The 1930s in Fiction and Non-Fiction
A couple recent reads are very different, but both take place in the 1930s:
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles, 2011.
The opening of the novel sets us up to wonder: What happened to Tinkey Grey? Instead of a rags to riches story, it must be a riches to rags story. The story takes place on New Year's Eve 1937, and the story mainly takes place in a single year's span (1938). Even though it's set several years after The Great Gatsby, for some reason the novel kept reminding me of that book. (Admittedly, I haven't read Gatsby since high school, and don't remember the details.)
In case you're wondering what The Rules of Civility are: they were written down by George Washington when he was growing up, and detail how a man should behave. GW tried to model his behavior after those rules.
In the book, a major theme seems to be that people aren't necessarily what you believe them to be. (Is that why this book reminds me of Gatsby?) It was an interesting read, but occasionally I felt as though I was missing something; that there was more to the book that I wasn't quite getting.
Apparently this is Amor Towles' debut. If I see another book by him it wouldn't be a must-read, but I would definitely consider reading another novel by him.
In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson, 2011.
The book mostly takes place between 1933 and the beginning of 1938. It focuses on the Dodd family, whose patriarch was ambassador to Germany during that time. They lived near a park called the Tiergarten, from which the title of the book is derived. Obviously, the title has darker symbolism, as Hitler is chancellor during this time. Although World War II hasn't officially started by the time Dodd leaves Berlin, in reality the violence has begun in Germany.
Was the war inevitable? That seems to be one of the questions of the book. Certainly there were those who recognized what was happening and where it would lead. If things had been handled differently, if warning signs had been heeded, could the Holocaust the the war have been prevented? Of course we will never know for sure, but this book certainly makes you wonder.
The story isn't all dark. There are occasional flashes of humor. And the romances are intriguing--Dodd's daughter, Martha, certainly had interesting experiences whilst in Germany. But of course there isn't a happy ending to the story.
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles, 2011.
The opening of the novel sets us up to wonder: What happened to Tinkey Grey? Instead of a rags to riches story, it must be a riches to rags story. The story takes place on New Year's Eve 1937, and the story mainly takes place in a single year's span (1938). Even though it's set several years after The Great Gatsby, for some reason the novel kept reminding me of that book. (Admittedly, I haven't read Gatsby since high school, and don't remember the details.)
In case you're wondering what The Rules of Civility are: they were written down by George Washington when he was growing up, and detail how a man should behave. GW tried to model his behavior after those rules.
In the book, a major theme seems to be that people aren't necessarily what you believe them to be. (Is that why this book reminds me of Gatsby?) It was an interesting read, but occasionally I felt as though I was missing something; that there was more to the book that I wasn't quite getting.
Apparently this is Amor Towles' debut. If I see another book by him it wouldn't be a must-read, but I would definitely consider reading another novel by him.
In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson, 2011.
The book mostly takes place between 1933 and the beginning of 1938. It focuses on the Dodd family, whose patriarch was ambassador to Germany during that time. They lived near a park called the Tiergarten, from which the title of the book is derived. Obviously, the title has darker symbolism, as Hitler is chancellor during this time. Although World War II hasn't officially started by the time Dodd leaves Berlin, in reality the violence has begun in Germany.
Was the war inevitable? That seems to be one of the questions of the book. Certainly there were those who recognized what was happening and where it would lead. If things had been handled differently, if warning signs had been heeded, could the Holocaust the the war have been prevented? Of course we will never know for sure, but this book certainly makes you wonder.
The story isn't all dark. There are occasional flashes of humor. And the romances are intriguing--Dodd's daughter, Martha, certainly had interesting experiences whilst in Germany. But of course there isn't a happy ending to the story.