2023: Oct-Dec: Hefty: The Balkan Trilogy

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

The Balkan Trilogy by Olivia Manning is our second hefty read for the last quarter of the year.

This novel is a series of three novels consisting of the Great Fortune (1960) The Spoilt City (1962), and Friends and Heroes (1965). The trilogy is a semiautobiographical account of a British couple living in the Balkans during World War II. The complex narrative, composed of several different voices, is noted for its vivid historicity.

Source: Britannica

Olivia Mary Manning (2 March 1908 - 23 July 1980) was a British novelist, poet, writer, and reviewer. Her fiction and non-fiction frequently detailed journeys and personal odysseys. Manning often wrote from her personal experience. Her books are widely admired for her artistic eye and vivid descriptions of place.

Source: Wikipedia

[Kathy]

I'll start the first book The Great Fortune tomorrow. I'm excited about it.

[Nidhi]

I am starting today, this is the first book I will read by this author.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Great to hear it, Kathy. Hope you'll enjoy the book.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Welcome, Nidhi! Hope you'll enjoy it.

[Brian E]

FINISHED 44% OF The Great Fortune (First Volume of The Balkan Trilogy)

As the first of what becomes a six book series, my expectations for this book are for me to get a feel for the hopefully interesting setting and characters rather than being entertained by a fascinating plot. I anticipated a book I would rate somewhere between 3 and 4 stars. The book meets those expectations. Some comments on what I’ve read so far:

MAIN CHARACTERS - The central characters are newly-weds Guy and Harriet Pringle, an early-20s British couple in 1939 Bucharest Romania where Guy is a local University teacher. The book is written in a 3rd person point-of-view largely from Harriet’s POV. So far, we see Guy only through Harriet and the 3rd person perspective. We don’t yet have much on how Guy and Harriet got together or their backstories. I hope to get more info sometime but I guess some mystery is good. I am beginning to empathize with them and feel their insecurity as Brits stuck in the Balkans with war about to break out around them.
Interestingly, there are also chapters from the POV of a character named Yakimov. Since it started with the 2nd Chapter, the Yakimov POV was unexpected. The first person to point him out to the Pringles describes him as “a raconteur and joker” and “half Irish and half White Russian” with “a peculiarly English sense of humor. Some of the bar stories about him place him at times in England and in Paris and some chapters deal with him mingling with the high Bucharest society set, where it seems everyone wants to borrow money from each other. I really don’t know yet what to make of his character or whether I like him or empathize with him. But then, I did say some mystery is good.

ATMOSPHERE/SETTING – There are various other characters introduced through meetings in the restaurants and bars the Pringles and Yakimov frequent. These side characters and their conversations in bar/restaurants help set the atmosphere. They are largely journalists, with some local civilians, business, university and diplomatic related figures, though in such brink of war setting, everyone can get involved in diplomacy, whether voluntarily or not. Such atmosphere and settings are reminiscent of a Graham Greene novel or the movies The Year of Living Dangerously or even Casablanca. With the Germans just invading Poland and the Russians invading Finland, the atmosphere is one of a city and country, except for the optimistic Guy, feeling like they’re going to serve as pickings of one of these two forces. I do like the atmosphere and setting that Manning has established.

The writing seems clear, uncluttered and moderately descriptive. Manning largely avoids using complex syntax as I notice a lot of direct short sentences beginning with a noun/verb rather than a lot of introductory clauses. Sometimes it felt almost Hemingwayesque, so maybe I should add a The Sun Also Rises reference.

It is what I anticipated and is interesting enough for me to feel secure in the fact that I will finish the trilogy. Health permitted, of course.

[Jeremy]

I really loved this book for its characters and the vivid picture it painted of the Balkans of that era. Likewise, when the setting changed to Greece it was equally vivid. I have the subsequent trilogy but haven't gotten around to them. Olivia Manning was an exquisite writer.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Glad to hear you enjoyed the book, Jeremy. Yours and Brian's comments have made me mark it as a future possible read.

[Brian E]

Jeremy wrote: "I really loved this book for its characters and the vivid picture it painted of the Balkans of that era. Likewise, when the setting changed to Greece it was equally vivid. ."

Thanks, Jeremy. It's encouraging to know the trilogy doesn't lose its allure when it changes settings to Greece. Manning's effective creation of the setting and atmosphere is a key component.

I did finish The Great Fortune but I am waiting to start The Spoilt City: The Balkan Trilogy 2 until I read at least the three other November group reads I have. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to resist going straight into Friends And Heroes: The Balkan Trilogy 3 and blow off or overly delay the other reads. But the ending of The Great Fortune has me very much anxious to getting back to the trilogy fairly soon.

Here's my review of The Great Fortune: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The important thing to know about my reading experience is that the book started slow for me but my appreciation for the characters and atmosphere increased and I got more engrossed in the book as it went on. A possible 3 star book grew to became a definite 4 star book for me.

[Kathy]

I've finished the second book in the trilogy, The Spoilt City: The Balkan Trilogy 2 and thought it was even better than the first book. Just as the title says, this volume is about Guy and Harriet Pringle still living in Bucharest, Romania but the city is deteriorating as Hitler marches across Europe. There is a definite tension in the story that I didn't feel in the first book, because the German army is always rumored to be invading.

The story is also about Harriet's feelings about Guy and their marriage. Guy is very optimistic while Harriet worries and frets. Guy believes in the goodness of people, while Harriet is more realistic.

