Follows the fates of five interrelated families--American, German, Russian, English, and Welsh--as they move through the dramas of the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and the struggle for women's suffrage.
Sigue los destinos de cinco familias interrelacionadas--una estadounidense, una alemana, una rusa, una inglesa, y una galesa--mientras pasan por los dramas de la Primera Guerra Mundial, la Revolucio n Rusa, y la lucha por el sufragio femenino.
Esan lajeikek, hauxe izan dala nere lehelengo ikastaldixa lekuotan 1914-1919 artian gertatutako gorabeherei buruz. Oiñ arte, zeharka baiño ez juat izan hango barririk. Best seller formulan -maitasun historiak, klase gatazkak, gaizkillien kontuak-, gertakari historikuak errezago irunsten dittuk. Imajinatzen juat Billy Williamsen historixiak Folletten jatorrittik be asko dala: kuriosua egin jatak ezkerreko kristauen profil hori ezagutzia. Oin, bigarren liburuari ekitteko gogoz!
So many pointless parts to this story. I'm not against people including sex in their stories, but every sex scene felt entirely pointless; I don't think they need to have 'story' purpose, but they just felt wedged in as if they'd keep people engaged because the rest of the book didn't. Lev's relationship with Marga? Pointless. The half-baked plot devices to get characters where they should be? Mostly ridiculous.
It's a shame, too. Clearly, a lot of research went into this book to tell the story of the history. But there was literally about 200 pages that felt meaningless. There were characters who could have been utilised better to tell more of the history, but they weren't.
I respect a lot about this book, but I am forever frustrated by sex scenes that men write. If you can spend months researching the intricacies of WWI, you can take an hour …
So many pointless parts to this story. I'm not against people including sex in their stories, but every sex scene felt entirely pointless; I don't think they need to have 'story' purpose, but they just felt wedged in as if they'd keep people engaged because the rest of the book didn't. Lev's relationship with Marga? Pointless. The half-baked plot devices to get characters where they should be? Mostly ridiculous.
It's a shame, too. Clearly, a lot of research went into this book to tell the story of the history. But there was literally about 200 pages that felt meaningless. There were characters who could have been utilised better to tell more of the history, but they weren't.
I respect a lot about this book, but I am forever frustrated by sex scenes that men write. If you can spend months researching the intricacies of WWI, you can take an hour to learn how a woman's body works. If you can't be bothered to do that, stop writing about things you refuse to understand.
This was a great read! It's kind of long and for some reason I read three other books while reading it. That sounds like it failed to keep my attention, but it's the opposite. After finishing some more "urgent" readings I came back to Fall of Giants without fail.
It has excellent pacing. Makes it feel like these years (1911-1925) never had a moment without drama. The story focuses on half a dozen viewpoint characters and a cast of recurring characters around them. We visit Wales, London, the Western Front, Germany, the Eastern Front, Petersburg, Buffalo, and more.
The character plots are excellent. They would stand up just as well in a fantasy universe. Many of them are lovable. But even the negative characters have charisma, and by the end at least we understand their point of view, even if we don't sympathize with them.
What takes the book from …
This was a great read! It's kind of long and for some reason I read three other books while reading it. That sounds like it failed to keep my attention, but it's the opposite. After finishing some more "urgent" readings I came back to Fall of Giants without fail.
It has excellent pacing. Makes it feel like these years (1911-1925) never had a moment without drama. The story focuses on half a dozen viewpoint characters and a cast of recurring characters around them. We visit Wales, London, the Western Front, Germany, the Eastern Front, Petersburg, Buffalo, and more.
The character plots are excellent. They would stand up just as well in a fantasy universe. Many of them are lovable. But even the negative characters have charisma, and by the end at least we understand their point of view, even if we don't sympathize with them.
What takes the book from good to great, though, is its historical setting. I know very little about history, and I'm willing to believe everything I read. It all looks super well researched, and I'm sure the book would not be so popular if it had glaring inaccuracies. I love the depictions of everyday life and economic differences between countries. How incredible German (Polish?) peasant houses looked to Russian soldiers, how even aristocrats in Germany went starving during the war, how children were put to work at 13 or earlier.
