and the fear of German domination comes closer and closer to reality.
Despite all these obvious opportunities to become emotionally connected to Mary and the story, the connections were never made for me … frustrating! The war provided a compelling backdrop for this story and the historical references were perfect for any WW2 aficionados. I wanted more emotional meat on the bones of this war story.
The writing seemed labored, perhaps overwritten in places, verbose and over the top flowery in others, where simplicity would have been best. The London/British English was tough to follow at times, forcing me to re-read some sections over and over to understand what the heck the author was talking about! Despite all the efforts to engage me and draw me into the story, it felt like a forced effort just scratching the emotional surface without deep penetration or thorough emotional examination of the relationships between Mary and Tom, Alistair and Hilda. I felt the connections between Mary and Zachery but beyond that relationship, I longed for more.
I don’t know … perhaps I’m being far too harsh. Perhaps my judgment and emotions are impaired and distorted by the depression of A Little Life and the lofty comparisons to ATLWCS. Perhaps it is impossible for me to be completely objective on this one.
Read this one for yourself … you decide!
A special shout out to the Westfield Athenaeum www.westath.org for providing me an Advanced Reader's Edition of this book!
May 30, 2016
Chris Cleave said in an interview about this book, "I think there are two wars we have to win. One of them is against the enemy, yes, but the other is against the tendency of our own society to divide, to polarize, to fracture." Everyone Brave is Forgiven explores both of those wars in a deep yet beautiful way.
Starting in London just before the Blitz, this is told through the eyes of Mary, her beau Tom, and Tom's friend Alistair, who has enlisted. Tom and Mary are civilians providing schooling for children left behind when others were evacuated to the country. Cleave's first illustration of a society where black and handicapped children were not allowed where the others were, and many other examples followed.
The love that develops between Mary and Tom is written with a mixture of humor and compassion, which I found refreshing and engaging. Little Zachary, a black student that Mary takes a liking to, is just a little cutie you'll want to hug. Alistair right from the start is a great sympathetic character, and his war experiences are shocking and affecting. When Mary is no longer allowed to teach, she and her friend Hilda sign up to drive ambulances and are shaken from their world of privilege straight into the horrors that are the reality of war.
This is filled with snappy dialogue between smart characters. I loved the stories and the contrast between civilian and military lives at the time. When the bombing of London begins, Alistair is there to transition his friends into the world of war. There the book takes a much more serious, really heartbreaking turn, and I had to shed some tears, more than once. Even so, it never stayed too dark or depressing because of the amazing dialogue and character development that write the story as it progresses. I loved it from start to finish.
A big thank you to Cindy who gave me her ARC from a Goodreads first reads win.
Starting in London just before the Blitz, this is told through the eyes of Mary, her beau Tom, and Tom's friend Alistair, who has enlisted. Tom and Mary are civilians providing schooling for children left behind when others were evacuated to the country. Cleave's first illustration of a society where black and handicapped children were not allowed where the others were, and many other examples followed.
The love that develops between Mary and Tom is written with a mixture of humor and compassion, which I found refreshing and engaging. Little Zachary, a black student that Mary takes a liking to, is just a little cutie you'll want to hug. Alistair right from the start is a great sympathetic character, and his war experiences are shocking and affecting. When Mary is no longer allowed to teach, she and her friend Hilda sign up to drive ambulances and are shaken from their world of privilege straight into the horrors that are the reality of war.
This is filled with snappy dialogue between smart characters. I loved the stories and the contrast between civilian and military lives at the time. When the bombing of London begins, Alistair is there to transition his friends into the world of war. There the book takes a much more serious, really heartbreaking turn, and I had to shed some tears, more than once. Even so, it never stayed too dark or depressing because of the amazing dialogue and character development that write the story as it progresses. I loved it from start to finish.
A big thank you to Cindy who gave me her ARC from a Goodreads first reads win.
January 3, 2018
My first read of this year and I was not disappointed. This is a wonderfully written book which follows the trails and tribulations of four young people during WW2. It is not only a love story nor is it only a description of London during the war, it is a wonderful mix of beautifully descriptive writing and quite infuriating characters whom still captured my interest. I could not give it five stars ( but would have given it 4.5) because I felt the beginning to be a bit slow and trivial, this could put some readers off. I am so very glad I carried on with it. An excellent read.
November 18, 2015
Everyone Brave is Forgiven is a dream of a book and Chris Cleave is a magical writer. The story itself is ordinary and somewhat predictable: World War II and a woman in love with two men. But the characters are so real and the writing so extraordinary that I found myself moved to tears repeatedly. Of the many books I've read set during the second World War, none has been more beautiful and yet still harsh in its presentation of the horrors of that war, of any war.
It's 1940 and London is being bombed repeatedly. Mary North is a wealthy girl from a distinguished family and she joins in the war effort by becoming a teacher. She becomes particularly attached to one student, a boy of color, and when the children are evacuated and the child, Zachary, goes and is rejected because of his color, Mary starts a school of her own with the help of Tom, who is in charge of the ministry of education and in love with Mary.
As I said, the book is not remarkable because of the story. I've seen a hundred war movies and could guess much of the plot. But I couldn't have predicted its effect on me. Because no matter how often the stories are repeated, each one is special and heartbreaking and particular.
The prose is luminous, so beautiful I think I cried sometimes just for the love of the words. I am grateful to have received this book from NetGalley. But my love of this book is all my own. Chris Cleave is an amazing writer-I loved Little Bee almost as much as I loved this one.
I strongly recommend this book to anyone who loves beautiful writing and touching stories.
