City of Thieves by David Benioff

City of Thieves
by David Benioff
Pub. Date: May 15, 2008
Genre: Fiction - historical
259pp

First Line
"My grandfather, the knife fighter, killed two Germans before he was eighteen."

Why I Picked It:
I was in a discussion about different books, and this book was mentioned. The way it was discussed, I decided I had to check it out.

My Review:
I'm not well versed in Russian/German/okay, any sort of European history. I was intrigued by the passion others spoke of it, and excited to read this book with its fictionalized telling of the Nazi's brutal siege of Leningrad (St. Petersburg) and those who survived it.

From BN.com: Lev Beniov is arrested for looting and thrown into the same cell as a handsome deserter named Kolya. Instead of being executed, Lev and Kolya are given a shot at saving their own lives by complying with an outrageous directive: secure a dozen eggs for a powerful Soviet colonel to use in his daughter's wedding cake. In a city cut off from all supplies and suffering unbelievable deprivation, Lev and Kolya embark on a hunt through the dire lawlessness of Leningrad and behind enemy lines to find the impossible...

Did you catch that? Lev BENIOV... And the author is David BENIOFF? The book is set up to be his grandfather's story. And the details his grandfather couldn't remember? He says to David, "You're a writer. Make it up." And so the story begins.

His mother and sister having fled the city before the siege began, Lev is all alone in Leningrad save for the remaining tenants in his building. At 17, he is insecure about his scrawny size, his larger than average nose, and his lack of experience with women. Kolya is exactly the opposite - he's confident in any situation, either facing death or in the company of women. War is ugly, and the things they see as they hunt for eggs within the city and across enemy lines -- death, desperation, cannibalism, destruction - are in someways balanced by hope and comfort of the little communities of survival that form.

It was of course, at times bleak, but it also was funny, and always a page turner. I was constantly in fear for the protagonist, which is what made me turn the pages so quickly. The courage of the characters and how determined and innovative they became, made the story a real triumph for me. I enjoyed how honest the language was (though crude, suggestive, but totally fitting for the characters) and I could vividly picture the conditions, the destruction... well, this is war, it's all to be expected.

What I didn't expect is how much I enjoyed this book. It only took me a few days to finish, and I was sad to have to put it down as I really wanted more at the end. It was an unexpected treasure of a book. I read the first few pages to Andrew, and now he's hooked. That says a lot since he is absolutely opposed to reading anything longer than a 3 page article in Sports Illustrated.

Why I tend to avoid these sorts of books, I do not know. I really enjoyed this one - to the point that I would love to travel there one day, with a detour into Sweden as well...

2010 Challenge: 17 Read, 33 to go!