Vasily Grossman, trans. by Elizabeth Chandler and Robert Chandler
RaveIrish Examiner (UK)The People Immortal is both an excellent work of fiction and an important contribution to Soviet history ... Grossman’s descriptions of a wartime landscape are both vivid and unexpected, as are his characters ... This book certainly packs a punch and to execute such a masterpiece, in the two months Vasily Grossman was given to write The People Immortal, is an incredible feat in itself ... The politics can become overwhelming and there is ultimately more pleasure to be had from the gorgeous writing ... Another addition that piques interest is his inclusion of humour ... With an accessible and simple writing style, Grossman’s book is for a large readership, with beautifully vivid descriptions that just seem to radiate from the pages, a linguistic genius shown so much throughout this book ... The captivating characters will stay with you long after you’ve turned the last pages ... The book is an excellent example of what amazing art can arise out of such darkness ... It is masterful literary fiction, with wonderful communal storytelling of empathic soldiers in awful circumstances, and is highly recommended, and, beyond doubt the best war-related piece of writing, this reviewer has read to date.
