Book Review: The Leaves are Falling: A Novel

Book Review:  The Leaves Are Falling:  A Novel by Lucy Beckett

(blog post originally published on ltwrmama.blogspot.com; moved to wellbreadwoman.blogspot.com 1/18/2016)

I have read numerous novels and nonfiction works about World War II.  It is a fascinating period in world history and marks the end of the Modern movement in the arts.  It is simultaneously heartbreaking because of the the lows human beings sank to and awe-inspiring because of the selflessness and sacrifice of so many men, women, and children.  It is, in truth, one period of history with which I am fascinated, and I have devoured as many stories as I can—fictional and nonfictional—about humans confronted with some of the worst situations we can create in this era.  Yet, as much as I have read about World War II, I find I have always focused on the Allied forces vs. Germany, but there is so much more to this era. 

So, it was with appreciation, excitement, and a visceral cringe that I approached The Leaves Are Falling by Lucy Beckett, published by Ignatius Press.  And, it is with indebtedness, relief, and questions that I have finished this novel about the impact of the Poland-German-Russia-Lithuania component of World War II. 

Beckett writes the novel in two parts, with two prologues, to introduce the stories of two men of the Halpern family—the son’s first and the father’s second.  The stories these men, Polish Jews, recount is of the tenuous existence of not only European Jews, but of the country of Poland itself.  Linking the two seemingly separate stories is the bridge story of the temporally brief, but rich relationship between a writer and the son, Joseph Halpern.

Joseph’s story of being orphaned—truly his whole family is eradicated—is filled with neglected history.  In fact, his story often contradicts the story told by the victors about which country, ruler, or commander perpetrated which massacre.  Joseph seeks to set the story straight, to seek truth in historical accounts, so that his experiences and his family members’ deaths are validated.

The second half of the story is the story of Dr. Jacob Halpern’s imprisonment by the Russians, fictionalized by the unnamed writer at Joseph’s request, to provide for Joseph some idea of what his father endured and ultimately how he met his end at the hands of the Russians.  

Things I Love:

1.  Quest for Truth:  Both through the men’s stories and through Dr. Halpern’s conversations with fellow prisoners about faith, this story is concerned with Truth (capital “T”), with dignity, and with the reality that individuals matter.  This is really the cornerstone of the entire novel and I appreciate the rawness of this aspect of the story.

2.  Characterization:  Beckett creates unique voices for Joseph and the unnamed writer, as well as for Dr. Halpern, his interrogator, and the rabbi.  Joseph’s speech patterns in particular caused me to hear his voice as the narrator throughout more than half the novel.  Such rich and moving attention to detail through Beckett’s careful characterization is endearing.

3.  History:  I hear the echo Winston Churchill saying “History is written by the victors” throughout this novel.  The winners are ignored.  Those who are pawns in the bigger game are ignored.  There is so much history in this novel of which I was only in the most cursory way aware that has caused me to become so much more curious about the things I don’t know:  the ways history has been manipulated to represent the “truth” (small “t”) we come to know and the ways the victors attempt to minimize their parts in their less savory deeds.

4.  Values:  Joseph and Jacob Halpern are only two of Beckett’s characters who exhibit values their moms and grandmothers would be proud of.  Even in the face of outrageous events, they never resort to vengeance or hatred.  However, they are not the only ones to exhibit courage, selflessness, charity, and honor.

5.  Appreciation of Intellect:  Beckett emphasizes appreciating intellectual activities, especially difficult intellectual questions, that I find incredibly appealing.  She doesn’t back down from serious conversations and, especially with Jacob Halpern, tackles the existential dilemma of the Modern man:  the existence of God.  Beckett allows several characters to wrestle with their position in the universe and the science vs. religion binary people still wrestle with.  Observing the characters engaging in this struggle is beautiful and Beckett boldly captured this element of humanity.

6.  Language:  Beckett builds a beautiful interrogation of language—etiquette, bigotry, expectations—that I see echoed in how she uses language to create her characters.  This is especially true in Joseph’s half of the story.

7.  Nods to Russian authors and works:  Mention of The Brothers Karamazov and War and Peace and Anton Chekhov’s works thrilled me.  Many of these works I had read; some are still on my to-read list.  Now, I am reinvigorated to visit these works.

8.  Contemporary political tie-in:  The final conversation between the writer and Joseph stunned me for its contemporary references and insights.  Especially in light of the recent happenings between Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Iran, I am intrigued by how many of these conflicts have roots in unresolved issues stemming from World War II. 

Things I Like (a little) Less:

1.  Title Significance:  I felt I didn’t have a good grasp on the significance of the title until the last few pages, at which point it became clear to me.  The subtlety of the title’s significance causes the richness of the metaphor it creates to become lost.  I would appreciate a better building of the title’s significance throughout the text and I think there is plenty of room in which to do this through both Jacob’s and Joseph’s stories.

2.  Incompleteness of Joseph’s story:  Although we do find out more about Joseph’s story, I feel somewhat let down that we don’t learn more of Joseph’s story after his marriage.  This left me feeling incomplete, but perhaps that was intentional.

After having finished this novel, I find myself musing about the characters somewhat more than after finishing other novels.  I keep asking myself, “what if…” and “what about…,” questions which I cannot find answers for.  I keep wanting a happier ending for Jacob, and for Joseph, too.  However, Beckett gave Joseph the happiest of endings he thought he could possibly receive and, while it was a fictional truth, Joseph found Truth in the homage rising from the contemptuous situation Jacob was placed in. 

Although filled with a lot of traditionally historical dates and places, at the heart of the story—both men’s stories—is the quest for the truth, and it is this heart of the story that compels me to rank this book among my favorites in historical fiction dealing with World War II. 

 Source:

Beckett, Lucy.  The Falling of Leaves.  San Francisco:  Ignatius Press, 2014.  eBook.