tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post6045977928525647265..comments2024-01-02T15:37:04.858-05:00Comments on Caravana de recuerdos: The Stalin FrontRichardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-54656134548439287612012-12-01T10:52:08.272-05:002012-12-01T10:52:08.272-05:00I heard you loud and clear on the non-joyful front...I heard you loud and clear on the non-joyful front, Caroline! Have to say that I'm not all that familiar with the "WWII romance-entertainment" complex from close up other than having seen <em>The English Patient</em> movie adaptation back in the day (i.e. I've seen those sorts of books on blogs and in the bookstores without having read any that I can think of), but I can relate to you being kind of tired of them. I'm tired of them without even having tried one! Kiefer I will definitely <em>investigate</em> soon although I fear my remark about "investing [sic] his paintings" up above might have sent the wrong message about how profitable my blog career has been from a financial point of view. Cheers! Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-83932988592183186842012-11-30T14:34:35.889-05:002012-11-30T14:34:35.889-05:00Welcome to the blog, Nisa! I haven't read All...Welcome to the blog, Nisa! I haven't read <em>All Quiet on the Western Front</em> (or at least not since I can remember as I head into middle age), so I'm not sure how the two works compare. I believe Caroline makes a comparison of the works of sorts in a comment on her blog, though. This book is <em>extremely</em> pessimistic and visceral (no pun intended), though, which makes sense given the topic.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-1854798506773942782012-11-30T14:28:46.733-05:002012-11-30T14:28:46.733-05:00I think the writing style and the themes made Ledi...I think the writing style and the themes made Ledig's work feel truer to what I imagine war must be like than many other books I've read, Rise, but I do wonder if maybe the novelist was just a little over the top on occasion. Not a major critique by any means. The link was my pleasure, by the way!Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-13104750572206637342012-11-30T13:58:40.319-05:002012-11-30T13:58:40.319-05:00Richard, i did get you and despite the fact that I...Richard, i did get you and despite the fact that I wrote I liked it I'm not going to read it again very soon, maybe not at all. It wasn't liking in the sense of joyful. I'm just somehwta tired with the massive WWII romance-entertainment production, not that might not enjoy it occasionally but I know very well - those were no "romantic" times. <br />I agree on Saving Private Ryan. <br />Kiefer is an amazing painter, I hope you'll see some of his paintings once in a gallery or a museum. They are huge. A very interesting painter. Carolinehttp://beautyisasleepingcat.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-14641242218860746892012-11-30T12:20:52.318-05:002012-11-30T12:20:52.318-05:00If you're all warred out in your reading, Tony...If you're all warred out in your reading, Tony, I'd think that this book is <em>definitely</em> not for you! However, it is indeed "powerful" and "well-done" from this reader's point of view. Also rather numbing...Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-32482781735801800282012-11-30T12:17:15.500-05:002012-11-30T12:17:15.500-05:00I meant for "uncompromising" here to be ...I meant for "uncompromising" here to be intended as a compliment to Ledig and his vision, Caroline, but I'm still surprised at how in your face the work is some 50 years plus after the fact. He couldn't have expected to sell many copies of such a book, could he? Totally agree with you about the artistic integrity of this work as compared to something crappy and manipulative like <em>Saving Private Ryan</em>; in fact, I personally hate that film because after the famous high-voltage and jolting opening, it rapidly descends into a sentimental buddy movie only with war as a backdrop. In my recollection of it at least, the rest of that movie is a betrayal of its own opening sequences.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-29593709594577368142012-11-30T12:04:43.797-05:002012-11-30T12:04:43.797-05:00Thanks for selecting and thus bringing my attentio...Thanks for selecting and thus bringing my attention to the title, Caroline. In case it's not clear, I didn't dislike <em>The Stalin Front</em> but I'm not sure it's a work I would choose to reread either. Also, thanks for mentioning Anselm Kiefer here and over at your post--I wasn't familiar with him, but I look forward to investing his paintings.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-37380887706888611652012-11-30T11:16:51.428-05:002012-11-30T11:16:51.428-05:00Hmm...sounds interesting at least. Reminds me a bi...Hmm...sounds interesting at least. Reminds me a bit of "All Quiet on the Western Front", but more brutal. How would you say the two compare? Nisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02134954614122167115noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-14913327768044657352012-11-30T05:52:11.097-05:002012-11-30T05:52:11.097-05:00I guess overall the writing style achieved a sense...I guess overall the writing style achieved a sense of realism of what war is, without the usual cosmetics of epic stories (like what Caroline mentioned about heroism stories).<br /><br />Thanks for the link, Richard.Risehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17446964640160585194noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-53037348667397818862012-11-30T05:27:01.502-05:002012-11-30T05:27:01.502-05:00I sat this one out - judging by your review, I mad...I sat this one out - judging by your review, I made a good choice. To be honest, I'm a bit warred out in my reading...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07546287562521628467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-65923188526736748692012-11-30T04:53:35.511-05:002012-11-30T04:53:35.511-05:00Btw - the fact tht it is so uncompromising is what...Btw - the fact tht it is so uncompromising is what I liked about it. I have problems with movies and books like Saving Private Ryan where the audience still thinks that heroism makes things better and that even war has its beauty. Carolinehttp://beautyisasleepingcat.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-24737730567619114472012-11-30T04:49:58.066-05:002012-11-30T04:49:58.066-05:00Thanks Richard for this review and - hmmm - I must...Thanks Richard for this review and - hmmm - I must have watched too many war movies, I really liked this book. I liked the way it as written. I also love the paintings of Anselm Kiefer and they have a similar feel. Unfortunetly, war is/was forgotten far too qucikly, that's why he chose to write it like this and ultimately that's why it was not re-published for a very long time. Carolinehttp://beautyisasleepingcat.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com