It's 1940 and London is being bombed repeatedly. Mary North is a wealthy girl from a distinguished family and she joins in the war effort by becoming a teacher. She becomes particularly attached to one student, a boy of color, and when the children are evacuated and the child, Zachary, goes and is rejected because of his color, Mary starts a school of her own with the help of Tom, who is in charge of the ministry of education and in love with Mary.
As I said, the book is not remarkable because of the story. I've seen a hundred war movies and could guess much of the plot. But I couldn't have predicted its effect on me. Because no matter how often the stories are repeated, each one is special and heartbreaking and particular.
The prose is luminous, so beautiful I think I cried sometimes just for the love of the words. I am grateful to have received this book from NetGalley. But my love of this book is all my own. Chris Cleave is an amazing writer-I loved Little Bee almost as much as I loved this one.
I strongly recommend this book to anyone who loves beautiful writing and touching stories.
June 7, 2017
Theirs was a generation whose choices were made quickly, through bravery and instinct and whose hopes always hung by a thread. They had to have enormous faith in life and in each other. They wrote letters in ink and these missives might take weeks or months to get through if they made it at all. Because a letter meant so much they poured themselves into each one--as if there might be no more paper, no more ink, no more animating hand.
This was the only poignant excerpt I gathered from this book and it is in the author’s acknowledgements that I found these profound and moving words. The rest of the story was just a little too Oscar Wilde meets Dorothy Parker, and while I love to quote those two, that kind of banter and pithy dialogue seemed at odds with the horrors of war. Due to its reliance on the dialogue, I felt that the characters ended up a bit one dimensional, never quite becoming real to me. The plot also suffered as I wasn’t quite sure whether this was historical fiction, romance or a coming of age story. The narrative swung from London to Malta and back again and given the somewhat flippant nature of the dialogue, I kept hearing a pseudo-announcer voice in my head every time we went back to the battle scenes…’and now back in Malta.’
What puts this in solid three-star territory, however, is the author’s ability to write a scene so vividly you feel as if you’re part of the action. There is one bombing in London that portrays the shock, confusion and ultimate horror in a way that left me breathless. I was also not aware of the battles at Malta, as with so many books about WWII, there is still so much to learn. While I wasn’t as big a fan of this book as so many others, if you’re a Cleave fan and aren’t looking for full emotional submersion, then this might work better for you than it did for me.
This was the only poignant excerpt I gathered from this book and it is in the author’s acknowledgements that I found these profound and moving words. The rest of the story was just a little too Oscar Wilde meets Dorothy Parker, and while I love to quote those two, that kind of banter and pithy dialogue seemed at odds with the horrors of war. Due to its reliance on the dialogue, I felt that the characters ended up a bit one dimensional, never quite becoming real to me. The plot also suffered as I wasn’t quite sure whether this was historical fiction, romance or a coming of age story. The narrative swung from London to Malta and back again and given the somewhat flippant nature of the dialogue, I kept hearing a pseudo-announcer voice in my head every time we went back to the battle scenes…’and now back in Malta.’
What puts this in solid three-star territory, however, is the author’s ability to write a scene so vividly you feel as if you’re part of the action. There is one bombing in London that portrays the shock, confusion and ultimate horror in a way that left me breathless. I was also not aware of the battles at Malta, as with so many books about WWII, there is still so much to learn. While I wasn’t as big a fan of this book as so many others, if you’re a Cleave fan and aren’t looking for full emotional submersion, then this might work better for you than it did for me.
March 24, 2019
A WWII story that didn't touch my heart unfortunately.
April 18, 2016
Since I read Little Bee several years ago, it wasn't until I read Chris Cleave's introductory letter to the readers of this novel that I remembered what a good writer he is . It was lovely to read about how this novel set mainly in London and Malta during WWII , was inspired by his grandparents. What might have been a matter of fact telling of the seed for the book was so much more , so personal. Yet as I started to read the book, I had a hard time being drawn in.
Mary, a privileged young woman from a well to do , upper crust , political family, seems maybe a little smug , although probably more naive than anything else at 18. She volunteers for the war effort with visions of getting an important post. She actually is sent to teach and then accompany children to the country side to keep them safe from the bombs which have started to hit London. She's soon told she's not suited to teaching after finding that she loves it . Tom , a school administrator is the ticket to getting her a job teaching the students who are not acceptable to the families in the country - a young black boy , Zachary and other children with cringe worthy labels. Of course there's a love affair and a best friend, Hilda who seems to be rather shallow, and Tom's best friend and roommate , Alistair who enlists.
It was difficult to care about the main characters at first with the exception of Alistair and Zachary. It wasn't until about halfway through that I began to like them. Maybe it was because the characters began to develop as the story progressed , as the war progressed , as the bombs hit London , as the characters mature , as the impact of it all on them becomes evident. This is where the strength of the story lies - in the character development.
The second half of the novel made up in so many ways for the slow beginning. Of course the broad significance of the war looms in the background, but the focus is on its impact on the lives of a few people in bombarded London and in the battlefield on Malta. They are not unscathed physically or emotionally by the horrible circumstances of war . Cleve takes us on the journey with these characters from who they are to who they become as a result of the war and in spite of the horrors of the war , he does so - beautifully.
Thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley
December 13, 2016
DNF @25%.
Audiobook. The narrator was the one bright spot.
If I could describe the book in one word it would be tedious. The characters, plot, interactions.........all tedious.
Audiobook. The narrator was the one bright spot.
If I could describe the book in one word it would be tedious. The characters, plot, interactions.........all tedious.
May 24, 2016
"This was how a kind heart broke, after all: inward, making no shrapnel."
