Read and returned Inverness 1-5-21

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I absolutely loved this book. I went through a range of emotions reading this and had a few really late night because I just couldn't put it down. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

An easy-to-listen to story. Captivates the attention by following the lives of three women throughout the 1920's to 1950's.

Great reviews. Recommended by Lynn

Another interesting historical story of WWII in Germany.

What sets this book apart is the author's family stories from their lives as German citizens during Hitler's reign, and the seven years it took Shattuck to finish writing their personal history.

The Resistance Party was new to me and I would like to know more of the German people who worked against Hitler and his ideas paying the ultimate price to free a people from this mad man.

Otherwise everyday German citizens were assigned to do unthinkable acts for 'the cause' which drove me to pacing the floor . . . however does one continue with any sense of normality when the war was finally over?

Worthy questions provided by the publisher for book group discussion.

I loved this story. It is about three German women with very different backgrounds who were brought together during WW11 and how they survived.

I”ve read several WWII books about women during the war. I thought this one was very good to understand how a German woman could let the evil of Hitler and the Holocoust not only happen, but be actively a part of it. It is especially timely to see how HItler turned people against their neighbors and accepted horrible acts through touting make Germany great again and controlling the media/ press/ rallies. Some of it is very difficult to read as descriptions of atrocities are included in detail. Also learned about what happened after the Russians defeated the Germans- not good either.

I'm not usually a big fan of WWII-era historical fiction, mainly because it always leaves me feeling depressed. But this one was well worth the aftermath. It did a phenomenal job of establishing the environment in which Hitler rose to power and was able to implement such horrific acts. It's easy, from the perspective of the past, to assume everyone who believed in his rhetoric was racist, or ignorant, or just generally a bad person. But, of course, that's a gross oversimplification of a situation was *must* understand, lest we repeat it.

And you guys, reading some of the character musings on Hitler's programs, how he normalized horrible things...it hit pretty damned close to home. That wasn't even the focus of the book, it was just so powerful and well done that I fixated on it. This situation in which both ignorant peasants and educated elite agree with wonderful ideals that become darker and less idealistic over time. (Hitler's early toutings for landjahr, for instance, revolved around physical fitness, learning sustainable practices like farming, community, and music...that eventually clearly evolved into a more militaristic Hitler Youth situation, and his fixation on making children physically brutal)

So this is all reflected in the book, in the background. The primary story revolves around three widows, and their children, and a handful of years at the end and after WWII as they struggle to make their own community, survive, and essentially re-learn how to trust. The chief element is their humanity- all have regrets, impossible hopes, unrealistic standards, guilt and shame, etc. They are each incredibly relatable and real. And the story has enough bittersweet in it that for a time I wondered if it was partly based in the real life of someone the author knows.

If you can't tell from my rambling, I was impressed by the book and I recommend it to fans of fiction in general. Especially if you like historic fiction and/or bittersweet tales.

Nov 2018: BM Books; re-read, well-written, engaging, many unique turns of phrase, even better second time around.