June Fic Bclub City of Thieves David Benioff spellbinding historical fic

Hello. We'll be meeting on Tuesday, July 126th at Madhatter and will be discussing the critically praised historical novel "City of Thieves " (a brisk, quick hard to put down 298 pgs- great spring reading material) by David Benioff- accomplished author and screenwriter of also the book and screenplay 25th Hour, x-men, and the brother etc. City of Thieves is a thrilling, black comedy that recounts his grandfather's tales of surviving World War II and his adventures of two young men in the Leningrad. Benioff blends "tense adventure, a bittersweet coming-of-age and an oddly touching buddy narrative to craft a smart crowd-pleaser." City of Thieves is "flat-out great. Benioff"s screen writing chops are in full force here as the plot careens along with cinematic verve. The surprise is Benioff's understated wisdom and tenderness."

We'll enjoy a stimulating and fun discussion with wonderful book lovers company,while enjoying a delicious happy hour with great liquid therapy, Madhatter is conveniently located (and metroable-two blocks from the Dupont or Faragut Metros). You can come when you can but try to arrive by 7ish, but of course you can come later. I will be there at 6:30 pm and love for you to join me to enjoy the delicious and inexpensive happy hour and catch up and gab. While as you know we are a very friendly, welcoming group of book lovers, you may bring a friend (especially if it makes you more comfortable and several book lovers have said they'd like to do so) who you think would be a good addition to our wonderful group (just rsvp for 2 if possible).

Please think about novels that you want to read and discuss for the first time or read for the first time and recommend to book club. We are selecting three novels this time as well which is fun and stimulating in itself. We do it it in the beginning. Please apprise me of any fiction suggestions you have whether or not you can make book club (of course we hope to have the privilege of your company). That way you get a say in what we read and we get the benefit of your valuable suggestion. You can add your suggestions to the comments herein, tell us at book club,send it to me-whatever works best for you (But the comments below allow all book lovers to see and help them think of other possible nonfiction books for us to read in the near future).

Please rsvp if we can have the priviliege of your company on June 21st. No need to rsvp, if you can't make it. We hope again to have the privilege and pleasure of your presence.

Happy reading and enjoy your week and I can't wait til I see you all again if I have the priviliege on July 12th and/or subsequent to at our nonfiction book club "The Devil's Highway".

See the amazing reviews below:

Cheers Robbie Susan The reviews below will make you want to read this riveting, engrossing, quick read, but impossible to put down dark comedy.

Editorial Reviews

Author and screenwriter Benioff follows up

The 25th Hour with this hard-to-put-down novel based on his grandfather's stories about surviving WWII in Russia. Having elected to stay in Leningrad during the siege, 17-year-old Lev Beniov is caught looting a German paratrooper's corpse. The penalty for this infraction (and many others) is execution. But when Colonel Grechko confronts Lev and Kolya, a Russian army deserter also facing execution, he spares them on the condition that they acquire a dozen eggs for the colonel's daughter's wedding cake. Their mission exposes them to the most ghoulish acts of the starved populace and takes them behind enemy lines to the Russian countryside. There, Lev and Kolya take on an even more daring objective: to kill the commander of the local occupying German forces. A wry and sympathetic observer of the devastation around him, Lev is an engaging and self-deprecating narrator who finds unexpected reserves of courage at the crucial moment and forms an unlikely friendship with Kolya, a flamboyant ladies' man who is coolly reckless in the face of danger. Benioff blends tense adventure, a bittersweet coming-of-age and an oddly touching buddy narrative to craft a smart crowd-pleaser."

In the six years since his critically praised début, "The 25th Hour," Benioff has produced a story collection and a handful of screenplays, including the blockbuster "Troy." The imprint of his film work is evident in this novel, a finely honed... sentimental adventure story set during the siege of Leningrad. Lev, the mousy, virginal son of a disappeared Jewish poet, is jailed by the Russian Army for looting; in prison and awaiting execution, he shares a cell with a blowhard blond infantryman accused of desertion. When a strange colonel offers the pair an impossible task in exchange for their lives, they set off on a journey that takes them through a series of nightmarish war zones, populated by prostitutes, starving children, and demonic Nazi chess enthusiasts. Benioff finds a good deal of humor amid the grisly absurdities of wartime... (The New Yorker)

"Readers have lately been exposed to a great deal of postmodern historical fiction, stories whose focus on the past merely reveals the astigmatism of an unreliable narrator. Perhaps tired of squinting at history, most reviewers found David Benioff’s novel refreshingly clear. With a framing device that serves to warn the reader that the author’s life is far removed from that of a Russian partisan, the narrative of City of Thieves lacks much of the anxiety over the inaccessibility of the past that has plagued recent novels of the genre. Critics also felt that Benioff avoids another form of pretentiousness, the heavy-handed tone that characterizes many historical novels (particularly those about war)...."

"City of Thieves" is a coming-of-age story brilliantly amplified by its worn-torn backdrop. Benioffas finest achievement in "City of Thieves" has been to banish all possible pretensions from his novel, which never wears its research on its sleeve, and to deliver a rough-and-tumble tale that clenches humor, savagery, and pathos squarely together on the same page. (Washington Post)

"City of Thieves" is flat-out great. Benioffas screen writing chops are in full force hereathe plot careens along with cinematic verveabut that as expected. The surprise is Benioffas understated wisdom and tenderness." (Menas Journal)

The novel tells a refreshingly traditional tale, driven by an often ingenious plot. He shifts tone with perfect control. No recent novel I've read travels so quickly and surely between registers, from humor to devastation.... (New York Times Book Review)

"This spellbinding story perfectly blends tragedy and comedy."

"Benioff has produced a funny, sad, and thrilling novel."

"Benioff blends humor and horror expertly."

"A deft storyteller, Benioff writes about starvation, and Nazi atrocities with poise and cinematic flair. If "Thieves" were a movie, it would start out like "Schindler's List" and end up like "Raiders of the Lost Ark."" (San Francisco Chronicle)

About the Author

David Benioff was born and raised in New York City. He adapted his first novel,The 25th Hour, into the feature film directed by Spike Lee. With many other screenplays to his credit, he is also the writer of the films, "Brothers" and "X-Men Origins: Wolverine". Stories from his critically acclaimed collection When the Nines Roll Over appeared in Best New American Voices and The Best Nonrequired American Reading. His latest novel is City of Thieves. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter where he is a co-creator and writer for the HBO hit series "Game of Thrones."