World War II is a popular topic in literary fiction. It has been the inspiration for some unforgettable gems in recent years such as Atonement, The Night Watch and All the Light We Cannot See. And now Chris Cleave's first foray into the historical genre can be added to that impressive list.
On the first page we are introduced to Mary North, a passionate and clever young woman who signs up for action on the very same day that war is declared. The privileged daughter of an MP, she seeks excitement and a purpose in life. Her initial dismay at a teaching assignment turns to joy when she realises her aptitude for such work. She soon meets Tom Shaw, a kind and thoughtful educational administrator and they pursue a steady relationship. Meanwhile Tom's best friend Alistair, a dashing art conservator, enlists in the army. When Mary and Alistair meet, they cannot deny their strong feelings for each other. But of course there are more pressing matters to contend with. These are the early days of the war and our protagonists have no idea of the hardship and tragedy that lies before them.
This engaging story unfurls at a fair old pace and Cleave creates such likeable characters that we immediately become invested in their fates. We root desperately for their survival and the love triangle that ensues adds an extra layer of tension to an already fraught situation. It's not all doom and gloom - there is also quite a bit of humour throughout despite the grim backdrop. Snappy one-liners are often exchanged to relieve the strain though the witty repartee can be a bit relentless - at times it feels like every line of dialogue is a wisecrack.
Cleave wisely focuses on some lesser-reported aspects of World War II, such as the fate of the children who were not evacuated from London and the Allies' vital defence of Malta under the most horrendous conditions. The battle scenes are brilliantly evoked - he excels at creating the most unbearable tension. The accounts of Mary's ambulance exploits during the Blitz are frighteningly real and I gripped my book tighter as I willed Alastair to withstand the Maltese siege. Cleave also keeps the plot unpredictable and we never know when a beloved character might be cruelly taken from us.
What comes across above all is the sheer courage of ordinary people to serve their country and the strength to "Keep Calm and Carry On" in the face of the ultimate adversity. Cleave explains in his preface that the story is loosely based on his grandparents, who were engaged in 1941 and then didn't see each other for three years afterwards. It is obviously a subject very close to his heart. The hope of seeing loved ones again is only thing which got these brave souls through the bleakest of circumstances. Everyone Brave is Forgiven is a moving, breathless read full of thrilling action and irresistibly charming characters.
World War II is a popular topic in literary fiction. It has been the inspiration for some unforgettable gems in recent years such as Atonement, The Night Watch and All the Light We Cannot See. And now Chris Cleave's first foray into the historical genre can be added to that impressive list.
On the first page we are introduced to Mary North, a passionate and clever young woman who signs up for action on the very same day that war is declared. The privileged daughter of an MP, she seeks excitement and a purpose in life. Her initial dismay at a teaching assignment turns to joy when she realises her aptitude for such work. She soon meets Tom Shaw, a kind and thoughtful educational administrator and they pursue a steady relationship. Meanwhile Tom's best friend Alistair, a dashing art conservator, enlists in the army. When Mary and Alistair meet, they cannot deny their strong feelings for each other. But of course there are more pressing matters to contend with. These are the early days of the war and our protagonists have no idea of the hardship and tragedy that lies before them.
This engaging story unfurls at a fair old pace and Cleave creates such likeable characters that we immediately become invested in their fates. We root desperately for their survival and the love triangle that ensues adds an extra layer of tension to an already fraught situation. It's not all doom and gloom - there is also quite a bit of humour throughout despite the grim backdrop. Snappy one-liners are often exchanged to relieve the strain though the witty repartee can be a bit relentless - at times it feels like every line of dialogue is a wisecrack.
Cleave wisely focuses on some lesser-reported aspects of World War II, such as the fate of the children who were not evacuated from London and the Allies' vital defence of Malta under the most horrendous conditions. The battle scenes are brilliantly evoked - he excels at creating the most unbearable tension. The accounts of Mary's ambulance exploits during the Blitz are frighteningly real and I gripped my book tighter as I willed Alastair to withstand the Maltese siege. Cleave also keeps the plot unpredictable and we never know when a beloved character might be cruelly taken from us.
What comes across above all is the sheer courage of ordinary people to serve their country and the strength to "Keep Calm and Carry On" in the face of the ultimate adversity. Cleave explains in his preface that the story is loosely based on his grandparents, who were engaged in 1941 and then didn't see each other for three years afterwards. It is obviously a subject very close to his heart. The hope of seeing loved ones again is only thing which got these brave souls through the bleakest of circumstances. Everyone Brave is Forgiven is a moving, breathless read full of thrilling action and irresistibly charming characters.
April 8, 2018
It's almost as though this novel was written by two different authors. The descriptive writing is brilliant, beautifully crafted and often philosophically incisive; the dialogue on the other hand is relentlessly flippant like sitcom banter. What this means is the characters remain rather flimsy. (Hugh Grant could effortlessly play all the male roles in a film!)
The two central characters are naïve, good-hearted blunderers, trying to preserve peacetime ethics in a time of war. All the characters in this novel blunder their way somewhat ineptly through the war. Mary begins an affair with a man who is her social inferior and befriends a black orphan child during her stint of teaching. Racism and social snobbery in Britain are two of the novel's underlying themes. To be honest I found both rather heavy-handed and unconvincing. The Blitz is such an iconic moment in British self-love - that notion of standing alone against the evil empire. Obviously it wasn't all self-sacrifice and courageous team spirit and though Cleave focuses on darker forces at play in the British psyche they feel pasted on rather than any integral part of the novel's narrative. The parts I enjoyed most were the depictions of the siege on Malta.
