Pros, Cons, what would make this book better/ more enjoyable? & final thoughts

Pros: It was well written, it is a piece of history.
- it had two volumes which made the book more interesting.
-the apendix was really interesting.
-it's unique and the story behind the novel itself makes the book even more intersting.
cons:
-not very captivating.
-The plot line is very slow paced
-hard to keep reading.


What would make this book better:
The book would have been better if it was able to be finished. the apendix itself which was only about 50 pages was just as interesting, if ot more interesting than the whole rest of the book.
This book also would have been better if there was not so many characters, as they were hard to keep up with since there were so many.

Final thoughts:
Overall i enjoyed the historical aspects of the book but it was not able to draw me in untill the end of the book where i was then left with an unfinished ending. I also preffered the second volume of the book Dolce rather than the first volume Storm in June, because it wasnt as slow and was able to catch my attention more easily.

Was the world of your book realistic or easy to relate to?

I found the events and the way people acted extremely realistic. Nemirovsky did a really good job of showing the reader how the chracters true colours really shine in the act of desperate times. Which made the book a bit easier to get into. I think it is also easy to relate to, when i was in downtown Vacouver in the middle of a riot after the Vancouver Canucks lost the Stanley Cup, i saw how the people that did not want to be involved were acting. People just wanted to leave the area and some of them didnt care if they left their friends behind. I can see how people would act selfish in times of war that Nermirovsky wrote about.

authors perspective & how the story was told.

I find it extremely interesting being able to see the authors perspective on war considdering she wrote in the midst of a war. But i wonder if maybe her perspectrive on the things that she worte about would have changed if she was able to write it after the war instead of during.

While on the topic of the authors perspective i would also like to express how I'm not to keen on the idea of not having a lot of options on the point of view of the story since it is only told by one person. I personally do not like how the story was told, i feel as if there are way to many characters to keep up with and the plot line was way too slow. Although the book didn't drag along as much in the second volume of the book Dolce.

I would also like to say that i really do respect this novel and it's historical value. It is a reality to see how people acted during the war and how betrayl, and other bad things start to shine in people as they continue to fear death and try to survive. This story shows that in times of survival it really is every man for himself. I think this is just a natural survival instinct.

My first opinion of the book itself.

Although i find the idea of this book beautiful and historical, it just could not pull me in. As hard as I tried I could not get into this book, the plot line moves very slow, for me at least. It got more interesting little by little and after about 100 pages or so it was really starting to grab my attention. I really like this book, despite the fact that i find it a bit hard to keep up with all of these characters and the plot line is slow. The fact that it is about war and how people coped, kept me interested in this book as well.

what would i do?

At the very beginning of this novel Irene Nemirovsky writes how people are in denial about the air raid/ war, rather than scared. I guess It is because they are scared, that they are in denial. page 2 "Im staying in bed." and "I am not scared" are both examples of their denial. If i was in their situation Im not really sure how my reaction to such news would be. I do know how ever that i would not say that i wasn't scared and i would most definitely not be able to sleep and go back to bed though. I just don't understand how people could act so calmly about such thing in such a time and just try to sleep it off. If the chapter was written about how i was acting it would probably mention something like how people were acting childish and crying, with no hope.

My Final Thoughts On Suite Francaise

     Although "Suite Francaise" gives us a glimpse into a whole other time period and is completely different from any other novel I have read, I had an extremely hard time finishing it. I found that the story was slow paced and I had to force myself to become interested in the plot. I'm not surprised at how rough around the edges the book was since it was a found as a work in progress, but I wish there was a real ending. We are left with only Nemirovsky's notes in the appendix; the closest any of us will ever get to reading the other volumes she intended to write if not for her untimely death.

     Despite my grievances, I appreciate Irene Nemirovksy's work. I think she had a strong voice as a writer and talent that still had room for growth. If only Nemirovsky hadn't been arrested and detained simply for being Jewish. For all we know, she would have somehow revealed even more about the unjust era she had lived in through her work.

Rediscovery

      According to my research, Nemirovsky's eldest daughter Denise possessed the notebook that contained Suite Francaise for fifty years and she never read it because she thought it was her mother's journal, which would be too hurtful to read. Fortunately by the 1990's, the eldest of the Nemirovsky children finally went through the notebook and had it published after she discovered what it was.

     The novel's interesting back story makes me wonder what other works have been lost and whether or not the possibility of them being found is likely. Luckily for Irene Nemirovsky her story made it to the public, became a best seller and has received positive feedback from reviewers such as the National Post and The Globe and Mail. In conclusion, it amazes me how the novel "Suite Francaise" ended up seeing the light of day after being hidden away for so long. The fact that it was successful is also incredible and I'm sure Nemirovsky would be proud if she were around to see her work become published.