The Separation
Ratings5
Average rating3.6
15
Ratings5
Average rating3.6
THE SEPARATION is the story of twin brothers. Rowers in the 1936 Olympics, they meet Rudolf Hess, Hitler's deputy; one joins the RAF, and captains a Wellington; he is shot down after a bombing raid on Hamburg and become's Churchill's aide-de-camp; his twin brother, a pacifist, works with the Red Cross, rescuing bombing victims in London. But this is not a straightforward story of the Second World War: this is an alternate history: the two brothers - both called J.L. Sawyer - live their lives in alternate versions of reality. In one, the Second World War ends as we imagine it did; in the other, thanks to efforts of an eminent team of negotiators headed by Hess, the war ends in 1941. THE SEPARATION is an emotionally riveting story of how ordinary people can make a difference; it's a savage critique of Winston Churchill, the man credited as the saviour of Britain and the Western World, and it's a story of how one perceives and shapes the past. THE SEPARATION was originally published by Simon & Schuster as a trade paperback, with a very small print run; it went out of print almost immediately and was never reprinted. Gollancz will publish initially as a price-promoted hardcover, as a platform for reviews and national newspaper coverage, prior to lead title paperback publication in 2004.
Reviews with the most likes.
Un roman réussi, sur la base d'une semi-uchronie. Semi-urchronie car le roman nous présente deux récits différents, où deux frères jumeaux vivent deux issues différentes de la Seconde Guerre Mondiale : le premier vit l'Histoire telle que nous la connaissons, l'autre assiste au traité de paix entre le Royaume-Uni et l'Allemagne en 1941, suite à la tentative (réelle mais avortée) de Rudolf Hess de signer une paix séparée entre les deux nations européennes, en vue de l'invasion imminente de l'URSS par le Troisième Reich. C'est bien écrit, prenant, vraiment plaisir à lire.