But what will stick with me the most is the condemnation of the aristocracy for everything that was wrong with the world. Fall of Giants smashed all romantic notions I may have had from watching Downton Abbey and showed how inherently evil this system of society was. The world has changed a lot in the hundred years since then and Fall of Giants has left me with a fresh perspective on these changes.
I haven't read much historic fiction but I can now certainly see it's appeal! It's just like a good fantasy novel. (Albeit in a very very low magic setting.) But when I rant about its world and its history my family is willing to hear me out!
I'm sure to read the other two books in the trilogy.
I’ll admit that I was sceptical, I was not a fan of the Pillars of the Earth. This was more sweeping in scope, more majestic and human in its drama, and engrossing and epic in every way. I’ve already got book 2 in the series on my nightstand
Möglicherweise ist es die lieblose Übersetzung, die sozusagen ohne jede sprachliche Kunst an der Geschichte entlangschreibt, aber vermutlich auch die originale Vorlage, daß mir dieses Buch überhaupt keinen Spaß gemacht hat. Nun kannte ich die geschichtlichen Daten recht gut (* für Christopher Clark!), sodaß die erfundenen Figuren um die realen herum wie überflüssiges Beiwerk erschienen, alle ziemlich künstlich miteinander verwoben mit Liebesgeschichten, Freund- und Verwandtschaften, ein bißchen wie aus einem Schreibseminar für Anfänger, wo wahllos alle gelernten Elemente verwendet werden.
Das Buch ist auch sehr politisch (die international venetzten Reichen haben diesen Krieg vom Zaun gebrochen auf Kosten der Armen). Die Idee ist ganz gut, kommt aber viel zu oberlehrerhaft (wieder!) daher, und einige Fäden, wie etwa die Suffragetten, werden gar nicht richtig durchgeführt.
Ach – es waren 1038 ziemlich überflüssige Seiten, und da ich recht langsam lese, auch viel verplemperte Zeit. ;-( Wer an der geschichtlichen Epoche interessiert …
Möglicherweise ist es die lieblose Übersetzung, die sozusagen ohne jede sprachliche Kunst an der Geschichte entlangschreibt, aber vermutlich auch die originale Vorlage, daß mir dieses Buch überhaupt keinen Spaß gemacht hat. Nun kannte ich die geschichtlichen Daten recht gut (* für Christopher Clark!), sodaß die erfundenen Figuren um die realen herum wie überflüssiges Beiwerk erschienen, alle ziemlich künstlich miteinander verwoben mit Liebesgeschichten, Freund- und Verwandtschaften, ein bißchen wie aus einem Schreibseminar für Anfänger, wo wahllos alle gelernten Elemente verwendet werden.
Das Buch ist auch sehr politisch (die international venetzten Reichen haben diesen Krieg vom Zaun gebrochen auf Kosten der Armen). Die Idee ist ganz gut, kommt aber viel zu oberlehrerhaft (wieder!) daher, und einige Fäden, wie etwa die Suffragetten, werden gar nicht richtig durchgeführt.
Ach – es waren 1038 ziemlich überflüssige Seiten, und da ich recht langsam lese, auch viel verplemperte Zeit. ;-( Wer an der geschichtlichen Epoche interessiert ist, ohne sie genau zu kennen, der mag von dem Buch etwas haben. Wer aber wirklich eintauchen möchte, dem sei das Buch von Clark ans Herz gelegt, es liest sich sowieso wie ein Kriminalroman (trotz des langen Eingangskapitels über den Balkan).
