Gone to Soldiers

Gone to Soldiers is one of the more brilliant books I have ever read. The characters very complex and multidimensional and I connected with each of them. This book really made me realize a lot about the emotional turmoil connected with World War II. I have read many Holocaust books, but this touched me even deeper than those did. This book is so different than any book I have read for many many reasons. Many authors have tried intertwining stories, but none have accomplished it as well as Marge Piercy has in this book. Each character is distinct and amazing, yet they all fit perfectly in the grand scheme of this book. I have also never read a book in which characters feel what they feel in this book. Murray and Bernice were so unique and felt such unique things, I was blown away. By the way, this book isn't just for adults...I am 15 and I love it. It is rather hair raising, so I wouldn't recommend it for most children, but all adults should read this book. Especially you and your family and friends.

In my opinion, this is one of Piercy's best novels to date. In a similar vein to City of Darkness City of Light, Piercy explores a period of history viewed from several different angles, each illuminating a different aspect of the history. This allows her themes to come through the novel gently, without appearing heavy-handed or overly biased.The novel is set during World War II, with the plot set in different parts of the US France and Britain (the intention was that it would also have a section based in Russia). Being a Marge Piercy novel, you know it's going to be packed with believable, well-developed characters, with many of the key characters women. She follows these characters through the novel, as they become more aware of themselves, the situations around them and their role in history.Definately one of my favorite books.

I read this book for the first time when I was 13(11 years ago) and since then I have read it at least twice a year. The cover has long since fallen apart and the book has divided itself into four parts, but i will never get enough of it. The story (stories) become part of you, and you will think of the characters constantly. Every time I read it I smile, cry and feel like going back into time... I'm not one for hyperbole, so believe me when I say that this book is fantastic, one of the greatest novels ever written in this century. If I had been living in the States and not in France I would have done my Masters thesis on it.

This is a truly great book. It is the first Marge Piercy book I've read, and I enjoyed it/learned from it/was sad that it had to end. The kind of book during which you welcome insomnia so that you have an excuse to read it in the middle of the night. I particularly liked the interweaving of the lives of the characters. I'm not a historian, so I cannot vouch for the accuracy of the book (which seemed to frustrate other reviewers), but I did not read the book to learn about WWII history, and I believe I got a pretty good sense of the period of history from the book.

Never has a book stayed in my memory for so long. With 6 different people,each in a different part of the world, the reader is given a view of what war was like from the human aspect, how where u lived at the time and who you were, could affect your life in so many different ways. Each character, is interwoven with one another, tho thousands of miles and vastly different wartime experiences seperate them. This is the book that history teachers should have us read, so we can understand, and feel, and cry. It is not just the horrors, but the everyday life of people trying to deal with the changes war brings to all.