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Wendy R. (Pinehurst, NC)
Secrets spin a sticky web.
This book made me think about being forced to do something to survive. It would appeal to anyone who is interested in WW II history and book clubs. A sisterhood forms among an unlikely group of women who share meals to protect the "Wolf". The story will take you through heartbreak, love, betrayal, second marriages, aging and regret. This is a book you will think about long after it is finished. What if I would have been Rosa...?
Borderlass, Belmont, MA
A "Chick Lit" Take on WWII ....
Having just finished the book in much the same way I do any compulsively readable book - in one or two "good goes," I am struck by five thoughts, give or take:
1) This would appeal almost exclusively to a certain type of female audience. Men who choose history or historical fiction would find little or no new information in this particular read and would not select it. I echo other reviewers in that one or two women in my book group avoid any of this type of "unpleasantness" and would nix this as a group choice.
2) Many European readers whose antecedents survived the war in both the Western and Eastern theaters -
…more from the pre-war 1930's well through its aftermath, will be all too familiar with the horrors, the fears, and the social interactions described as lived and reported by their own family members. A new generation of Europeans and perhaps North Americans readers for the first time will have their eyes opened to some uncomfortable truths.
3) The food tasters (for purposes of the plot) seemed to have a lot more freedom and slack supervision than would seem credible. Luckily, no one alive can contradict the author's version and apparently no further research has been done to contradict this otherwise.
4) We readers, as in real war, are left with many unanswered questions, ironically, save the fate of our female protagonist's husband. Rosa's Gregor for much of the book is presumed missing somewhere on the Eastern Front. The plot finishes up with that circumstance resolved.... just how effectively, the reader is left to ponder...
5) Our main character's mother was a Berlin dressmaker of some apparent skill - which seems a useful "chick lit" device that gooses up both the social interactions and the sexual situations involving her daughter Rosa - possibly consistent with a formulaic romance novel...
In summary, on the losing side of an unrighteous war, there are are very few heroes to be celebrated; even "survivor status" has its detractors - particularly among the survivors themselves... (less)I love historical novels, particularly those written about WWII. I've read a great many but I've never read one from Rosa's point of view. I don't think I was even aware that Hitler had food tasters but it makes sense that he did. The interesting thing about this story, however, wasn't that she faced death with each meal, but that she had been plucked, seemingly at random, from a life of waiting for her husband to return from the war to a life that forced her to examine who she was as a woman and a human being. She didn't always like who she was, she had flaws and in wartime, flaws can be lethal. As a reader,
…more you always imagine, "What would I do? What choices would I make?" These questions, I think, would make for a very interesting book club discussion. Rosa was placed in a situation, not of her own making, that held dire consequences. What would you do? Read the book and answer the question. (less)AT THE WOLF'S TABLE can not only be read but experienced as well . During WWII ten conscripted German women had the job of tasting every morsel of food that went into the Wolf's (Adolph Hitler's) mouth. The interactions among the tasters -- the friendships, the animosities, the secrets, stresses, fears were well drawn and the historical references were pertinent and timely. The ending, though, seemed somewhat forced and many decades of time had elapsed before we find out what happened to the characters and their families. I do wish the ending had been happier. Life never turns out the way we think it will.
Esther L. (Newtown, PA)
Great Historical Fiction
With thanks to BookBrowse for the opportunity to preview this interesting slice of history.
Germany 1943:Rosa has lost both of her parents and her husband of one year has enlisted in the German army. She makes the decision to leave Berlin to live with her in-laws in the countryside. Once there she is conscripted by the SS to be one of Hitler's food tasters at the Wolf's Lair with nine other women. Her life is changed forever, living with the guilt of her actions and what she has seen, never to fully recover. It is a sad accounting of one young woman's life, her past, present and future.
The book is well written
…more and most memorable. My book club won't read anything this sad! (less)A World War Two novel, 1943 , a small town in Eastern Germany, home to Hitler's hideaway in the forest. The SS conscripts ten local woman to act as his food tasters, and this is their story, necessarily a rather grim story. We only get to know one of them, Rosa, who has come from Berlin to live with her parents-in-law, her husband presumed lost on the Eastern front. She is troubled, stressed of course, guilty because of decisions she chose to make, or did she actually have a choice? We are not sure. Her relationships with the other nine women are touched on only briefly, but we do get an idea of who they were,
…more they all dealt with the possibility of being poisoned in their own way. The narrative hopscotches a bit, but the story is compelling, the reader wants to know what happens to Rosa. We do find out, but the ending was a bit of a fizzle. (less)
Susan R. (Julian, NC)
The Tasters
"The past doesn't go away, but there's no need to dredge it up, you can try to let it rest, hold your peace. The one thing I've learned from life is survival."
I was aware of the women who tasted food for Hitler to make sure he wasn't poisoned from reading The Taster by VS Alexander earlier this year. What makes this version of the story even more interesting is that it's based on a real person - Margot Wölk. She was Hitler's last living food taster. She had never told anyone about her experience until she was 96 and decided to tell her story. She died later the same year that she first told her story. You can
…more read more about her and read her story if you goggle her name.
In 1943, Rosa moved to the town where her husband's parents live. Her mother has just died in a bombing in Berlin and she hasn't seen her husband since he joined the army the year before. Instead of the quiet life that she is yearning for, the SS arrive at the door and tell her that will become one of the tasters of Hitler's food. They were very worried that the Allies would try to poison Hitler so they forced a group of women to eat his food before he did. If the tasters didn't die of poison, then the food was safe for him. The ten women in the group become friends and enemies as the stress becomes unbearable.
This is a horrific story of women being forced into possible death with every bite of food that they ate. The stress of this time affected Margot for the rest of her life.
Thanks to BookBrowse for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own. (less)This work of historical fiction, inspired by true events, addresses a topic that is, at once, obscure and fascinating. I am intrigued by the idea that women were employed to taste Hitler's food before it was served to him, and Postorino's novel gives a very satisfactory picture of what this might have been like. However, beyond that, it is a story of love, survival and, perhaps, regret, populated with very relatable characters. I recommend it to fans of historical fiction, especially those who might like something different from the usual WWII fare.
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