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The Song Before it is Sung
 
 
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The Song Before it is Sung [Kindle Edition]

Justin Cartwright (Author)
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
Print List Price: £8.99
Kindle Price: £5.10 includes VAT* & free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet
You Save: £3.89 (43%)
* Unlike print books, digital books are subject to VAT.

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Product Description

Review

`Cartwright sets up plenty of competing ideologies in an intelligent but accessible novel that ultimately questions what lessons we can truly hope to learn from the ever mutable narratives of history' -- Metro

`Cartwright's song does truly soar' -- Independent

`Justin Cartwright's new novel is a richly detailed evocation of one of the darkest periods of history, and an eloquent exploration of human fallibility and guilt' -- The Times

`A harrowing read about Hitler and execution, from one of our finest novelists' -- Independent

The Scotsman

Cartwright is a beautifully evocative writer; also one who makes you think.
See all Product Description

Product details

  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • File Size: 430 KB
  • Print Length: 270 pages
  • Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0747585947
  • Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing (20 July 2009)
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B002ROKQN8
  • Text-to-Speech: Not enabled
  • X-Ray: Not Enabled
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #58,429 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
45 of 45 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars This is one you should not miss 21 Feb 2009
By Barton Keyes
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a very good book indeed. As other reviewers have noted it is a story based on the friendship of the emigre philosopher Isaiah Berlin and the German patrician Adam von Trott which foundered under the pressure of events in the 30s.

But it is much more than a thinly disguised recounting of that story. It is a satisfying, sad, very funny (at times) and completely engaging reflection on love, friendship, failure, happiness and different perceptions of honour. A measure of its strength and success is that although the outcome of the main plot and one or two sub-plots are known from the outset the story-telling never loses its rhythm or attraction. The intensity of the attempt to assassinate Hitler is very exciting when it enters the final sequence and the story holds the readers attention until the last page. There is no false resolution to the story to serve a spurious need to tie up ends. Life often ends as it begins -- in a messy way without purpose or any deep ulterior sugnificance -- which is itself one of the subplots. Excellent
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48 of 50 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A portrait of heroic failure 7 May 2007
By Mr. F. Ledwidge VINE™ VOICE
Format:Hardcover
This is one version of the story of the friendship between Isaiah Berlin and Adam von Trott, and a moving and credible journey it is. The novel brings to life not so much the academic life of the 1930s from which this friendship orginated, but the stresses in the German upper classes at that time.

This is also the story of their marginalisation. They had lost their power and influence , but never quite realised it. The Staufenburg plot, which forms the climax of this book, epitomised their heroic failure. This novel gets into the skin of the German aristocrat, and for that alone is well worth the read. The various sub-plots are well-constructed and carry the story forward with pace. This is a very good book.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars Really good themes but the character Conrad really put me off 14 July 2011
By L. Coleman
Format:Kindle Edition
This sounded so amazing from the reviews that i bought it outright instead of just downloading the normal sample. I f I hadn't done that, I probably wouldn't have bothered to finish it. The ideas are really interesting and it should work but for me the present day narrator is just far too annoying. I found it hard to believe he was some woman magnet as the book kind of implies as, from the way he behaves, in my head he was an infuriating loser!. I found myself either struggling to find him believable or else finding him incredibly annoying.

Having said that, there were elements of the story that were unbelievably moving and it was fascinating to get an insight into a resistance to the Germany being created by Hitler. It was also heartbreaking to know that the resistance was doomed to failure and, as the pace of events progressed, I found myself willing the plot to assassinate Hitler to succeed and for Von Staffen to survive, even though I knew that was not going to happen. Both tragic and moving, ultimately I was glad I persisted but wished I could have had more respect for Conrad. It was hard to see why he would have been entrusted with the task of collating the memoirs.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars An Extraordinary Read
I bought this book after reading several of the reviews and have to say found it compelling in every way. Read more
Published 5 months ago by C. A. Price
4.0 out of 5 stars A compelling read.....
In July 1944 Hitler narrowly escaped assassination plotted by his own generals. His revenge was swift and gruesome. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Wynne Kelly
2.0 out of 5 stars Moving & unforgettable re-creation of the Hitler bomb plot
This is a beautifully written novel about the effect on a contemporary author of his attempt to trace the developement of the failed plot to assassinate Hitler and its... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Leopold
3.0 out of 5 stars Creating a song by singing it
This unusual novel was inspired by the friendship, strained by the outbreak of World War 2, between the Oxford-based Jewish philosopher Isaiah Berlin and the German aristocrat... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Antenna
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant, intelligent story!
I really enjoyed this book and could hardly put it down. The story was based around a true event in the second world war and was written with perception, compassion and superb... Read more
Published 19 months ago by marshwader
1.0 out of 5 stars Dreadfully dull
After reading 2 chapters, I gave up on this rather dull and boring book. Perhaps if you enjoy a more intellectual read, you will feel differently but if you like something that... Read more
Published 19 months ago by R. Macrae
4.0 out of 5 stars Compelling story, annoying narrator
This is a story of love, loyalty, betrayal, and a friendship stressed to the limits, of the Nazi atrocities against the Jews in WW2, and of conscience and forgiveness. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Suzie
5.0 out of 5 stars Song before it is sung
I really enjoyed this book and its treatment of both a significant historical event and the way it showcased both pre war Oxford and the present day. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Mr Phelps
4.0 out of 5 stars Sweet Song
Very intelligent novel. At the same time it is accessible especially if you have an interest in the Second World War. Read more
Published on 30 April 2011 by nickyb
5.0 out of 5 stars WW11
My second book of Justin Cartwright.....love his books now.
Still very clear story..a great deal of detail and story in the book.
Now on to another one.
Published on 18 July 2010 by Kathesme
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