At my book club, the book was described as “buoyantly desperate”, and we all agreed that that was a very apt description.

City of Thieves takes place during the Siege of Leningrad during WW2, and is about the Quixotic journey of Lev Benioff, a teenaged jewish russian boy, and the bombastic soldier Kolya. After each being picked up separately by the police and threatened with death, they are instead asked to find a dozen eggs for the Colonel’s daughter’s wedding cake. This starts them on an odyssey through the streets of the war-torn Leningrad and beyond, crossing paths with ordinary criminals, Germans, cannibals, and spies.

We all really liked this book. We had read The Orphanage not too long ago, and certainly found similarities, but the tones of each were very different. While Lev had a tendency to despair (perfectly reasonable), Kolya kept not only Lev looking on the brightside, but the readers too. He had this personality that him just farther than reasonable, but never really got him into trouble (somehow). We also enjoyed the deeply boyish perspective of the books, and thought it well done. Both characters are under 20, and their talk ranged from war to food, and of course, to girls and sex, but nobody in the book club thought it toxic or unpleasant to read. All the girls and women in the book are treated with respect, which I think is how it balanced well.

Beyond books, David Benioff has written for Marvel and Game of Thrones, and this screenwriting background explained why the book is very theatrical. I often felt like I could see the scenes as they happened, for better or worse. This was an enjoyable read for all, but if you know people who might find reading “boring” this book would be a good recommendation for them with the theatrical language and the pacing, action, excitement, and adventure.