So, excellent when it focuses on the war itself; a bit cheesy and contrived when it turns its attention to social platforms.
The two central characters are naïve, good-hearted blunderers, trying to preserve peacetime ethics in a time of war. All the characters in this novel blunder their way somewhat ineptly through the war. Mary begins an affair with a man who is her social inferior and befriends a black orphan child during her stint of teaching. Racism and social snobbery in Britain are two of the novel's underlying themes. To be honest I found both rather heavy-handed and unconvincing. The Blitz is such an iconic moment in British self-love - that notion of standing alone against the evil empire. Obviously it wasn't all self-sacrifice and courageous team spirit and though Cleave focuses on darker forces at play in the British psyche they feel pasted on rather than any integral part of the novel's narrative. The parts I enjoyed most were the depictions of the siege on Malta.
So, excellent when it focuses on the war itself; a bit cheesy and contrived when it turns its attention to social platforms.
May 25, 2020
This is the story of Mary, Hilda, Tom and Alastair during WW2 in London and it's a humorously sad tale. It's one of those books that you could highlight a sentence on every page for quotes you don't want to forget. This book reminded me of those old posters you see of women drinking tea on rubble during the blitz. It made me smile with tears in my eyes. Would definitely recommend.
February 5, 2016
World War 2, London, hopes and dreams put on hold .The author weaves a tragic love story displaying the roller coaster dimension of wartime love.
Mary, a blueblood, volunteers for the war effort. It is shocking and distasteful to her family. Alastair, a quiet art restorer, decides to fight for his country. Tom, an educational administrator, has a job deemed essential and cannot soldier. Each principal character is trying to navigate life and love in difficult times.
The devastating bombings in London are realistically portrayed: loss of home, sustenance, life as well as the plight of the soldier as war escalates. Secondary characters such as Zachary, Hilda and Simonson pay a heavy wartime cost as well.
"Everyone Brave is Forgiven" both entertains and informs the reader of dramatic life changes created by war. I highly recommend this tome.
Mary, a blueblood, volunteers for the war effort. It is shocking and distasteful to her family. Alastair, a quiet art restorer, decides to fight for his country. Tom, an educational administrator, has a job deemed essential and cannot soldier. Each principal character is trying to navigate life and love in difficult times.
The devastating bombings in London are realistically portrayed: loss of home, sustenance, life as well as the plight of the soldier as war escalates. Secondary characters such as Zachary, Hilda and Simonson pay a heavy wartime cost as well.
"Everyone Brave is Forgiven" both entertains and informs the reader of dramatic life changes created by war. I highly recommend this tome.
April 2, 2016
When WWII comes to London, young Mary greets it enthusiastically; determined to prove her independence from her family and from society's expectations of a girl of her "status", Mary enlists in the war effort, at first teaching, then driving an ambulance. While teaching, she meets Tom, an official from the school district who has been exempted from serving in the armed forces because of his position. Meanwhile, Tom's friend Alastair enlists and is thrust into the horrors of battle. To complete the quartet, Cleave conjures Hilda, a friend of Mary, a more homely girl who is bitter and jealous of Mary's charm, beauty, and propensity for 'stealing' all of her (potential) boyfriends. A love quartet ensues, billed more as a triangle because poor Hilda is just thrown in for good measure and symmetry.
This book will be (already is, pre-publication) a bit hit. I can absolutely see it - the tender story that even in war, even as our worlds are transformed in unimaginable (and sometimes horrific) ways, we survive, and we persevere, in love. Our capacity to care for others and our relationships form the fabric of our experiences and give our lives meaning even as everything we've ever known falls apart around us. This is indeed a beautiful, powerful message, with which I do not disagree.
Still, my reaction to this book was quite negative. This is of course influenced by my personal preferences - how much is that, and how much is the book itself, I can't tell, so I'll lay out some arguments and let you be the judge of whether this may be a book for you.
This is not a WWII book. This is a war book. WWII is entirely incidental as a setting, Everyone Brave could have taken place during any war. Hitler is hinted at once, there is not one mention of Jews, or of politics, or of something broader than just the daily lives of people living in wartime. This didn't work for me at all - it makes this book no different than a dystopic fiction that asks about how we develop-and survive through-relationships in end-times... And there is nothing wrong with that, I love that genre! But I read this thinking it would be a WWII book, and I was disappointed on that count.
The structure is episodic. We don't get a continuous flow of events, but rather snippets - one about Mary in June of one year, one about Alastair the next month, then we see Hilda and Mary two months later. This structure makes sense if one is attempting to cover a large stretch of time without writing the next Forsyte Saga, but not if one is exploring the development of relationships in all their complexity. For example, Mary's love for both men seemed too superficial - I didn't believe for one moment that she was in love with Tom, as much as protested it, and she falls in love with Alastair after only meeting him once, during a social evening out as part of the quartet.
The tone is quite light. All the characters banter, trade witticisms, and engage in highly sarcastic dialogue non-stop. Maybe if this was the personality or style of a few characters, I would have bought into this lightening of mood more readily, and I do appreciate intelligent humor (which this was). Still, it seemed a bit too much - this was the mode of engagement between everyone in the book: Mary and her mother, Tom and Alastair, Alastair and fellow soldiers, Mary and her students, etc etc.
I do appreciate the power of humor to create spaces of resistance in difficult times, and dark brooding humor is the primary reason I swoon over Russian literature. But Cleave's humor is much less powerful, imho, because he is such an optimist, and all ends well as it ends in love - yes many horrible things happen but mostly, the ending is definitely "happy". And I am pretty adamant in my belief that WWII is not a war that produced happy endings, and it isn't a war about love. So yeah, a bit put-off. But maybe I shouldn't be because like I said, this wasn't a book about WWII.
