Monday, April 8, 2013

Code Name Verity

Code Name Verity
Written by Elizabeth Wein
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 368
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

I haven't posted for a while. That's because I was reading Code Name Verity. Usually I'm able to coast through YA novels in a day or two, or really any book really, but a few will make me slow down and ponder. Code Name Verity did that to me. It demanded more time.

The book is written in two parts. The first is the narrative written by "Verity," a Resistance spy captured in France during the Second World War. In exchange for two weeks of life, she agrees to write all she knows. Her character is full of grit and wit, and she manages to stretch out her time by writing her information as a story of how she and her best friend, Maddie, became involved in the war. Her story is so engaging that her captor/torturer names her "Scheherazade" and lets her live until she finishes writing.

The first half is gripping and emotional and moving, but the second half is when it really gets good. The second half is Maddie's diary, which picks up where Verity's leaves off. In an almost Dickens-esque literary twist, small details from the first half become major plot points. It contains moments that made me laugh and moments that made me cry. Parts of this book are truly heart-wrenching. This is a book that'll stick with ya.

As a historical fiction novel, I enjoyed the female protagonist view. With many war books, men are the heroes, and women merely the nurses, or cooks, or messengers (not that those weren't important roles). But Code Name Verity shows two brave young women as a pilot and a spy. They are exceptionally heroic (but not annoyingly so), and I enjoyed the twist on typical historic fiction plots. However, part of what slowed my reading down was the history. There's a lot. Like a lot a lot. Lots of pilot and plane lingo, lots of details. That is part of what makes it great, since it contributes to the validity of the story, but it does drag a bit. I never feel guilty for skimming parts of a book, and there were a few plane paragraphs I skipped. Overall, a fabulous, well-researched historical novel.

Here are a few shining quotes:

"The anticipation of what they will do to you is every bit as sickening in a dream as when it is really going to happen.” 

“Nothing like an arcane literary debate with your tyrannical master while you pass the time leading to your execution.” 

“And I envied her that she had chosen her work herself and was doing what she wanted to do. I don't suppose I had any idea what I 'wanted' and so I was chosen, not choosing. There's glory and honor in being chosen. But not much room for free will.” 


“Von Loewe really should know me well enough by now to realize that I am not going to face my execution without a fight. Or with anything remotely resembling dignity.” 


Here's the link to the official book trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kLMupsGhJk

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