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Resistance by Owen Sheers

Resistance

by Owen Sheers
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  • First Published:
  • Feb 19, 2008, 320 pages
  • Paperback:
  • Feb 2009, 320 pages
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Reviews

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There are currently 17 reader reviews for Resistance
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Janet

resistance
Stories of Nazi occupation in continental Europe are a staple of World War II literature. But what if...what if the allies had been defeated on D-Day? This book is an engrossing look at what that might look like. The author has the ability to bring the reader into the mind of German soldiers, British women struggling to deal with the unexpected disappearance of their husbands on the eve of the occupation...and even a resistance fighter. The book is a good read for those who enjoy a first class story that makes you think about the individual's struggle with right and wrong, and the consequences of those decisions.
Debi

Resistance
I didn't know what to expect when I first picked up this book. From the very start it drew me into the lives of the women who were forced to maintain the every day routines of their farms because of the unexplained disappearance of their husbands and sons. All around them war was raging. At first the appearance of the German patrol was an unwelcome intrusion into their lives. I liked the way both the women and the soldiers came to depend on each other. I liked this book and believe it would be an excellent additional to any book club.
Linda

Resistance by Owen Sheers
As a "baby boomer" I have always been told about World War II and the heroism of the Allied troops. Naturally I believed everything I was told since it's a matter of history. This new book has made me think a little harder about what I have always believed. What if the Germans had won? The book is a refreshing change and plants a lot of new ideas in my head. I recommend this book to anyone and everyone.
Colleen

Resistance
This was a well told story of unavoidable changes brought on by war. The author has an excellent ability to put the reader in the story with his descriptions of Wales. You come to care for the characters and hope that the situation will resolve itself for the best, but as in real life situations very rarely turn out for the best. Days later I'm still thinking about the story and how maybe things could have turned out different. I look forward to other novels by this author
Rebecca

Resistance
Resistance was a beautifully written book which, while correctly called a historical novel, was also a novel of great suspense as enormous tension builds throughout the story. Set in a remote Welsh valley during WWII, Resistance is the story of five women left on their own by their husbands. A group of five German soldiers appear in the valley looking for a lost treasure and slowly build relationships with the five women who begin to see the men as men and sons and friends rather than as the enemy. Enjoy!
Sally

Resistance
Don't let the alternate history setting fool you; it is merely a backdrop for a novel about timeless human issues concerning war and finding the humanity in others who are unlike ourselves. The writing is wonderfully descriptive, especially of the setting, and I recommend this book. Book clubs would find many areas of discussion.
Diana

A Moving Account
As with the telling of any story of an alternative history, the risk is becoming too fantastic or implausible. Resistance takes us to a world where Germany has indeed won the second World War, and drops us into a landscape so barren and foreign, it’s as though World War II occurred 150 years ago, instead of 60. The book succeeds in many ways, not the least of which in putting a human and almost sympathetic face on the proverbial Nazi monster and shows us, right to the very end, that every action, good or bad, has a consequence.
Deanna

Alternative Histories {not my thing}
I have read two novels in this genre {Philip Roth's The Plot Against America and Disturbance of Fate - about RFK. I find that knowing the actual history keeps me from enjoying the plot of Resistance, as it did with the other two novels. However, I did learn a great deal about Welsh culture and its beautiful landscapes.This novel is well worth reading as it deals with the ambiguity of war.
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Beyond the Book:
  The British Resistance

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