Everyone Brave is beautifully written and the prose is engaging and intelligent. Cleave is absolutely a masterful writer- his wit is smart without being pretentious, and at times, he makes incredibly profound observations (even if I felt these observations were unsupported by evidence in the story, they were still accurate as applied to the human conditions- and hence, easily identifiable).
Conclusion: A poetic, smart book about life during wartime and about the power of relationships to sustain us. Recommended based on your reaction to this and other reviews.
I received this book through the ReadingRoom Advanced Review Program. All opinions are solely mine.
This book will be (already is, pre-publication) a bit hit. I can absolutely see it - the tender story that even in war, even as our worlds are transformed in unimaginable (and sometimes horrific) ways, we survive, and we persevere, in love. Our capacity to care for others and our relationships form the fabric of our experiences and give our lives meaning even as everything we've ever known falls apart around us. This is indeed a beautiful, powerful message, with which I do not disagree.
Still, my reaction to this book was quite negative. This is of course influenced by my personal preferences - how much is that, and how much is the book itself, I can't tell, so I'll lay out some arguments and let you be the judge of whether this may be a book for you.
This is not a WWII book. This is a war book. WWII is entirely incidental as a setting, Everyone Brave could have taken place during any war. Hitler is hinted at once, there is not one mention of Jews, or of politics, or of something broader than just the daily lives of people living in wartime. This didn't work for me at all - it makes this book no different than a dystopic fiction that asks about how we develop-and survive through-relationships in end-times... And there is nothing wrong with that, I love that genre! But I read this thinking it would be a WWII book, and I was disappointed on that count.
The structure is episodic. We don't get a continuous flow of events, but rather snippets - one about Mary in June of one year, one about Alastair the next month, then we see Hilda and Mary two months later. This structure makes sense if one is attempting to cover a large stretch of time without writing the next Forsyte Saga, but not if one is exploring the development of relationships in all their complexity. For example, Mary's love for both men seemed too superficial - I didn't believe for one moment that she was in love with Tom, as much as protested it, and she falls in love with Alastair after only meeting him once, during a social evening out as part of the quartet.
The tone is quite light. All the characters banter, trade witticisms, and engage in highly sarcastic dialogue non-stop. Maybe if this was the personality or style of a few characters, I would have bought into this lightening of mood more readily, and I do appreciate intelligent humor (which this was). Still, it seemed a bit too much - this was the mode of engagement between everyone in the book: Mary and her mother, Tom and Alastair, Alastair and fellow soldiers, Mary and her students, etc etc.
I do appreciate the power of humor to create spaces of resistance in difficult times, and dark brooding humor is the primary reason I swoon over Russian literature. But Cleave's humor is much less powerful, imho, because he is such an optimist, and all ends well as it ends in love - yes many horrible things happen but mostly, the ending is definitely "happy". And I am pretty adamant in my belief that WWII is not a war that produced happy endings, and it isn't a war about love. So yeah, a bit put-off. But maybe I shouldn't be because like I said, this wasn't a book about WWII.
Everyone Brave is beautifully written and the prose is engaging and intelligent. Cleave is absolutely a masterful writer- his wit is smart without being pretentious, and at times, he makes incredibly profound observations (even if I felt these observations were unsupported by evidence in the story, they were still accurate as applied to the human conditions- and hence, easily identifiable).
Conclusion: A poetic, smart book about life during wartime and about the power of relationships to sustain us. Recommended based on your reaction to this and other reviews.
I received this book through the ReadingRoom Advanced Review Program. All opinions are solely mine.
October 23, 2017
Old Tropes Mostly Well Handled
This was my first Cleave novel, and I didn't know what to expect. The first section, PRESERVATION, begins in 1939 with the declaration of war. Mary North, 18, English upper class, at once leaves her Swiss finishing school and comes back to report to the War Office. All right, then: we have been here before, many times—of course she is going to be trained as a spy. But no, first surprise, she is assigned to teach in a school, to free up people who are really needed. Actually, she turns out to have a gift for it, although it is not a gift that endears her to the headmistress, who does not take her with them when the children are evacuated to the countryside. At more or less the same time, we meet 23-year-old administrator Tom Shaw, who clearly falls for Mary and finds her another class to teach. When Tom's roommate Andrew signs up, and we see him in basic training, all the familiar tropes of a British WW2 novel fall into place: attractive young woman, infatuated young man, normal rules set aside, sense of adventure, touch of romance, and that defiant humor that is virtually a British speciality. I must have read at least six other novels that do much the same thing.
Only Cleave has some distinctive features of his own. There is a growing attachment between Mary and a dyslexic pupil Zachary, the son of a black entertainer. I gather that there is something similar in Cleave's Little Bee, but unable to make comparisons, I certainly found it interesting here. And Cleave has a way of punctuating his largely lighthearted tale with sudden death that comes out of nowhere. In the second and longest section, ATTRITION, the shocks come more frequently, and any comedy gets a desperate edge. Successive chapters alternate between the London Blitz and the island of Malta, which suffered two years of constant Axis bombardment—two communities under siege, as Cleave writes in an afterword. In both settings, the situation goes from bad to worse to excruciating.
