As you may or may not recall, I was working on Ken Follett’s Fall of Giants. I think the “giant” he’s referring to is the book itself. This thing’s almost 1,000 pages! I’m happy to say that I’ve finally killed it.
I really enjoyed this book. I was entertained the entire time, and I really learned a lot about the time period in which it was set. I’m a fan of historical fictions, and Follett is praised on his accuracy. I praise him on his attention to detail. I couldn’t imagine writing something so thorough… and so long!
The plot follows characters from Germany, England, the US, and Russia throughout the rise and fall of WWI. Although I did learn about battles and was reminded of high school history’s run-down of Germany’s Schlieffen Plan, I also learned about women’s suffrage, coal mining, and the lives of peasants and noblemen.
As I have mentioned in the past, I thoroughly enjoyed Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth
The only peeve I have about this book is the graphic sexual encounters of almost all the characters. It’s not that bad, but it seems like every book I try to read(except for The Hunger Games) has an unnecessary amount of graphic sex (ie: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). Sorry for being a prude, but that’s really the only con of this book. Like I said, it’s really not that bad – just enough to make you feel awkward while reading.
Now I think it’s time for a little lighter material – time to plan my trip!
Read anything good lately? Favorite genre of book?