My Harp Is Turned to Mourning

by Al Reimer

*** please read this *** Ships from Ohio - no marks - next day shipping - tracking provided - 12-c-43

Genres: Read For School

440 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1986

Reviews

[Arrel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Retired University of Winnipeg English Professor and Mennonite historian Al Reimer has written an excellent and historically accurate novel about the experiences of the Mennonites in S Russia during WW-I, the violent Russian Revolution that saw their region in the midst of much horror, and the anarchy associated with post-Revolution Russia. These events lead most of the remaining Mennonites to follow their earlier migrating fellow colonists, albeit to Canada and South and Central America in the 1910-20s, instead of the 1870s to the Plains of the US. It follows several related and intertwining story lines as the citizens of the Mennonite colonies in what is now Ukraine experience the turbulence of WWI, followed by the Russian revolution that eventually destroyed their way of life. The realistic glimpse into life in the Mennonite colonies, the life-altering choices forced upon them, and their religious beliefs make compelling reading.

I highly recommend it to anyone of Mennonite heritage interested in their history - Professor Reimer writes well, although the book in some parts is a bit wordy. Still, it captures all the drama, hardships, death and destruction, and courage and hope that characterized the Mennonites in S Russia during these times quite well. I have visited the Molotschna and Khortitsa-Rosenthal Mennonite colonies in the former S Russian steppes (now Ukraine) so it was all very real and poignant to me.

Duke Libraries ILL

[Larry Epp · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story follows Wilhelm Fast through 1905 to 1933 -- the Russian revolution and immigration to Canada. Much to like -- multiple points of view -- even Nestor Machno gets his say, much detail of war horrors and events; much detail about motivations and how war tests commitment to ideals, much detail of Mennonite colony life pre-war. But, sometimes, please, fewer words. A few chapters could have been left out completely.

[Simon Hathout · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for a history class. Was pretty good, enjoyed how diverse characters were. The shift from optimism to struggle at the start of the war was very strong

[Dale Hildebrand · Rating 5 out of 5]

Huge, huge fan of this book. What an epic journey! Reimer paints with big, brilliant, beautiful strokes that touch the heart.

[Gail Amendt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have decided to explore my Mennonite heritage this year, given that 2017 marks the 90th anniversary of my family's arrival in Canada. This heritage is somewhat of a mystery to me as I was not raised in the Mennonite tradition, my father being somewhat the black sheep of his family and my mother being British. This is the first piece of fiction I have ever found about the experience of the Mennonites in Russia during the violent revolution that precipitated their exodus to Canada and South and Central America. It follows several related and intertwining story lines as the citizens of the Mennonite colonies in the Ukraine experience the turbulence of WWI, followed by the Russian revolution that eventually destroyed their way of life. The glimpse into life in the Mennonite colonies and into the beliefs of the Mennonites is fascinating. It is interesting to see that the Russian Mennonites were in some ways less conservative that the elderly Mennonites I knew in my Canadian prairie childhood...I suspect that the unfamiliar new surroundings caused them to withdraw from society after their arrival in Canada. I certainly came to understand my grandparents and other older relatives more after reading of the hardships they likely endured. This story is set in a different part of Russia than my ancestors came from, my family having migrated to one of the new Mennonite colonies in Siberia some years before the revolution, but likely reflects similar experiences and horrors to what they experienced. There are certainly similarities between this novel and the snippets of family folklore I have heard. Given that this a little known book by a rather obscure author, I was prepared for it to be a poorly written and amateurish work. I couldn't have been more wrong. The author is a former English professor with an interest in Mennonite history, and both the research and the writing are exceptional. It is a bit wordy, and did take me a while to read, but that is because it is a very detailed and complex story. Anything less would not do justice to a topic and a people that have had very little attention in fiction...at least not in English.

[B. J.]

Novel covering Russian Revolution, centered in the Mennonite colonies. Touches on how younger German-speaking Mennonites faced challenges blending into the Russian culture. Inspirational. Worth reading a second time. Inter-loan from Augustana College, Sioux Falls, SD.

Al Reimer
Professor of English
University of Winnipeg
Editor, Mennonite Mirror

Part of a series:
1. A Russian Dance of Death
2. No Strangers in Exile (I read this)
3. Meditations
4. Mennonite Images
5. A Sackful of Plautdietsch
6. Cornelius W. Wiebe
7. Stumbling Heavenward
8. From Russia with Music
9. Visions and Realities
10. My Harp Is Turned to Mourning

[Allison · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the story that this book told, however, I feel that it could've been told in many fewer words. Some scenes were very stretched out, or entirely unnecessary, but overall, it was an alright read.