The subject of this book is essential reading; how badly our political leaders can screw up with no idea on the consequences of their selfish actions. Particularly worth reading around Remembrance Day (Veterans' Day). This is a fairly light-reading historical novel set in the period from the run-up to WWI up until shortly after the Paris conference that set the terms for German surrender. I have read quite a few history books covering this period and found it to be a good representation. I give it 5 stars because, although I could find a few faults here and there it kept me engaged even when tired and not able to read more literary or factual works, and the theme is essential reading. It covers the war: how it got started and the fateful decisions made during its conduct, leading to millions being slaughter. It also covers the women's suffrage movement, …
The subject of this book is essential reading; how badly our political leaders can screw up with no idea on the consequences of their selfish actions. Particularly worth reading around Remembrance Day (Veterans' Day). This is a fairly light-reading historical novel set in the period from the run-up to WWI up until shortly after the Paris conference that set the terms for German surrender. I have read quite a few history books covering this period and found it to be a good representation. I give it 5 stars because, although I could find a few faults here and there it kept me engaged even when tired and not able to read more literary or factual works, and the theme is essential reading. It covers the war: how it got started and the fateful decisions made during its conduct, leading to millions being slaughter. It also covers the women's suffrage movement, the rise of the British working class and the Labour Party and the Russian revolution. It has characters representing the points of view of - the British aristocracy, working class (miners) and servant class - the American presidency through one of his advisers - the Russian mafia in USA - the Russian aristocracy and revolutionaries - the German aristocracy through a disenchanted younger member it has both the historical threads and the personal lives of the characters. You may have guessed that it is a fairly thick book. I found it somewhat better writing (much less irritating) than his earlier historical series.
My rating is 4.5 stars, but it's qualified by the fact that I'm fascinated by WWI and the events leading up to it. In fact, that's why this was recommended to me, even though I'd be unlikely to pick up a Ken Follett novel otherwise. Fall of Giants is a sprawling, 852-page epic that follows about 10 different main characters who are situated in different parts of Europe (plus an American), from varying social classes and backgrounds, and we see each character's first-hand experience of living through four years of war. I've read many different historical accounts of WWI, but the fictional stories of each character really helped me get closer to the experience what it was like to be part of that time in history. If you aren't interested in WWI, it's not particularly exceptional as a novel. The plot is well-crafted and I had a hard-time putting it …
My rating is 4.5 stars, but it's qualified by the fact that I'm fascinated by WWI and the events leading up to it. In fact, that's why this was recommended to me, even though I'd be unlikely to pick up a Ken Follett novel otherwise. Fall of Giants is a sprawling, 852-page epic that follows about 10 different main characters who are situated in different parts of Europe (plus an American), from varying social classes and backgrounds, and we see each character's first-hand experience of living through four years of war. I've read many different historical accounts of WWI, but the fictional stories of each character really helped me get closer to the experience what it was like to be part of that time in history. If you aren't interested in WWI, it's not particularly exceptional as a novel. The plot is well-crafted and I had a hard-time putting it down, but as literature, it's average. But if you want to get a new perspective on that period in history, I would highly recommend it.
We follow the story of several characters at the beginning of the 20th century until a few years after WWI, in the UK, in Germany, in the US and in Russia. I found the book quite a long read - it took me three weeks to finish it (while not reading anything else), which is pretty rare, but it was fairly nice. And since I'm bad at history, I even learnt things.
Sadly, it's been a while since I finished this, but haven't logged it. Considering the size of this book, I'm going to plead failing memory; by the end, I couldn't even remember what happened at the beginning.
Fall of Giants is a massive fictional record of people in factual times. In a lot of cases, large book + historical fiction = dusty doorstop, but I like Follett's way of being able to stay on the engaging side of what could be an attention-span train-wreck. Not all scenes are exciting, but with a massive cast of characters, several plots both local and international, all set during both WWI AND the Russian Revolution (the story crosses both simultaneously), there's more than enough going to to ensure that if you just flip the next page, even the most unexciting passage could quickly give way to great dialog and plot-moving situations on the next.
Fængende historisk roman, selvom figurerne er på kanten til at være klicheer nogle gange. Den intelligente, men fattige tjenestepige og den arrogante og stolte jarl. Nogle af romanens helte er lidt for historisk bagkloge og mener de rigtige ting. Det er som de har replikker, som kommer fra Follets historiekonsulenter på romanen. Fx kan de forudse at der bliver en stor krig ud af Østrig-Ungarns ultimatum til Serbien, og den tyske officer Walter kæmper ihærdigt imod dolkestødslegenden efter krigen.
Men denne kritik viser jo bare, at man lever sig ind i historien, og jeg har da også følt mig godt underholdt igennem alle 935 sider. Spændende skildring af slaget ved Somme, kampen for kvinders stemmeret og den russiske revolution. Jeg vil da overveje at bruge uddrag herfra i undervisningen.
