The Siege (Dunmore novel)
 First edition (with quote from Antony Beevor) | |
| Author | Helen Dunmore |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Historical novel |
| Publisher | Viking |
Publication date | 2001 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 293 pp |
| ISBN | 0670897183 |
The Siege is a historical novel by the English writer Helen Dunmore. It is set in Leningrad just before and during the Siege of Leningrad by German forces in World War II.
Plot
The Siege of Leningrad was one of the key events of the twentieth century. In 1941, Hitler’s armies encircled Leningrad, confidently expecting to crush any resistance and enter the city, but Leningrad held out, in spite of almost unbelievable suffering. This novel focuses on the Levin family and their friends, trapped inside the besieged city. It’s a brilliantly imagined novel about war as experienced by ordinary people, and a profoundly moving celebration of love, life and survival. Shortlisted for the Whitbread Novel Award and for the Orange Prize for Fiction The Siege of Leningrad was one of the key events of the twentieth century.
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Reception
In The New York Times, Janice P. Nimura described the book as an "epic" and said that the language used was "elegantly, starkly beautiful".[1] John Mulian, in the Guardian Book Club, focusing on the importance of the basic need of sustenance to stay alive in the early days of the siege, says that the book, an "agonizing read", has at its heart "the realism of the senses", particularly that of taste.[2]
The book was shortlisted for the Orange Prize in 2002[3] and for the 2001 Whitbread Prize.[4]
References
- ^ Nimura, Janice P. (31 March 2002). "Scarcities". The New York Times.
- ^ Mulian, John (4 February 2011). "The Siege by Helen Dunmore". The Guardian.
- ^ "On the Orange Shortlist". The Guardian. 10 June 2002.
- ^ "McEwan hopes for atonement". The Guardian. 14 November 2001.