Monday, October 22, 2007

The Endless Steppe

by Esther Hautzig

There's a difference between fiction and reality, between real life adventure and adventures crafted by a capable storyteller. A good piece of fiction will move you along steadily, over hill and valley to bring you to the climax. In reality, sometimes you seem to be moving aimlessly, from joy to crisis, and sometimes the story ends not with a triumphant crescendo, but with a quiet sigh of relief. Anyway, that was what was going through my mind as I finished up this book. It's an autobiographical tales of Ms. Hautzig's experience during World War II. One nice day in June of 1941, she, her parents and paternal grandparents were taken from their home in Vilna, Poland and shipped across hundreds of miles to Rubtsovsk, Siberia. It's a tale of hardship, survival and, in a sense, pioneering spirit. But unlike some of the historical fiction I've recently read, it doesn't flow with excitement and drama. Ah, well. It took a bit more effort to read, but it offers a peek into another world. 'Twas definitely worth the inconvenience.

Check it out!
LibraryThing link

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