Jeg vil klart mene, at man kunne lave op til flere forskellige SRP-projekter i engelsk/historie …
Jeg har læst den danske version.
Fængende historisk roman, selvom figurerne er på kanten til at være klicheer nogle gange. Den intelligente, men fattige tjenestepige og den arrogante og stolte jarl. Nogle af romanens helte er lidt for historisk bagkloge og mener de rigtige ting. Det er som de har replikker, som kommer fra Follets historiekonsulenter på romanen. Fx kan de forudse at der bliver en stor krig ud af Østrig-Ungarns ultimatum til Serbien, og den tyske officer Walter kæmper ihærdigt imod dolkestødslegenden efter krigen.
Men denne kritik viser jo bare, at man lever sig ind i historien, og jeg har da også følt mig godt underholdt igennem alle 935 sider. Spændende skildring af slaget ved Somme, kampen for kvinders stemmeret og den russiske revolution. Jeg vil da overveje at bruge uddrag herfra i undervisningen.
Jeg vil klart mene, at man kunne lave op til flere forskellige SRP-projekter i engelsk/historie med udgangspunkt i denne roman.
Simply a masterpiece deserved to be mentioned in the same sentence as War and Peace or Shogun. Have been waiting for a book like this for some years mixing historical events and a good fictional background story in epic dimensions. Even if I'm interested in history, Fall of Giants gave me even new perspectives and things to think about on World War I.
Inhalt: Der erste Weltkrieg aus der Sicht von verschiedenen Menschen, die aus unterschiedlich Ländern stammen und auch deren Lebenssituationen sich nicht mehr unterscheiden könnten.
Die Geschichte beginnt in der Vorkriegszeit, wie entstand der Krieg, was für Auswirkungen hat er? Wie lebten die Menschen, wie reagierten sie? Und wie entwickeln sie sich, wenn Krieg herrscht? Ken Follett erzählt aus dem Leben von Menschen vor, während und nach dem Krieg.
Meine Meinung: "Sturz der Titanen" ist der erste Roman, den ich von Ken Follett gelesen habe. Bisher kannte ich nur "Die Säulen der Erde" in der Filmversion (die mir sehr gut gefallen hat!). Aber ich habe mich herangetraut und mir das Buch vorgenommen.
Es beginnt sehr packend. Billy ist ein perfekter Einstieg in die Geschichte. Bis zum Schluss habe ich am meisten mit ihm und seiner Familie (= Ethel) gefiebert. Er war mir …
Inhalt: Der erste Weltkrieg aus der Sicht von verschiedenen Menschen, die aus unterschiedlich Ländern stammen und auch deren Lebenssituationen sich nicht mehr unterscheiden könnten.
Die Geschichte beginnt in der Vorkriegszeit, wie entstand der Krieg, was für Auswirkungen hat er? Wie lebten die Menschen, wie reagierten sie? Und wie entwickeln sie sich, wenn Krieg herrscht? Ken Follett erzählt aus dem Leben von Menschen vor, während und nach dem Krieg.
Meine Meinung: "Sturz der Titanen" ist der erste Roman, den ich von Ken Follett gelesen habe. Bisher kannte ich nur "Die Säulen der Erde" in der Filmversion (die mir sehr gut gefallen hat!). Aber ich habe mich herangetraut und mir das Buch vorgenommen.
Es beginnt sehr packend. Billy ist ein perfekter Einstieg in die Geschichte. Bis zum Schluss habe ich am meisten mit ihm und seiner Familie (= Ethel) gefiebert. Er war mir auf Anhieb sympathisch und ich finde es sehr bemerkenswert, wie er in dem Bergwerk und mit den ganzen brutalen/schwierigen Menschen zurecht gekommen ist.
Stück für Stück präsentiert Ken Follett die einzelnen Personen und somit auch die unterschiedlichen Länder, die damals an dem ersten Weltkrieg beteiligt waren. England, USA, Russland, Deutschland. Jede der Hauptpersonen stellt sich mit einer persönlichen Geschichte vor. Ob Ruhm in der Gruppe, Liebe, Hass - von jedem ist etwas dabei.
