I lost my original post. I will try to reconstruct my thoughts. Sorry about that.
I did research online of the word Upior and found that it is a Polish name for a vampire. The Upior goes a step further in that it eats its victims.
The author points out in the story how even though brutality became a way of life for the German soldiers, there still were glimpses of compassion that managed to slip through - the soldier who explained how to clean the windows instead of yelling at her, the times that Franz kept her from further harm by having her work in his office, the time he sent her to the hospital when he knew if she stayed in his office she would be taken away and killed, the times that her speaking German became an excuse to help her.
We may not all have a physical disfigurement, but many of us have an emotional disfigurement that keeps us from wanting to be open about ourselves to others. Sage had a very difficult time honestly sharing about herself and even wound up hiding in a night job so she didn't have to face others. I could relate to that in Sage.
In the grandmother's story there was one part that I was not sure about. In all that I have read about the war, the soldiers from all sides of the conflict went through the countryside confiscating all the livestock and supplies of the farms. It seemed strange that that farm appeared to be unaffected in that way.
At the end of the story, I thought about the two brothers, Franz and Reiner, and how some things about them should have clued me to the fact that Josef Weber was Franze and not Reiner. Franz was the studious one, not Reiner, so it made more sense that he would have become a teacher in the U.S.
I was surprised and saddened that in the end Sage helped Josef with his death request. The author leaves us hanging as to what happens between Sage and Leo after that. It wouldn't take much to put the evidence together and find that she had a part in his death, especially since she had told Leo that Josef had asked her to help him die.
I thought it said in the book that it is the Polish word for vampire? Were you just double-checking?
We hear similar stories of compassion from real survivors, but I thought it was interesting that you mentioned several by Franz. Early in the book, I expected Franz not to work within the Nazi system and was surprised to find him later in a position of control over a camp with exterminations.
I wish we would have found out more about Sage. It never became completely clear what happened during the car crash and the aftermath that left her so emotionally scarred.
You are right about the farm, I had read similar things. Do you think it just appeared relatively untouched? It could be that it was how it appeared to her grandmother rather than how it really was? Maybe they had one scrawny hen and an emaciated cow, but that seemed like plenty to a girl from a concentration camp?
I had actually pieced together that it was Franz. Not early on, but before Sage did. It was the fact that he felt such guilt. I couldn't imagine Reiner feeling that guilt. However, someone who hadn't embraced Nazism, but still worked within the system? I can imagine them wanting to end their lives. Plus, Reiner had been an alcoholic and there was little evidence of that in the man Sage knew.
I also wondered about Sage and Leo after that. If Leo did find out, think of the emotional turmoil he would suffer about turning her in or not turning her in. But if he doesn't, how can Sage live with that knowledge without sharing? It begins their relationship with a lie. I just don't see the relationship lasting either way.
The ending felt typical Jodi Picoult. She always leaves you feeling dissatisfied. On the other hand, I was glad that Sage did help Josef with his death request, but I didn't like the way she did it. Denying forgiveness at the end seemed unusually cruel. And I can't help but think that she would have regretted it even if it had been Reiner and not Franz.
On page 430 Sage tells about the car crash. She believes deep down that her sisters blame her for the accident and her mother's death. And when her mother was dying, her mother said I forgive you. Sage says there's no reason to forgive someone, unless you know they've done something wrong. So Sage believes she is responsible for her mother's death. That certainly would leave emotional scars that would be hard to get over.
4 comments:
B- you didn't comment! I finished it this morning. It took me a while because I got nightmares if I read it before bed.
What a depressing book! Well-written, of course, which is typical of Jodi Picoult, but still depressing.
What are your thoughts?
I lost my original post. I will try to reconstruct my thoughts. Sorry about that.
I did research online of the word Upior and found that it is a Polish name for a vampire. The Upior goes a step further in that it eats its victims.
The author points out in the story how even though brutality became a way of life for the German soldiers, there still were glimpses of compassion that managed to slip through - the soldier who explained how to clean the windows instead of yelling at her, the times that Franz kept her from further harm by having her work in his office, the time he sent her to the hospital when he knew if she stayed in his office she would be taken away and killed, the times that her speaking German became an excuse to help her.
We may not all have a physical disfigurement, but many of us have an emotional disfigurement that keeps us from wanting to be open about ourselves to others. Sage had a very difficult time honestly sharing about herself and even wound up hiding in a night job so she didn't have to face others. I could relate to that in Sage.
In the grandmother's story there was one part that I was not sure about. In all that I have read about the war, the soldiers from all sides of the conflict went through the countryside confiscating all the livestock and supplies of the farms. It seemed strange that that farm appeared to be unaffected in that way.
At the end of the story, I thought about the two brothers, Franz and Reiner, and how some things about them should have clued me to the fact that Josef Weber was Franze and not Reiner. Franz was the studious one, not Reiner, so it made more sense that he would have become a teacher in the U.S.
I was surprised and saddened that in the end Sage helped Josef with his death request. The author leaves us hanging as to what happens between Sage and Leo after that. It wouldn't take much to put the evidence together and find that she had a part in his death, especially since she had told Leo that Josef had asked her to help him die.
Yes, a depressing book, and yes well written.
I thought it said in the book that it is the Polish word for vampire? Were you just double-checking?
We hear similar stories of compassion from real survivors, but I thought it was interesting that you mentioned several by Franz. Early in the book, I expected Franz not to work within the Nazi system and was surprised to find him later in a position of control over a camp with exterminations.
I wish we would have found out more about Sage. It never became completely clear what happened during the car crash and the aftermath that left her so emotionally scarred.
You are right about the farm, I had read similar things. Do you think it just appeared relatively untouched? It could be that it was how it appeared to her grandmother rather than how it really was? Maybe they had one scrawny hen and an emaciated cow, but that seemed like plenty to a girl from a concentration camp?
I had actually pieced together that it was Franz. Not early on, but before Sage did. It was the fact that he felt such guilt. I couldn't imagine Reiner feeling that guilt. However, someone who hadn't embraced Nazism, but still worked within the system? I can imagine them wanting to end their lives. Plus, Reiner had been an alcoholic and there was little evidence of that in the man Sage knew.
I also wondered about Sage and Leo after that. If Leo did find out, think of the emotional turmoil he would suffer about turning her in or not turning her in. But if he doesn't, how can Sage live with that knowledge without sharing? It begins their relationship with a lie. I just don't see the relationship lasting either way.
The ending felt typical Jodi Picoult. She always leaves you feeling dissatisfied. On the other hand, I was glad that Sage did help Josef with his death request, but I didn't like the way she did it. Denying forgiveness at the end seemed unusually cruel. And I can't help but think that she would have regretted it even if it had been Reiner and not Franz.
On page 430 Sage tells about the car crash. She believes deep down that her sisters blame her for the accident and her mother's death. And when her mother was dying, her mother said I forgive you. Sage says there's no reason to forgive someone, unless you know they've done something wrong. So Sage believes she is responsible for her mother's death. That certainly would leave emotional scars that would be hard to get over.
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