The side characters are well-drawn also. I'm looking forward to the next book. At the end of this book, (view spoiler)[Harriet has arrived in Athens, but Guy is still in Bucharest. Also the Pringles don't know the whereabout where Sasha Drucker, a Jewish fugitive they were hiding in their apartment. (hide spoiler)]

[Brian E]

FINISHED PART 2 OF The Spoilt City: The Balkan Trilogy 2 (50% OF TRILOGY)

At this point, I feel incredibly comfortable reading this trilogy, both with the plot and writing. This is the feeling I often get in the middle of a really good book trilogy or series.
Manning has successfully created a setting that I find fascinating, citizens of Allied country residing in a non-combatant country poised for complete occupation by the Nazis and other Axis nations while also bordered by the Soviet Union, an Allied nation. As Kathy mentions, there is a tension that can be felt, yet it is a pleasant tension, if that makes sense.
I've just finished a section where a central character "Poor Yaki" has gone to Transylvania, a geographic area whose involvement reminds me of Miklós Bánffy's The Transyvanian Trilogy, which is a prime example of those pleasant trilogy reading experiences I referred to earlier. Another pleasant thought that gets me more engrossed in this story.
Now I'm trying to figure out how and when to fit in Manning's The Levant Trilogy next year as I don't think I'll be able to let go at the end of this trilogy knowing there is more to the Pringle's story. I'll see how I feel at the end of volume three.

[Kathy]

Brian E wrote: "FINISHED PART 2 OF The Spoilt City: The Balkan Trilogy 2 (50% OF TRILOGY)

At this point, I feel incredibly comfortable reading this trilogy, both with the plot and writing. This is..."

I agree with your comments about the Balkan Trilogy, Brian. I finished the third book, Friends And Heroes: The Balkan Trilogy 3 earlier this week and felt almost bereft about "losing" these characters. I'm also thinking about The Levant Trilogy for 2024 or even right now!

I hope you enjoy Part 3.

[Brian E]

I have finished ALL of The Spoilt City: The Balkan Trilogy 2. Loved the reading experience. So far, this trilogy really suits my tastes. On to Round 3.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

I'm glad to see you are enjoying reading this trilogy, Brian. Makes me want to tackle it too at a future point.

[Christine PNW]

I read this last year and finished the follow-up trilogy in March. It has been one of my favorite reading experiences in recent memory - I ended up loving the whole thing - so much so that I've been considering rereading it next year.

It's loosely based on Olivia Manning's personal experience as a young married woman during WWII. I ended up pretty much loathing Guy, the narrator's husband, and remain somewhat gobsmacked at his entitlement and oblivious self-importance.

[Brian E]

This is my review of the 3rd Volume Friends and Heroes
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Brian E]

Christine PNW wrote: "I read this last year and finished the follow-up trilogy in March. It has been one of my favorite reading experiences in recent memory - I ended up loving the whole thing.."

The whole of The Balkan Trilogy was in my top 2 reading experiences of this year

Christine PNW wrote: " I ended up pretty much loathing Guy, the narrator's husband "

I never loathed Guy but I always resented his self-centered way of making life difficult for Harriet and excusing it by saying "but I always considered you part of me, Dear, so I assumed my interest would be your interest."
How about making it a 2-way street Guy? Ever consider making Harriet's interests yours?

Wikipedia describes Guy as "Guy loves everybody he meets. His character is outgoing and generous." But that aspect of his character only intensifies the hurt to Harriet of his taking her for granted. It hurts to see him so generous to everyone else except her because she's "part of me."

I also found this quote from author Anthony Burgess, who loved the series, to be a bit baffling. He found the character of Guy Pringle to be "one of the most fully created male leads in contemporary fiction.... He is a sort of civilization in himself".

As we almost always see Guy through Harriet's eyes I can't say we get either a flattering or "fully-created" view of Guy.

[Brian E]

FINISHED THE BALKAN TRILOGY

I wanted to mention what I thought about how Manning dealt with the reader’s view of Yakimov. I’m putting it in spoilers because I talk about key plot events. Only read this if you’ve read the entire trilogy:

(view spoiler)[ I enjoyed how Manning set the reader up for the end of Yakimov. At least this reader. I felt resentful of Yakimov’ self-centeredness and vanity through most of the first two books since he is such a leech, thinking he’s so wonderful that everyone should buy him food and drink or house him. But Yakimov had committed no great harm as of yet.
That then changes when he steals the plans and gives to the Germans just to feed his need for continued sustenance without having to work and his need to show his importance. When this results in the Germans capturing or killing Sasha, I wanted Yakimov to pay dearly for this tragic result of his greed and self-centered behavior.
But in Friends and Heroes, Manning does two things with the plot to lessen our desire for Yakimov getting his just desserts:
1) He gets a job, is useful (picture Yaki riding the bike and delivering things) and actually pays for some of his own food and drink. Small steps but I found myself much less resentful of him:
2) Sasha turns up alive but acting cold and resentful of the Pringles. This reduced my view of the harm that Yakimov’s evil deed caused and actually turned part of my Yaki-resentment into Sasha-resentment.
And just when Manning has gotten the reader to get re-acquire some degree of sympathy for Yakimov, she pulls the rug out by killing him off and in another manner to arouse our sympathy for Yakimov:
3) She has Yakimov killed for failing to understand a police officer’s order to stop smoking, a penalty so beyond any alleged offense committed as to make it a tragic and gross injustice.
I thought Manning did an excellent job crafting Yakimov’s story arc so as to play with my emotions. Good show. (hide spoiler)]