∎ PDF The Unwomanly Face of War An Oral History of Women in World War II Svetlana Alexievich Richard Pevear Larissa Volokhonsky 9780399588723 Books

The Unwomanly Face of War An Oral History of Women in World War II Svetlana Alexievich Richard Pevear Larissa Volokhonsky 9780399588723 Books

Download As PDF : The Unwomanly Face of War An Oral History of Women in World War II Svetlana Alexievich Richard Pevear Larissa Volokhonsky 9780399588723 Books

The Unwomanly Face of War An Oral History of Women in World War II Svetlana Alexievich Richard Pevear Larissa Volokhonsky 9780399588723 Books

I cried so many times reading this book that I forced myself to stop and not pick it up again the next day multiple times. I am not one to write reviews, but for those of us who were lucky enough to have never seen war, know conceptually that it's a terrible thing, and somehow idealize the heroism of it, this book will set you straight.

I didn't know anything about this book until it was recommended in The Economist. I was curious because I read a lot of books on history and wars, and was baited by the idea of stories from women on the front lines - not at the factories working. It was purely out of intellectual interest - come to think of it, all the books I read on the topic were written by men....

Once I started reading, I could not stop. Between tears and tissues, I kept reading. I read until I was sobbing so hard I couldn't see through my tears. The feelings of fear, pain, courage, grief, hope...of girls half my age...it was heart-wrenching. At their age I was having first world teenager problems of pimples and wanting to be popular. I could not be more embarrassed.

These stories cannot be made up - not something this raw, this brutal, this...human.

I write this review in the hopes to encourage more people to read it. There's no need to convince people that war is bad. This book will show you - straight to your heart.


Tags : The Unwomanly Face of War: An Oral History of Women in World War II [Svetlana Alexievich, Richard Pevear, Larissa Volokhonsky] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <b>A long-awaited English translation of the groundbreaking oral history of women in World War II across Europe and Russia—from the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature</b> <b>NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY</b> <b> The Washington Post</i> •  The Guardian</i> • NPR •  The Economist</i> •  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel</i> •  Kirkus Reviews</i></b> For more than three decades,Svetlana Alexievich, Richard Pevear, Larissa Volokhonsky,The Unwomanly Face of War: An Oral History of Women in World War II,Random House,0399588728,Europe - Russia & The Former Soviet Union,Military - World War Ii,Women,Women and war - Soviet Union,World War, 1939-1945,World War, 1939-1945 - Participation, Female,World War, 1939-1945 - Women - Soviet Union,World War, 1939-1945;Participation, Female.,World War, 1939-1945;Personal narratives, Russian.,World War, 1939-1945;Women;Soviet Union.,GENERAL,General Adult,HISTORY Military World War II,HISTORY Russia & the Former Soviet Union,HISTORY Women,History,HistoryMilitary - World War II,HistoryRussia & the Former Soviet Union,HistoryWorld,History: World,Non-Fiction,ORAL HISTORY,United States,WOMEN IN THE MILITARY,WORLD WAR II - EUROPE,Women's Studies,oral history; WWII history; European history; Russian history; women's 20th century history; women's studies; oral history of war; oral history of women in war; Nobel Prize winner; Women in war; Women soldiers; Female soldiers; Female snipers; World War II; World War 2; World War II history; Russian women; Soviet Union; Soviet Union history; Soviet Union women; Former Soviet Union; Nobel Prize; Nobel Prize literature; Communism; Communist women; women's history; war; military history; military; women in history,women in history;military history;military;war;oral history;WWII history;European history;Russian history;women's 20th century history;women's studies;oral history of war;oral history of women in war;Nobel Prize winner;Women in war;Women soldiers;Female soldiers;Female snipers;World War II;World War 2;World War II history;Russian women;Soviet Union;Soviet Union history;Soviet Union women;Former Soviet Union;Nobel Prize;Nobel Prize literature;Communism;Communist women;women's history;world war 2,HISTORY Military World War II,HISTORY Russia & the Former Soviet Union,HISTORY Women,HistoryMilitary - World War II,HistoryRussia & the Former Soviet Union,Women In The Military,World War II - Europe,History,History: World