So excruciating, in fact, that I wanted to put the book down, but breathed a sigh of relief on seeing the title of the final part, RESTORATION. But even this begins with further horrors. The WW2 romance genre, of course, requires that it all come out right in the end—but by now I could no longer trust the author to deliver on it. And all strength to him. I picked this up to a certain extent as comfort food; this was the Britain of my infancy, and I welcomed the familiarity of those well used tropes. They got me started. But Cleave nudged me more than once out of my comfort zone, and that was what kept me reading.
All the same, it is not a five star novel. Cleave makes more of the social conflicts than the military ones, yet his upper-class characters are caricatures; only Mary was really seen from the inside out. And while I could believe the pervasive racial prejudice, I could not quite buy the flavor of it; the frequent uses of the n-word seemed to have more modern overtones than those I recall as a child. And Cleave's determination not to tread the usual happy ending route led him to take a number of twists in his last few dozen pages that weakened rather than enhanced the whole. Three and a half stars for me. But still, this is an obvious bestseller, and will attract readers not burdened by my critical perspective.
This was my first Cleave novel, and I didn't know what to expect. The first section, PRESERVATION, begins in 1939 with the declaration of war. Mary North, 18, English upper class, at once leaves her Swiss finishing school and comes back to report to the War Office. All right, then: we have been here before, many times—of course she is going to be trained as a spy. But no, first surprise, she is assigned to teach in a school, to free up people who are really needed. Actually, she turns out to have a gift for it, although it is not a gift that endears her to the headmistress, who does not take her with them when the children are evacuated to the countryside. At more or less the same time, we meet 23-year-old administrator Tom Shaw, who clearly falls for Mary and finds her another class to teach. When Tom's roommate Andrew signs up, and we see him in basic training, all the familiar tropes of a British WW2 novel fall into place: attractive young woman, infatuated young man, normal rules set aside, sense of adventure, touch of romance, and that defiant humor that is virtually a British speciality. I must have read at least six other novels that do much the same thing.
Only Cleave has some distinctive features of his own. There is a growing attachment between Mary and a dyslexic pupil Zachary, the son of a black entertainer. I gather that there is something similar in Cleave's Little Bee, but unable to make comparisons, I certainly found it interesting here. And Cleave has a way of punctuating his largely lighthearted tale with sudden death that comes out of nowhere. In the second and longest section, ATTRITION, the shocks come more frequently, and any comedy gets a desperate edge. Successive chapters alternate between the London Blitz and the island of Malta, which suffered two years of constant Axis bombardment—two communities under siege, as Cleave writes in an afterword. In both settings, the situation goes from bad to worse to excruciating.
So excruciating, in fact, that I wanted to put the book down, but breathed a sigh of relief on seeing the title of the final part, RESTORATION. But even this begins with further horrors. The WW2 romance genre, of course, requires that it all come out right in the end—but by now I could no longer trust the author to deliver on it. And all strength to him. I picked this up to a certain extent as comfort food; this was the Britain of my infancy, and I welcomed the familiarity of those well used tropes. They got me started. But Cleave nudged me more than once out of my comfort zone, and that was what kept me reading.
All the same, it is not a five star novel. Cleave makes more of the social conflicts than the military ones, yet his upper-class characters are caricatures; only Mary was really seen from the inside out. And while I could believe the pervasive racial prejudice, I could not quite buy the flavor of it; the frequent uses of the n-word seemed to have more modern overtones than those I recall as a child. And Cleave's determination not to tread the usual happy ending route led him to take a number of twists in his last few dozen pages that weakened rather than enhanced the whole. Three and a half stars for me. But still, this is an obvious bestseller, and will attract readers not burdened by my critical perspective.
January 10, 2022
Винаги съм се чудила кое от многото лица на Лондон е най-характерно за него. И ето че Крис Клийв добавя още едно. На онзи Лондон от бомбардировките през 40-те, когато кралското великолепие, аристократичният шик, бедните работнически райони са смесени с осеяни с ями и руини улици, сред които изплашените му жители продължават живота си, както могат.
Героите са от онези, които никога не влизат в едър план из епичните военни филми, те са в масовката и фона, безименни фигури с костюми от епохата. Но те са и които тихо и с иронично вдигната вежда изграждат новото начало от отломките.
💍 Мери: Дъщеря на политик с либерални възгледи.
👒 Хилда: Най-добрата и приятелка, устремена към поредното питие и кавалер.
✏️ Том: Учител с твърде много съмнения.
🖼 Алистър: Реставратор, озовал се с капитански нашивки насред обсадена Малта.
🌍 Закари: Негърче, оставено да оцелява в мазе на кабаре.
Всички те искат просто следобедният чай да е навреме, разговорите за времето да не секват, носейки все така куп скрити значения, и добрата стара Англия да плува гордо отвъд Ламанша (е, без детето - то просто не иска да го замерят с камъни). Войната дразнещо нарушава рутината и учтивостта изисква всеки от тях да даде своя дял в борбата животът да продължи.
Най-много ми хареса английският сарказъм (наричан още остроумие). Всяка една реплика и мисъл на героите е пропита с него, и само един прочит не е достатъчен. Изпълнението е калиграфско, обхванати са всевъзможни теми. Това е онази жилава нишка, която никакви бедствия не могат да скъсат.
Малък пример с разговор между спасен от морето пилот и напускащ Дюнкерк артилерист:
”- Как беше водата? - попита Алистър след малко.
- Освежителна - отговори пилотът. - Как беше Франция?
- Претъпкана.”
За обсадата на Малта не знаех нищо, била е тежко и най-вече гладно време. Отлично е описано типичното английско високомерие към местните диваци - малтийците.
