Member Review
Review by
James F, Reviewer
Have you ever finished a novel, only to have the irresistible urge to read it again immediately?
“The Fire Agent”, David Baerwald's epic debut novel did exactly that to me. With a story so engaging, and detail so rich I felt less like an observer and more like a participant. On my first read I didn’t want it to end, and upon finishing my first read-through I immediately dove back in for more.
With a prologue immersing the reader in the post-WWII devastation of Tokyo, the story then begins in early 20th century Germany prior to WWI.
An expansive tale of war and peace, loyalty and betrayal, cruelty and kindness, and ultimately life and death, the story spans the journey of Ernst Baerwald (the author's grandfather) from his younger days as a student in Frankfurt, Germany at the turn of the 20th century, through the devastation and human cost of WWII in Japan, and into the start of the Cold War years. As a young student, his intellect and linguistic skills were noted and capitalized on by the power brokers of that time and place, and he was set on his course of international diplomacy and espionage. From Frankfurt to Milan, Tokyo, and Shanghai, on to Manila and San Francisco, it is his journey through those years, the locales, the characters he meets, and their narratives that keep you turning the next page. Romance, intrigue, and danger abounds, and there are knifes-edge moments that kept me from putting the book down.
The tension and release evident in the pacing of the writing, and the author's rhythm with his words, brings an almost musical sense to the structure of the novel. There is a syllabic cadence to the writing that carries the reader into the next sentence. Which does bring me to the musical aspect of the story.
Music, and it's performance, is central to a crucial period in the book that I will not spoil with details here - suffice to say, the most life-sustaining aspects of music and its performance, being dedication, practice, harmony, and fellowship, are all on full display in this story, and given the respect and reverence so richly deserved.
I laughed out loud on more than one occasion in the reading of Ernst's story, and I am not ashamed to tell you I cried more than once as well.
I anxiously await this author's next effort.
“The Fire Agent”, David Baerwald's epic debut novel did exactly that to me. With a story so engaging, and detail so rich I felt less like an observer and more like a participant. On my first read I didn’t want it to end, and upon finishing my first read-through I immediately dove back in for more.
With a prologue immersing the reader in the post-WWII devastation of Tokyo, the story then begins in early 20th century Germany prior to WWI.
An expansive tale of war and peace, loyalty and betrayal, cruelty and kindness, and ultimately life and death, the story spans the journey of Ernst Baerwald (the author's grandfather) from his younger days as a student in Frankfurt, Germany at the turn of the 20th century, through the devastation and human cost of WWII in Japan, and into the start of the Cold War years. As a young student, his intellect and linguistic skills were noted and capitalized on by the power brokers of that time and place, and he was set on his course of international diplomacy and espionage. From Frankfurt to Milan, Tokyo, and Shanghai, on to Manila and San Francisco, it is his journey through those years, the locales, the characters he meets, and their narratives that keep you turning the next page. Romance, intrigue, and danger abounds, and there are knifes-edge moments that kept me from putting the book down.
The tension and release evident in the pacing of the writing, and the author's rhythm with his words, brings an almost musical sense to the structure of the novel. There is a syllabic cadence to the writing that carries the reader into the next sentence. Which does bring me to the musical aspect of the story.
Music, and it's performance, is central to a crucial period in the book that I will not spoil with details here - suffice to say, the most life-sustaining aspects of music and its performance, being dedication, practice, harmony, and fellowship, are all on full display in this story, and given the respect and reverence so richly deserved.
I laughed out loud on more than one occasion in the reading of Ernst's story, and I am not ashamed to tell you I cried more than once as well.
I anxiously await this author's next effort.
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