Reviews

Valehtelija-Jaakko by Jurek Becker

Only show reviews with written explanations

einbeziehenschraege's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark hopeful sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

luca_joel721's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional hopeful sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

mikast's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Ein Buch dass mich gegen Ende sehr emotional gemacht hat, wirklich eine sehr gut aufgebaute Geschichte, sehr gut gewählter Tonfall und tolle Charaktere. Werde es erneut lesen.

dwgradio's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

If you have only seen the Robin Williams film, you're missing out on the complete story. The book has two endings - I will reveal neither - and both together make for an emotional finale to an already touching story. For anyone interested in Holocaust fiction, this is not to be missed.

marc129's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

A ghetto, somewhere in Eastern Europe, around 1943-1944; poor Jakob Heym by coincidence hears a radiomessage in the German headquarters and concludes that the Germans are on the run for the Russians. Jakob spreads the news to his fellows in the ghetto, lying that he has heard it on his own illegal radio, and suddenly the ghetto reawakens, everybody is making plans again, the suicide numbers crumble. But his little lie brings Jakob into trubble. The storyteller, a vague co-resident of the ghetto, makes up two different endings, both very gloomy.
Of course, this is a story about the holocaust (in fact it is one of the lesser known holocaust stories), but the stress is at least as much on the constraints of human existence, on the difficult and complex relations between people, on the life giving aspect of hope, on the warmth of true humanity. The author, while involved, uses a detached way of story telling, but in a hesitating, compelling way.