Самото действие обаче ме остави безразлична. Сглобката на отделните елементи току ми се разместваше и или прочитах някои грабващи пасажи (най-вече в диалога) по два пъти, или прескачах по цяла страница, която упорито се съпротивляваше да бъде прочетена поради заливащите ме прозявки. Единият от героите - Том - пък ми беше толкова скучен, че пропусках неговите абзаци. В крайна сметка, мисля че страниците са твърде много за този конкретен сюжет. Клийв е майстор на думите поотделно, но свързването им в хомогенна история не е сработило напълно.
Прочитът си заслужава. Прекрасен превод и оформление!
***
🇬🇧 “Но може би, като се замисли човек, любовта е точно това: да осъзнаеш какво е нужно да направи другият там, където се намира, и да го приемеш.”
🇬🇧 “…в крайна сметка сърцето не е в основата на добрите обноски и не бива да ги уронва, когато е разбито.”
🇬🇧 “Ето така са направени звездите в крайна сметка: всяка звезда е финал на недовършена мисъл, всяка е отговор, който някой през цялото време е знаел.”
🇬🇧 “Два часа и не кълве грам. Рибите са нацисти.”
🇬🇧 “Човекът и добрата картина се отличават със способност да излизат извън рамката.”
🇬🇧 “Оказваше се, че единствената разлика между децата и възрастните е, че децата са готови да се постараят двойно повече, за да избегнат тъгата.”
Героите са от онези, които никога не влизат в едър план из епичните военни филми, те са в масовката и фона, безименни фигури с костюми от епохата. Но те са и които тихо и с иронично вдигната вежда изграждат новото начало от отломките.
💍 Мери: Дъщеря на политик с либерални възгледи.
👒 Хилда: Най-добрата и приятелка, устремена към поредното питие и кавалер.
✏️ Том: Учител с твърде много съмнения.
🖼 Алистър: Реставратор, озовал се с капитански нашивки насред обсадена Малта.
🌍 Закари: Негърче, оставено да оцелява в мазе на кабаре.
Всички те искат просто следобедният чай да е навреме, разговорите за времето да не секват, носейки все така куп скрити значения, и добрата стара Англия да плува гордо отвъд Ламанша (е, без детето - то просто не иска да го замерят с камъни). Войната дразнещо нарушава рутината и учтивостта изисква всеки от тях да даде своя дял в борбата животът да продължи.
Най-много ми хареса английският сарказъм (наричан още остроумие). Всяка една реплика и мисъл на героите е пропита с него, и само един прочит не е достатъчен. Изпълнението е калиграфско, обхванати са всевъзможни теми. Това е онази жилава нишка, която никакви бедствия не могат да скъсат.
Малък пример с разговор между спасен от морето пилот и напускащ Дюнкерк артилерист:
”- Как беше водата? - попита Алистър след малко.
- Освежителна - отговори пилотът. - Как беше Франция?
- Претъпкана.”
За обсадата на Малта не знаех нищо, била е тежко и най-вече гладно време. Отлично е описано типичното английско високомерие към местните диваци - малтийците.
Самото действие обаче ме остави безразлична. Сглобката на отделните елементи току ми се разместваше и или прочитах някои грабващи пасажи (най-вече в диалога) по два пъти, или прескачах по цяла страница, която упорито се съпротивляваше да бъде прочетена поради заливащите ме прозявки. Единият от героите - Том - пък ми беше толкова скучен, че пропусках неговите абзаци. В крайна сметка, мисля че страниците са твърде много за този конкретен сюжет. Клийв е майстор на думите поотделно, но свързването им в хомогенна история не е сработило напълно.
Прочитът си заслужава. Прекрасен превод и оформление!
***
🇬🇧 “Но може би, като се замисли човек, любовта е точно това: да осъзнаеш какво е нужно да направи другият там, където се намира, и да го приемеш.”
🇬🇧 “…в крайна сметка сърцето не е в основата на добрите обноски и не бива да ги уронва, когато е разбито.”
🇬🇧 “Ето така са направени звездите в крайна сметка: всяка звезда е финал на недовършена мисъл, всяка е отговор, който някой през цялото време е знаел.”
🇬🇧 “Два часа и не кълве грам. Рибите са нацисти.”
🇬🇧 “Човекът и добрата картина се отличават със способност да излизат извън рамката.”
🇬🇧 “Оказваше се, че единствената разлика между децата и възрастните е, че децата са готови да се постараят двойно повече, за да избегнат тъгата.”
January 17, 2016
Chris Cleave had a fan for life when he wrote Little Bee, a book I thought was powerful and mesmerizing. But then he followed it with Gold, and appeared to be trading in his literary gifts in exchange for pursuit of a best seller. In his latest book – inspired by his grandparents’ role in the Second World War – he’s totally back in form with a book that kept me turning pages well into the night. It’s a labor of love and it shows.
The book centers on a few memorable characters: Mary North, the affluent daughter of a Parliament member who fervently wants to contribute to the war effort and does so by become a teacher. Tom is her boss and sweetheart; his flat-mate, Alistair, a restorer of art for the Tate, whom Mary meets later on, is overseas fighting for Mother England. Since most children have been evacuated to the countryside in anticipation of the London blitz bombing, the only ones who remain are the “undesirables”, including Zachary, a young black boy and the son of an American minstrel show Interlocutor,, and he becomes one of Mary’s favorite students.
There is a gentleness and cleverness in the repertoire between and among these characters. Typically I’d take issue with every character being so bright and witty, yet here, it works beautifully. We come to truly care about each of these characters and his or her eventual fate, which offsets the horrors of the daily bombings of London.
