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The Siege

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The Siege

By: Helen Dunmore
Narrated by: Jilly Bond
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About this listen

Leningrad, September 1941. German tanks surround the city, imprisoning those who live there. The besieged people of Leningrad face shells, starvation, and the Russian winter....

Interweaving two love affairs in two generations, The Siege draws us deep into the Levin's family struggle to stay alive during this terrible winter. It is a story about war and the wounds it inflicts on people's lives. It is also a lyrical and deeply moving celebration of love, life, and survival.

©2002 Helen Dunmore (P)2010 Isis Publishing Ltd Contemporary Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Heartfelt Inspiring Tear-jerking Thought-Provoking

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Most relevant  

What does Jilly Bond bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

A narrator has the power to make or break a story, Jilly Bond is one of the best narrators I have come across

Beautifully written and well narrated

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This novel takes you into the heart of the Leningrad siege, seen through the eyes of Anna, a resourceful young woman. It is beautifully written and two love affairs - the father's and Anna's - tie together all the research which clearly went into the book and make it live. The cold of the winter is so chilling I shivered listening to it and the business of simply surviving is very gripping. While I sometimes find Jilly Bond's voice a bit too light she does this novel full justice.

Intimate and moving

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superb. such a shame Helen Dunmore is no longer with us. what imagination and talent. must read

simply the best historical novel I have ever read.

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Brilliant descriptive writing captures the sense of the experience yet avoids being harrowing. iIt conveys the capacity for survival against the odds.
Definitely recommend.

Evocative

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Helen Dunmore was a master writer. this novel made me cry and made me think as well as held me in the grip of its story. As with The Betrayal which follows this (although I listened to that first) this novel tells a story that is important people know and do not forget.

A must listen

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I enjoy history & am keen to learn more of TheSiege.
The ‘human interest’ element in this book was for me melodramatised & saccharine & too predictable.
The narrator tried hard but her ‘baby voice’ nearly had me weeping & why for ‘rough characters’ she launched into a my-ol’-man’s-a-dustman-cockney I’ll never know; that made periods of listening pretty meh..
It has made me keen to go and search for something else more ‘factual’ on TheSiege.

‘bit meh..

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Many years ago I visited the memorial cemetery for the victims of the September 1941 to January 1944 siege of Leningrad and was deeply moved by the immense numbers who died, but this book shows what it must have been like for individuals.

The narrative starts slowly as we get to know the main characters and care about what happens to them. A picture is painted of their normal life, which makes their subsequent suffering and courage all the more poignant as they struggle day-by-day during the siege to keep alive. It's a vivid portrayal of the horrors of war for civilians

It may sound like a dismal listen but it is also uplifting for, although this is fiction, there must be thousands of untold stories from that time of the heroic efforts and bravery of ordinary people.

The narrator is excellent.

Harrowing and deeply moving

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Is there anything you would change about this book?

One of the few audiobooks I didn't listen through to the end. Despite being set at a harrowing time in history, the story was too slow moving and the only character I found really interesting was a secondary character whose name I can't recall (and it was not the selfish father or the tedious Marina). But whoever she was, she had a bit of spark. However, I don't like giving wholly negative reviews and would like to balance this by saying that other members of my book club found it fascinating.

Not my cup of tea

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Harrowing, humbling, very descriptive, almost poetic writing. I would normally think only someone who has lived through times like this could write about it like this. Loved it.

Descriptive

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Loved this book & didn't want it to end even though the subject was so harrowing, Leningrad stripped of its veneer & laid bare, the human spirit mustn't be underestimated. Jilly Bond the narrator brings much to the story, I'm not sure you'd get the same pathos from reading the book yourself.

Totally absorbing!

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