Smashbomb

Search

Search results

All (3983)

Content

We Fly Beneath the Stars [Audiobook]

Suzanne Kelman

8.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

Book

1942, Europe: Based on the true story of a female-only bomber battalion, this is a totally...

Life, Death and Biscuits

Anthea Allen

5.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

Book

An extraordinarily powerful memoir based on the diaries of intensive care nurse Anthea Allen, who...

Leningrad: The People's War (Leningrad #1) by Rachel R. Heil

Rachel R. Heil

(0 Ratings) Rate It

Book

Leningrad, 1941. As Europe crumbles under the German war machine, the people of the So-viet Union...

World War II Historical Fiction Leningrad

The Magi Menagerie (The Magi Menagerie #1)

Kale Lawrence

(0 Ratings) Rate It

Book

Some stars aren't meant to be followed... For seventeen years, Ezra Newport and his parents were...

Young Adult New Adult Fantasy Historical

Kyera (8 KP) rated Gentleman's Guide To Vice And Virtue in Books

Jan 31, 2018

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue is a hilarious romp through the 1700's. Monty is a well-off, yet rakish gentleman who is sent off of a Grand Tour of Europe with his best friend, Percy and his sister, Felicity. Three the manage to, of course, get into trouble and a wonderfully fun journey for the reader ensues. This light, humorous, historical fiction read is a must - even if you don't think you're normally a historical fiction person.

Monty is quite enamored with himself and unconcerned about the responsibility that his title infers that he should possess. He doesn't think through his actions and gets in more trouble than the pretty face of his would lead you to believe. Despite that, and despite his absolute ineptitude, you can't help but love him as a character. His shenanigans and lack of forethought throw the trio into a situation that they might not make it out of unscathed.

Percy, his best friend, is much more responsible and adds a perspective to the history that we might not think of otherwise. Although his father is a titled man, he fathered Percy with a woman of colour which gives readers the perspective of a man of mixed-race rather than the white-privilege that we see from Monty. Felicity is well-educated because she is stubborn and refuses to bow to the whims of society. She wants to study medicine, so she finds any book she can on the subject and devours it. Felicity's character also allows readers to see the position of a woman in those times, to realize how far we have come in the treatment of woman, or just anyone who is not a Caucasian male, their equality, and how far we still have to go on all accounts.

I have noticed that some people find the story to be slow, which is not quite how I would describe it. The first few chapters might be tough to get into as it is not immediately the energy of a swashbuckling pirate adventure or high stakes battle in space, but it does find its stride. The journey the reader is taken on is highly enjoyable and certainly worth the slower early build up. Plus the flirting is precious and I want to believe that it is a historically accurate portrayal of a person from that time period.

Mackenzie Lee does a wonderful job of taking us on a Grand Tour of Europe, despite the fact that most of us probably are not familiar with the continent in the 1700's. She adds authentic little items into the story like cities, events or jobs that make the story feel real. It is clear that she did a lot of research and it makes her book shine.

I highly recommend this to young adult/teen readers even if they don't feel that they are historical fiction readers. This story is fun and will give you all of the feels, although you may want to hit Monty upside the head a few times. This cute story will leave you wanting more of the trio and wondering if you are a historical fiction fan after all.

Kudos

Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated Hidden Gold: A True Story of the Holocaust in Books

Jan 23, 2020

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I'm generally not a memoir person. But if I'm going to read a memoir (or even nonfiction), I'll choose anything about the Holocaust (I find that time period sadistically interesting).

Hidden Gold deserves about as much praise as Anne Frank's Diary of a Young Girl. A story set in another part of Europe (Poland) during Hitler's reign, Burakowski tells us her family's survival, hidden away from society in the hopes that they won't be found out.

For two years, the Golds hid with the Lanskis in a small part of a barn in Kolkow, surviving with very little sustenance. During that time, their hope dwindles little by little, but the two families still cling on to their pasts, even if that life will be impossible to get back to after everything blows over.

I loved how Burakowski introduces us to her family and the people that the Golds were involved with, giving us lots of background information on how Leib met Hanna and how the Golds lived their life in the early parts of the war. Burakowski also gives us insight on the growing hypocrisy and horrors among society as Hitler's power and anti-Semitism grew, giving us visuals on how life was like for the Jews back in the late 1930s and early 1940s. We're also shown the inner turmoils going on with those who had good relations with Jews and now having to choose whether or not they should help Jews, or give in to the propaganda.

Shoshana, Hanna's daughter, is extremely admirable. She's willing to go out to the Germans, pretending to be one of them, to buy her family time. She is also willing to risk her life a few times to get her family's money from Pi?czów, and going back again while she felt ill. If I were in her place, I'd probably continue to curl up in a fetal little ball. (Despite the fact I'm considered living in "poverty," I'm pretty much a lucky duckling. Also, being an only child, I'm probably a little spoiled.)

David is perhaps one of those where all the feels will come. Like any little kid, he's full of mischief and mayhem, but going through such a dark time at a really young age, he's extremely brave, confident, and has the most hope for the family getting out alive.

Although most of Hidden Gold is focused on the Gold's survival during Hitler running rampant with the final solution, Burakowski finalizes the story from David's viewpoint with how each of the family members were impacted years later in the future. For those interested in what happened in other parts of Europe or a survival story outside of concentration camps, Ella Burakowski's Hidden Gold makes a fantastic contribution depicting the horrors of the Holocaust.

<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/arc-review-hidden-gold-by-ella-burakowski/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>