It is a delight to see how the plot unfolds, yet there are also some weighty themes that are never too twee, ponderous, or pedantic. At one point, Mary says, “We are a nation of glorious cowards, ready to battle any evil but our own.” The quote is in response to a heinous situation: white children are evacuated to the countryside whereas any child deemed undesirable (including black children) are left behind in London. Even THAT is not enough; Zachary experiences much prejudice for the crime of being born black.
Another theme is the necessity of having enormous faith in life and each other during the worst of times. Chris Cleave powerfully shows the impact of war, both overseas and at home, and the unimaginable ways we struggle to stay alive and perhaps more importantly, keep hope alive. He has obviously done ample research, yet it never becomes obvious that this is a researched book. All characters struggle to be brave but there is no manual for what it means to be brave when civilization is on the brink and rules are thrown out the window. Morality no longer becomes a simple matter of black and white one character says, “Everything will be restored. If one won’t believe that, how does one endure all this?” . The forgiveness that the author alludes to in his title is most of all, self-forgiveness. As
In his preface, the author writes “I hope that readers will see the book simply as the honest expression of wonder of a little man descended from titans, gazing up at the heights from which he has fallen.” As the world actors of World War II take their final bow, his humble tribute brought tears to my eyes.
The book centers on a few memorable characters: Mary North, the affluent daughter of a Parliament member who fervently wants to contribute to the war effort and does so by become a teacher. Tom is her boss and sweetheart; his flat-mate, Alistair, a restorer of art for the Tate, whom Mary meets later on, is overseas fighting for Mother England. Since most children have been evacuated to the countryside in anticipation of the London blitz bombing, the only ones who remain are the “undesirables”, including Zachary, a young black boy and the son of an American minstrel show Interlocutor,, and he becomes one of Mary’s favorite students.
There is a gentleness and cleverness in the repertoire between and among these characters. Typically I’d take issue with every character being so bright and witty, yet here, it works beautifully. We come to truly care about each of these characters and his or her eventual fate, which offsets the horrors of the daily bombings of London.
It is a delight to see how the plot unfolds, yet there are also some weighty themes that are never too twee, ponderous, or pedantic. At one point, Mary says, “We are a nation of glorious cowards, ready to battle any evil but our own.” The quote is in response to a heinous situation: white children are evacuated to the countryside whereas any child deemed undesirable (including black children) are left behind in London. Even THAT is not enough; Zachary experiences much prejudice for the crime of being born black.
Another theme is the necessity of having enormous faith in life and each other during the worst of times. Chris Cleave powerfully shows the impact of war, both overseas and at home, and the unimaginable ways we struggle to stay alive and perhaps more importantly, keep hope alive. He has obviously done ample research, yet it never becomes obvious that this is a researched book. All characters struggle to be brave but there is no manual for what it means to be brave when civilization is on the brink and rules are thrown out the window. Morality no longer becomes a simple matter of black and white one character says, “Everything will be restored. If one won’t believe that, how does one endure all this?” . The forgiveness that the author alludes to in his title is most of all, self-forgiveness. As
In his preface, the author writes “I hope that readers will see the book simply as the honest expression of wonder of a little man descended from titans, gazing up at the heights from which he has fallen.” As the world actors of World War II take their final bow, his humble tribute brought tears to my eyes.
June 28, 2016
I love what the back cover copy says about this book:
"This dazzling novel dares us to understand that, against the great theater of world events, it is the intimate losses, the small battles, the daily human triumphs that change us most."
I keep telling myself, "Okay. No more WW2 novels! Broaden your horizon! Read about something else!" And yet I keep getting pulled back to books with this setting. Chris's new book, which earned a starred review in Publishers Weekly, is a gem, and written with such achingly beautiful prose, sometimes you can forget this is a book about what war does to people. Several times I re-read a sentence just for the pleasure of tasting it again. All that said, it IS still a book about wartime decisions and the characters who must make them. The plot centers on three Londoners, Mary, Thomas and Alistair, and how the war orchestrates the choices they make. It is loosely based on love letters between Chris's grandparents.
The beauty in this book is not so much the story, but how the story is told, with delicious prose, cleverly placed humor, and a quiet urgency. It's different than The Nightingale and All the Light We Cannot See, recent WW2 favorites of mine (and surprisingly also with lovely blue covers); it's a little more Dickensy, as one reviewer suggested, but the wordsmithing here is golden. It's one of those books that makes you ponder not just "what does this story mean?" but also, "what does this story mean to me?"
I'd read it again. A great book for book clubs.
"This dazzling novel dares us to understand that, against the great theater of world events, it is the intimate losses, the small battles, the daily human triumphs that change us most."
I keep telling myself, "Okay. No more WW2 novels! Broaden your horizon! Read about something else!" And yet I keep getting pulled back to books with this setting. Chris's new book, which earned a starred review in Publishers Weekly, is a gem, and written with such achingly beautiful prose, sometimes you can forget this is a book about what war does to people. Several times I re-read a sentence just for the pleasure of tasting it again. All that said, it IS still a book about wartime decisions and the characters who must make them. The plot centers on three Londoners, Mary, Thomas and Alistair, and how the war orchestrates the choices they make. It is loosely based on love letters between Chris's grandparents.
The beauty in this book is not so much the story, but how the story is told, with delicious prose, cleverly placed humor, and a quiet urgency. It's different than The Nightingale and All the Light We Cannot See, recent WW2 favorites of mine (and surprisingly also with lovely blue covers); it's a little more Dickensy, as one reviewer suggested, but the wordsmithing here is golden. It's one of those books that makes you ponder not just "what does this story mean?" but also, "what does this story mean to me?"
I'd read it again. A great book for book clubs.
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