tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322995747669796194.post2585114862199071017..comments2024-02-09T16:00:40.486+01:00Comments on Edith's Miscellany: Book Review: Purge by Sofi OksanenEdith LaGrazianahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07885017198423641770noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322995747669796194.post-88423751549655094742014-02-03T17:19:42.408+01:002014-02-03T17:19:42.408+01:00Hello Jen! Thanks for your long comment!
I'm...Hello Jen! Thanks for your long comment! <br /><br />I'm glad that you liked my review. I always fear that all others might see the books I present in a completely different light ;-)<br /><br />Yes, the characters in <i>Purge</i> are very true to life and not in the least idealised, something that Sofi Oksanen must have been tempted to do. I think that for us all it's difficult to imagine how it really was to live in such terror regimes. And we shouldn't underestimate nationalism... It's true that Hans appeared rather naive, but then many might have believed that they could drive the Soviets out of the country and that they would get help from the West. For Hans it probably was a question of conscience: should he put up with the new regime, follow and just make the best of it? Or should he fight for his ideals, his national identity? He chose the latter, Aliide was made an obedient and passive supporter of the first. I'm not so sure which of the two alternatives is better - to risk life (your own and inevitably that of others too) or to live a safe life because you're too much afraid to act.Edith LaGrazianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07885017198423641770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322995747669796194.post-41667235597644915362014-02-01T06:59:16.576+01:002014-02-01T06:59:16.576+01:00I saw this on your European Challenge Wrap Up, and...I saw this on your European Challenge Wrap Up, and of course wanted to check out your review because I also used this for my Estonia book (it looks like we even read it around the same time because even though I reviewed it late, I read it in the beginning of November). <br />I really liked your review. One of the things that I found interesting about this novel is that no one really comes off in a good light. For example, it would have been so easy to make Hans seem like a hero because he was part of the resistance to an oppressive regime, but instead of feeling pity for him, I actually disliked him. His sense of optimism and his naive behavior brought a lot of misery on the women in his life and he had no idea because they felt the need to protect him. Certainly, Aliide did a lot of questionable things and yet I didn't feel like he had the right to judge her on many of her decisions because he had no clue what people were facing and what reality looked like at that point.Jen Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16190007840481900873noreply@blogger.com