Very well written! "Like a River From Its Course" by Kelli Stuart
about the book...
An epic novel exposing the ugliness of war and the beauty of hope
The city of Kiev was bombed in Hitler’s blitzkrieg across the Soviet Union, but the constant siege was only the beginning for her citizens. In this sweeping historical saga, Kelli Stuart takes the reader on a captivating journey into the little—known history of Ukraine’s tragedies through the eyes of four compelling characters who experience the same story from different perspectives.
Maria Ivanovna is only fourteen when the bombing begins and not much older when she is forced into work at a German labor camp. She must fight to survive and to make her way back to her beloved Ukraine.
Ivan Kyrilovich is falsely mistaken for a Jew and lined up with 34,000 other men, women, and children who are to be shot at the edge of Babi Yar, the “killing ditch.” He survives, but not without devastating consequences.
Luda is sixteen when German soldiers rape her. Now pregnant with the child of the enemy, she is abandoned by her father, alone, and in pain. She must learn to trust family and friends again and find her own strength in order to discover the redemption that awaits.
Frederick Hermann is sure in his knowledge that the Führer’s plans for domination are right and just. He is driven to succeed by a desire to please a demanding father and by his own blind faith in the ideals of Nazism. Based on true stories gathered from fifteen years of research and interviews with Ukrainian World War II survivors, Like a River from Its Course is a story of love, war, heartache, forgiveness, and redemption.
my review...
"Like a River From Its Course" is an emotional, moving story that will leave you horrified by the depth of human depravity and yet inspired by the characters' courage and faith in the midst of adversity. The author's research shines through this book, as there is an air of realism that permeates the pages. The fact that I was reading about characters whose experiences were based on true stories made them all the more heart-breaking to read about. Kelli Stuart writes with a sure hand, with carefully crafted scenes and the ability to bring her characters to life. Never before have I read about the "Killing ditch" where so many men and women and children were lined up and shot by the Nazis. I can scarcely comprehend such a piece of history! And yet the ability of the Ukrainian people to survive such atrocities is remarkable. It is one thing to open a history textbook and read about events such as these. but it is another thing entirely to be drawn into the lives of the characters depicted in these pages, grow to care about them deeply, and then watch them encounter the things they do. I can honestly say that I am so grateful for the time I was able to spend in the pages of this story, because Kelli Stuart has brought to life these stories in a way that will stay with me for a long time. And after enduring with these characters through their hard journey, I especially love that the ending, while bittersweet, has threads of happiness at the same time, showing how God is able to bring good out of the darkest of times.
I will certainly be taking this book off my shelf again in the future! I greatly enjoyed this amazing novel and I award it 5 out of 5 stars.
Book has been provided courtesy of the publisher and the Litfuse Publicity Group, for the purposes of this unbiased review.
about the author...
Kelli Stuart is the coauthor of Dare 2B Wise and has written for several brands including Disney, American Girl, and Short Fiction Break. She has served as editor-in-chief for the St. Louis Bloggers Guild and as a board member for the St. Louis Women in Media. In addition to her writing, Kelli has spent twenty years studying Ukranian culture. Kelli lives in Florida.
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