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Book Review of The Madonnas of Leningrad

The Madonnas of Leningrad
maggiethecat avatar reviewed on + 23 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 10


Easily the most engrossing book I've read this year, Dean's work is a quick, easy read (for me, just one sitting on a free Saturday afternoon,) but at the same time is educational. I've a graduate degree in European revolutionary history and I've done some study of Russian history, but I knew nothing of the siege of Leningrad (St. Petersburg) or how the Hermitage coped with the it. Dean's illustrations of suffering and struggling with the simple act of just being alive is exceptional. The book is also an interesting examination of Alzheimer's Disease as, at the same time as the main character is coping with the limitations of her disease, the memories of 60 years ago are as fresh as ever, her "memory palace" wholly intact.

An excellent throwaway read, but not one I'll keep coming back to or even keep on my shelf...