I put the spoiler tag on this because I wanted to be free to discuss the plot id anyone is interested.
I just finished the book last night. This my second long Vollmann novel. Fathers and Crows being the other. I’ve listened to three of his books on audio also.
Fathers and Crows is one of the best books I’ve read in the last 10 years.
I’m not sure how I feel about Europe Central. As much as the authors ability to come up with really great sentences, more often than any wrote I know of, impresses me. I really thought he could have used some editing on this one. Because of the books length I was thinking about this as I read. I got to about page 500 thinking this book is pretty tight. This guy is amazing.
There is an excruciatingly long chapter at about page 600 that made me rethink things. The chapter solidifies who the central character in the book is, at least the most discussed and even though the concept of the chapter was interesting and one could argue that a lengthy chapter was justified for emphasis it just went and on and turned into a slog.
The chapter entitled The Opus was, realizing as I write this, kind of riding a horse to death, yes I got it. The composer was a complex person, a rebel without a choice, meaning he was inherently rebellious; the primary, his spark as an artist was the rebellion followed by the secondary cause. In another situation he would have found something else to rebel against. Yes it’s a complex emotional portrayal. Which is Vollmann’s MO typically.
If anyone else has read Europe Central I am interested in your take. I’ve seen people on Reddit say it was their favorite WWII novel and I’m interested to see why.
Thank you.
by Gur10nMacab33
1 Comment
Read it last year, went in blind after seeing it was listed as a National Book Award recipient. It’s the only Vollmann book I’ve read. Here’s my 2 cents:
It’s long, and at times I questioned whether I was wasting my life reading it.
What I enjoyed: Learning about historical figures such as Lenin’s wife Nadezdha Krupskaya. I spent a great deal reading about the characters outside of the book, and probably enjoyed that more than their plots in the novel.
The Kurt Gerstein plot really brought joy, him seeing the atrocities of war and of the Nazi regime.
What I hated: Legnth. It’s ironic because I actually enjoy classical music quite a bit, but the Shostakovich chapters killed me mentally. Some aspects of them like the composer working as a fire look out during the siege intrigued me but overall his chapters were a bore for me.
In the end, I’ve never recommended this book to any of my fellow literary lovers. I can’t in good faith tell anyone it’s worth reading. I’m not an expert and others clearly love it, but as much as I wanted to love it my ranking is a mediocre 5/10.