After reading reviews by
Simon and
Reading Matters, I was hoping that this book was available on this side of the world, and I am lucky that it is.
I liked it so much that I will recommend it for my book group.
It's not an easy read. Two women are caught up in history, and the men don't treat them well. Their stories are interwoven throughout the novel, but there are dates at the beginning of each chapter, so that you won't get confused as to whose story you're reading.
Aliide Truu grew up in the Estonain part of the USSR during WWII, but the story really begins when she is a young women, during Stalin's reign of terror. She has some information that the local KGB wants and will do anything to get it from her. Warning: Don't read this part on a dark, stormy night nor after you've eaten something.
Zara grew up in the other side of the USSR - Vladivostok and lives with her mother and grandmother. She goes to work in her maternal grandfather's homeland, Germany, but it's not a wonderful experience. She manages to escape her pimps and ends up in Aliide's home.
Aliide distrusts Zara, thinking that Zara has been sent by thieves to "case out" her home. But, Aliide is not a rich woman; she knows how to grow some vegetables and cans them for the winter. Zara helps out in this task and gets to know Aliide more.
Once Zara feels that Aliide won't turn her over to immigration, she tells her how they are related: Zara's grandmother is Aliide's sister.
I won't tell you more of the plot, because I will give away too much.
This novel poses important questions:
- If a women has to choose to save her child or her husband, who should be sacrificied?
- Was it selfish of Aliide to do what she needed to survive the Stalinist terror, given the decision that Ingel (Zara's grandmother) made so many years ago?
- What is home in a society that all should be shared?
It was hard to read this book; certain portions are truly horrific. I did more homework, but I still wanted to find out more, so I gave myself permission to read a bit, but I had to sacrifice my sleep. And it was worth it!
Some people didn't like how Zara escaped and called it unrealistic. It isn't; I saw several episodes of Law and Order: SVU where people escaped their pimps. L&O:SVU is based on actual events.
Here are some of the book covers for other translations of Purge. There is a reading guide availble, if some of the storyline is confusing. And here's a brief history of Estonian Germans to explain how Zara's grandfather ended up there.