Diese Vielseitigkeit macht das Buch interessant und spannend. Wenn eine Szene einer Person vorbei ist, war es immer so ein Gefühl von "Oh, nicht jetzt - ich will wissen, wie es weitergeht". Aber dann beginnt die nächste Szene einer anderen Person und man ist wieder voll bei ihr. Richtig unsympathisch ist keine Hauptperson, man kann die Beweggründe und die Handlungen meist nachvollziehen. Oft bleibt nicht die Wahl. Realistisch und teils auch dramatisch.
Man lernt über den ganzen Roman hinweg sehr viel über die damalige Zeit und die Lebensumstände. Wie krass der Unterschied zwischen armen und reichen Menschen war. Wie unterschiedlich aber auch das Leben in den verschiedenen Ländern sein kann. Viele Fragen werden aufgeworfen und bestimmt kann man sehr gut über dieses Buch und die Ansichten darin diskutieren.
So circa nach einem Drittel begann dann die politische Seite des Buches. Der Krieg drohte und die Verhandlungen begannen. Dieser Teil war nichts für mich. Natürlich möchte ich darüber erfahren und der Weg über einen Roman ist für mich immer der beste, aber dennoch war es mir hier zu viel. Sehr politisch, sehr viel Dialog. Nicht meins. Ich wollte mehr über die persönlichen Schicksale lesen.
Viel besser wurde es auch nicht, als der Krieg begann. Es ist sehr tragisch und schlimm. Die Stimmung ist bedrückend und das schlug sich auch auf mein Gemüt nieder. Ich verlor die Leselust an dem Buch und brauchte lange, um weiterzulesen. Ich musste mich schon sehr drängen, dieses Buch nicht abzubrechen.
Das Ende wurde zum Glück wieder rasant. Mir gefiel es gut, ich bin voll und ganz zufrieden. Auch wenn ich mir nach "Die Säulen der Erde" etwas mehr erhofft hatte. Mehr Intrigen, mehr Gerechtigkeit am Schluss. Und gern noch eine größere Zeitspanne. Aber es wird laut Autor noch (mindestens?) zwei weitere Bücher geben. Eines spielt während des zweiten Weltkrieges, das andere während des kalten Krieges. Ich hoffe, dass wir auf die Personen und vielleicht (wahrscheinlich!) auf deren Kinder treffen werden. Mich würde es sehr freuen!
Fazit: Eine großer Roman, der viel lehrt, sehr interessant ist und den Horizont eines jeden Lesers erweitert. Streckenweise war es mir zu politisch und strategisch, doch insgesamt hat es mir gut gefallen und ich kann ihn weiterempfehlen.
Anticipation is annoying. I read this book a lot faster than I thought I would and I was never tempted to stop reading it, so that much good can be said for the story. However, I did have some major beefs with it. I wasn't overly impressed with the writing style; it seemed too simplistic at times, almost like this was one of his first books. The amount of research that went into this book was mind boggling, though, and I was blown away by the history aspect. Actually, I though it would've been a great a history book! Nonfiction, that is. I didn't care a lot about the characters, because they seemed like badly written archetypes. I was especially annoyed by the American politician who didn't see what the big deal was with Jack Johnson marrying a white woman. Seriously? A rich, white, American politician arguing in FAVOR of …
Anticipation is annoying. I read this book a lot faster than I thought I would and I was never tempted to stop reading it, so that much good can be said for the story. However, I did have some major beefs with it. I wasn't overly impressed with the writing style; it seemed too simplistic at times, almost like this was one of his first books. The amount of research that went into this book was mind boggling, though, and I was blown away by the history aspect. Actually, I though it would've been a great a history book! Nonfiction, that is. I didn't care a lot about the characters, because they seemed like badly written archetypes. I was especially annoyed by the American politician who didn't see what the big deal was with Jack Johnson marrying a white woman. Seriously? A rich, white, American politician arguing in FAVOR of interracial marriages? In 1914-15? I could not buy that. Just like I couldn't buy the all around nastiness of the Russian princess or any of the other nobility. Nobody is that black and white. I really enjoyed the story, however, and will definitely read the next two in the trilogy.
