Caging Skies, Christine Leunens
Caging Skies, Christine Leunens
2 Rating(s)
List: $19.95 | Sale: $13.97
Club: $9.97

Caging Skies

Author: Christine Leunens

Narrator: Steven Jay Cohen

Unabridged: 10 hr 27 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/06/2019

Synopsis

An avid member of the Hitler Youth in 1940s Vienna, Johannes Betzler discovers his parents are hiding a Jewish girl named Elsa behind a false wall in their home. His initial horror turns to interest—then love and obsession. After his parents disappear, Johannes is the only one aware of Elsa’s existence in the house and the only one responsible for her fate.By turns disturbing and blackly comic, Christine Leunens’s captivating and masterful novel examines this world of truth and lies, laying bare the darkest corners of the human soul.

About Christine Leunens

Christine Leunens is the author of three novels translated into more than twenty languages. Caging Skies, an international bestseller sold in twenty-two countries, was shortlisted in France for the prestigious Prix Médicis étranger and Prix du roman Fnac. Born in Hartford, Connecticut, she has spent most of her life in Europe and now lives in New Zealand. She holds a master of liberal arts in English and American literature and language from Harvard University. A former model, Leunens was the face of Givenchy, Paco Rabanne, Nina Ricci, and others.

About Steven Jay Cohen

Steven Jay Cohen has been telling stories his whole life, and has worked professionally as a storyteller since 1991. A classically trained actor, he has worked both on stage and behind the microphone for most of his career. Born and raised in Brooklyn, Steven now resides in scenic western Massachusetts.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Ken on January 07, 2020

This really was a book of two halves! Whilst the first part was absorbing and gave a fascinating insight into the effects of propaganda on young boys in the Hitler Youth, the second half takes a dark sinister turn that makes for uncomfortable and quite frankly disturbing reading. I’m not sure when I’l......more

Goodreads review by Maria on April 09, 2021

A Dark Fairy Tale **************Some Spoilers Ahead************* He was a nice boy like so manny others, until Hitler’s Youth caught him. He was sent to fight, got seriously wounded and had to return home. There he met a Jewish girl hidden by his parents who were both active opponents to the third rei......more

Goodreads review by Maria on March 08, 2021

Hitler's Monsters Much has been written about the Holocaust, but no book has ever addressed all the manipulation and brainwashing that turned young people into monsters — slaves and servers of the Third Reich madness! Boys and girls turned into twisted human beings, marked for life! ☹️ Hitler was the F......more

Goodreads review by Maria on March 08, 2021

Os Monstros de Hitler Já muito se escreveu sobre o Holocausto mas nunca nenhum livro abordou a manipulação, a lavagem cerebral que transformou jovens em monstros ao serviço da loucura do Terceiro Reich — rapazes e raparigas que foram privados dum desabrochar saudável, permanecendo marcados para a vid......more

Goodreads review by Patricia on May 07, 2019

CAGING SKIES is a very thought provoking novel which takes place in Austria during and after World War II. Johannes is a boy who is a Hitler Youth who is entranced by Hitler when he discovers his parents are hiding a Jewish girl named Elsa. Anger at his family turns into interest in Elsa, then an ob......more

Quotes

“A vivid and deeply compelling novel, Caging Skies is an existential battle of moral and ethical extremes. Christine Leunens is an adept and eloquent storyteller.” Georgia Hunter, New York Times bestselling author

“The best part of this interesting novel is its ability to show parts of our history which others dismiss: why suffering can make some people more sensitive but others more cruel, and how a war, such an outrage to human dignity, blurs the line between the victorious and defeated.” Elle (France)

“A beautiful novel, powerful, different, and ambitious. It explores…a love so total that it locks up, isolates, and colonizes the partner. An unforgettable book.” Le Monde (Paris)

“A novel that breaks all the rules. In spite of this, or maybe because of it, the result is a disturbing and gripping novel that has haunted me ever since I finished reading it.” New Zealand Books

“Luenens’ novel mixes together daydreams of Hitler with utter tragedy in a book that draws a range of emotions from the reader. Though there’s more emphasis on comedy in the film adaptation, both travel an unexpected path to empathy.” Amazon.com

Awards

  • Amazon Editors' Pick
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