The German Woman (edition 2010)

The German Woman, by Paul Griner is a book that begins during World War I and ends during World War II. The book begins with a doctor and his nurse trying to care for patients that were injured during the horrific period of WWI, when Jews were killed, Slavs were killed, and extreme chaos, hunger and deprivation reigned the lands of Europe. Their endeavors were difficult, as there was not enough medicine and equipment to care for the injured.

From there we skip to 1944 WWI, when the rest of the story line unfolds.

Although the story line of The German Woman is strongly written by Paul Griner, and it is extremely vivid in its depictions of war, I was disappointed in the novel. The book, for me, was not a page-turner (but that isn’t necessarily a negative thing). It is historic in content, yet there was something about the story that left me a bit unsatisfied. I can’t define why, it is what it is. Which is not to say I didn’t like the book. Overall I did like The German Woman, but I wasn’t completely thrilled with this book of espionage and romance. It didn’t entirely intrigue me. ( )

This novel begins with Kate Zweig and her husband, Horst. Kate is English and Horst German, however they are both serving in a German field hospital during World War I. They endure the immediate post-war period together, including the blockade that ended many lives. Very shortly after this glimpse into Kate’s life we are transported to a new time and place: London during the second World War, Kate now a widow caught between two nationalities and loyalties. Kate meets Claus, himself of a conflicted background, and the two connect immediately. This is a love story set against the backdrop of a destroyed London that questions patriotism, loyalty, and warfare.

Although I found the beginning of this book to be slow and the ending unsatisfying, for the middle portion I could not put it down. The characters of Claus and Kate were very well written, the impression of the bombings of London and the wardens was fascinating, and the spy thriller portion was . . . okay. So you can’t have everything in life, overall this is a very solid read. ( )

THE GERMAN WOMAN
Paul Griner, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009, $25.00, hb, 320pp. 9780547055220.

The German Woman is the story of an English woman, Kate Zwieg, a trained nurse who is married to a German surgeon, Horst Zweig. It is 1919 during WW1 and together they work serving injured soldiers from the battles in East Prussia. Fast forward twenty-five years and Kate is now in London, the summer of 1944, considered the summer that never was. It is now WWII, bombings, air-raids, skeletal framework of once magnificent structures and massive casualties are part of every day life. Kate, is now widowed, when she meets Claus at a political rally. The speaker at the gathering is spewing propaganda falsities to a crowd of onlookers. Kate is incensed by the disinformation and steps forward with a barrage of razor sharp barbs. Claus, or rather Charles, an exiled American with German heritage, works making propaganda films for the Ministry of Information. He is in the crowd and notices Kate, and is attracted to her spirit and he introduces himself to her. Claus is also happens to be a spy supplying valuable information to the German military, although sometimes not as accurate as it should be. He knows his life depends on secrecy and trusting no one, but he meets Kate and romance turns to unexpected love. At some point, he becomes suspicious of Kate and his duality of loyalty will rock his perspicacious resolve. Kate is almost a silent, passive participant as the action is seen through Claus and his struggle.
Paul Griner shows a natural talent of subterfuge as he carefully creates a complex mask of mirrors causing a magicians allusion for the audience to solve. There are passages of beautiful lyrical poetic prose that could fit a musical score. ( )

Through the story of Claus and Kate, this novel explores the horrors of war, the meaning of patriotism, and tangled loyalties. The novel begins with Kate working at a field hospital in World War I. This part of the book is fairly fast-paced and interesting; it is not for the faint of heart and has several graphic scenes. Nonetheless, it does a superb job depicting the individual human impact of the war.

The second part, unfortunately, seems to hit a speedbump in the plotline and never quite recovers. We are now in the midst of World War II in London and the beginning of Kate's relationship with Claus. The beginning of this part was just difficult to read; there was not enough background information about the characters to keep my interest in them. They felt one-dimensional somehow and while the plot regained interest, it was tough to feel much for the characters. Perhaps the intent of the novel was to focus on the overall impact of war on human relationships and the psyche; if so, it succeeded in doing this. However, the tempo of the book felt disjointed and depth of character was lacking, which detracted from the overall result. ( )