My rating: 4 stars
Over the years, I've read many books set during World War II and despite already knowing the history, I am still blown away each time I read about the tremendous devastation that the war caused in various countries as well as the unimaginable suffering and loss that the peoples in those countries went through. In the case of Greece, which was pulled reluctantly into the war when Italian and German troops invaded the country and set up combat posts across the land, the end of WWII did not bring about the focus on gradual reforms and large scale rebuilding of the country that it did for other countries that had survived the war. Almost immediately upon WWII ending, Greece was thrown into a civil war that erupted in large part due to the atrocities that were committed during the previous war. The country became deeply divided, with those who had suffered enormous loss at the hands of foreign enemies during the war choosing to avenge their displaced anger by turning on their own people. In some cases, entire villages were wiped out and its people were senselessly massacred for no valid reason other than them being viewed as "implicit" in the war due to the fact that they "housed" or "fed" or "translated for" the enemy (it didn't matter that these villages had been unwillingly "forced" to take in the German troops and were already in dire straits themselves due to what had already been inflicted on them from previously). This quote from the book is powerful in relaying just how tragic a situation the country was in: Much of the country remained in ruins from the fighting, the railroads destroyed, the bridges blown up, a nearly worthless currency and a demoralized people. We'd done more damage to ourselves than even the Germans had done to us.
It is against this backdrop of devastating war, endless infighting, and sheer chaos that the tragic yet poignant story of a Greek woman's life unfolds. When the story opens, the main character Aliki is already in old age, still living in the rural Greek village where she grew up. She is a lamenter who mourns for the dead by chanting poems meant to honor the deceased at their wakes and funerals. As this is an ancient tradition that only the "old families" still observed, Aliki is the last of her kind in the village. One day, a scholar from an American university visits Aliki and asks if she can record her laments for a research project she is doing. She leaves Aliki with a recorder and cassette tapes for her to record her laments when they occur, telling her that she will be back in touch with her later. After the scholar is gone, Aliki starts recording, but instead of recording her laments, she ends up telling her life story. From there, we are transported back in time to 1943, at the tail-end of the war, when Aliki (who is in her teens – still a kid pretty much) has to witness first-hand her beloved father being executed by German soldiers for the mere crime of "stealing squash." After that, Aliki's life is marked by one tragedy after another and through it all, we witness her struggles with love, loss, and coming-of-age in a country that itself is struggling to come to terms with the aftermath of two devastating wars.
I must admit that this was a difficult book to read for me due to all the vivid descriptions of the atrocities of the wars that devastated Greece during the 1940s and 1950s. However, I am glad I read this book because, despite this being a work of fiction, I learned so much about a part of WWII history that I had no clue even existed. More importantly though, I was given a glimpse into a world and culture that, up to this point, I had largely been ignorant about. When it came to Greece, the extent of my knowledge basically ended at its ancient history, since that was mainly what was taught in school and its contemporary history was rarely ever mentioned. Aliki's story is poignant and heartbreaking -- it is a story of love and loss but also of resilience, resolve, strength, and survival, all interwoven in a well-written novel that ended up being a surprisingly enjoyable read for me. One thing I will say is that I got a little bit confused at first about the title, since most of the story didn't seem to have much to do with lamenting per se. But then I got to the end of the book, which was also the end of Aliki's story, and that's where the significance of the title as well as the theme of lamenting fell clearly into place for me. I actually feel the ending was brilliantly done, as I was a bit startled as well when Aliki was told a secret that had been kept from her for decades and very likely would've altered the course of her life as well as the lives of her loved ones if she had known earlier.
This is a one-of-a-kind book that I feel everyone should read, if not for the story, then at least for the historical and cultural aspects. For me, it was a humbling experience and reminded me about being grateful for the life I have and not taking things for granted.
Received advance reader's copy from Berkley Books via Penguin First to Read program.
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