The Nightingale
by Kristin Hannah
Published by St. Martin's Griffin
on October 8, 2015
Genre: Adult, Historical Fiction
Length: 564 pages (paperback)
Genre: Adult, Historical Fiction
Length: 564 pages (paperback)
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Literary Awards:
Literary Awards:
Goodreads Choice Award for Historical Fiction (2015)
Audie Award for Fiction (2016)
International DUBLIN Literary Award Nominee (2017)
Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Best of the Best (2018)
International DUBLIN Literary Award Nominee (2017)
Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Best of the Best (2018)
Synopsis:
France, 1939
In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn't believe that the Nazis will invade France... but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When France is overrun, Vianne is forced to take an enemy into her house, and suddenly her every move is watched; her life and her child's life is at constant risk. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates around her, she must make one terrible choice after another.
Vianne's sister, Isabelle, is a rebellious eighteen-year-old girl, searching for purpose with all the reckless passion of youth. While thousands of Parisians march into the unknown terrors of war, she meets the compelling and mysterious Gaetan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France, and she falls in love as only the young can... completely. When he betrays her, Isabelle races headlong into danger and joins the Resistance, never looking back or giving a thought to the real--and deadly--consequences.
In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn't believe that the Nazis will invade France... but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When France is overrun, Vianne is forced to take an enemy into her house, and suddenly her every move is watched; her life and her child's life is at constant risk. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates around her, she must make one terrible choice after another.
Vianne's sister, Isabelle, is a rebellious eighteen-year-old girl, searching for purpose with all the reckless passion of youth. While thousands of Parisians march into the unknown terrors of war, she meets the compelling and mysterious Gaetan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France, and she falls in love as only the young can... completely. When he betrays her, Isabelle races headlong into danger and joins the Resistance, never looking back or giving a thought to the real--and deadly--consequences.
My Thoughts:
This was a fantastic read. I flew through the almost 500+ pages of my oversized paperback in just a couple of days.
It reminded me how much I love historical fiction and introduced me to an author that I'm looking forward to reading more from.
This book also kind of destroyed me. I cried and raged, but then again, anything about the Holocaust usually has that effect on me.
The content matter in itself is always sobering but I loved the focus on the women and what they did to survive the war, keep their families safe and fed, and help their neighbors and loved ones, even if it meant risking their own lives to help them. It was especially neat to find out that Isabelle was based on a real woman who helped downed pilots escape from France.
I enjoyed how the strained relationships between family members played out throughout the book. There was father-daughter conflict and the sisters were not close, either, which built a lot of tension in the story.
I'm really looking forward to the movie adaptation of this but, even though I've mentioned it in my Book to Movie Adaptations Master List, so far there is no cast and no word on if it will actually happen or how long we have to wait if it does. Still, I can see this being pretty amazing and just as heartbreaking on screen.
It reminded me how much I love historical fiction and introduced me to an author that I'm looking forward to reading more from.
This book also kind of destroyed me. I cried and raged, but then again, anything about the Holocaust usually has that effect on me.
The content matter in itself is always sobering but I loved the focus on the women and what they did to survive the war, keep their families safe and fed, and help their neighbors and loved ones, even if it meant risking their own lives to help them. It was especially neat to find out that Isabelle was based on a real woman who helped downed pilots escape from France.
I enjoyed how the strained relationships between family members played out throughout the book. There was father-daughter conflict and the sisters were not close, either, which built a lot of tension in the story.
I'm really looking forward to the movie adaptation of this but, even though I've mentioned it in my Book to Movie Adaptations Master List, so far there is no cast and no word on if it will actually happen or how long we have to wait if it does. Still, I can see this being pretty amazing and just as heartbreaking on screen.
I lovveeeddd this books when I read it. It was such an emotional read. I remember sitting at my mom's kitchen table drinking tea and having tears stream down my face. I had no idea that they were coming out with a movie.
ReplyDeleteIt is rather heartbreaking! I really hope the adaptation happens! :D
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