The Unwomanly Face of War An Oral History of Women in World War II Svetlana Alexievich Richard Pevear Larissa Volokhonsky 9780399588723 Books Reviews

I thought this was an outstanding albeit impressionistic contribution to Western understanding of the Soviet war effort in the Second World War. I'd consider this a must-read for anybody who wants to get a sense of the insanity of the Second World War and its human cost. It's all here the patriotism and unbelievable courage of the average subject of the Soviet Union; the insane stupidity of Stalin and his regime's destruction of the Soviet army immediately before the war began; the brutality of the war itself and the errors of Soviet leadership that worsened it (sending unarmed Russians into battle against German Panzer divisions, Russian troops without boots in winter, starvation rations, etc.); the needless brutality of Nazi soldiers, the futility and stupidity of war in general. All of this told in a rather impressionistic style gleaned from interviews with female veterans, who tell their tragic tale sparingly and eloquently. The final lines of the book underscore the beauty of the author's narrative "for a long time after the war I was afraid of the sky, oven of raising my head towards the sky. I was afraid of seeing plowed-up earth. But the rooks already walked calmly over it. The birds quickly forgot the war.."
A truly great book. To say it is moving is a huge understatement. These women suffered as teenagers what most people can not even imagine. The war was a holocaust beyond imagination. They saw things happen that are burned into their memories. Each woman's statement complements and expounds on the others. It is not an easy read. But it gives you a unique perspective on war and why it must be prevented in all cases. These horrors do not justify the world that resulted as a result. So many lives were shattered and the political ramifications were not a solution either. Their stories should be recorded for history and taught to our children in every country. Alexievich deserves the Nobel Prize more than any other writer. It must be hell to catalogue these stories, and this was only her first book, which is expanded with material that was censored when the book was first released in the 1980's. She has gone on the write similar books on Chernobyl, the Afghan war, and the collapse of the Soviet Union. But this is her gem. You can not read it straight through. You have to read it in segments and then take some time to reflect on it. Utterly devastating!
There aren't enough stars for this book, the best war chronicle ever written.Theirs was the first generation lifted from serfdom, they became doctors, nurses, pilots, snipers, drivers, tank commanders, partisans and regular infantry. They were wounded, tortured, raped and killed. After indescribable horrors they returned to their villages and were often rejected as trench whores. The book is not nihilistic but very sobering A species that produces such people has a fighting chance. It is essential for anyone wishing to understand Russia, Communism, or German fascism.
One fragment "As soon as I begin telling this story, I get sick again. I’m talking, my insides turn to jelly, everything is shaking. I see it all again, I picture it how the dead lie—their mouths are open, they were shouting something and never finished shouting, their guts are ripped out. …And how frightening! How frightening is hand-to-hand combat, where men go at each other with bayonets…Bare bayonets. You start stammering, for several days you can’t get the words out correctly. You lose speech. Can those who weren’t there understand this? How do you tell about it? With what face? Well, answer me—with what face should I remember this? Others can somehow…They’re able to…But me—no. I weep. Yet this must be preserved, it must."

Alexievich, Svetlana. The Unwomanly Face of War An Oral History of Women in World War II (p. 330). Random House Publishing Group. Edition.
I cried so many times reading this book that I forced myself to stop and not pick it up again the next day multiple times. I am not one to write reviews, but for those of us who were lucky enough to have never seen war, know conceptually that it's a terrible thing, and somehow idealize the heroism of it, this book will set you straight.

I didn't know anything about this book until it was recommended in The Economist. I was curious because I read a lot of books on history and wars, and was baited by the idea of stories from women on the front lines - not at the factories working. It was purely out of intellectual interest - come to think of it, all the books I read on the topic were written by men....

Once I started reading, I could not stop. Between tears and tissues, I kept reading. I read until I was sobbing so hard I couldn't see through my tears. The feelings of fear, pain, courage, grief, hope...of girls half my age...it was heart-wrenching. At their age I was having first world teenager problems of pimples and wanting to be popular. I could not be more embarrassed.

These stories cannot be made up - not something this raw, this brutal, this...human.

I write this review in the hopes to encourage more people to read it. There's no need to convince people that war is bad. This book will show you - straight to your heart.