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The Siege

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The Siege

By: Helen Dunmore
Narrated by: Jilly Bond
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About this listen

Leningrad, September 1941. German tanks surround the city, imprisoning those who live there. The besieged people of Leningrad face shells, starvation, and the Russian winter....

Interweaving two love affairs in two generations, The Siege draws us deep into the Levin's family struggle to stay alive during this terrible winter. It is a story about war and the wounds it inflicts on people's lives. It is also a lyrical and deeply moving celebration of love, life, and survival.

©2002 Helen Dunmore (P)2010 Isis Publishing Ltd Contemporary Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Heartfelt Inspiring Tear-jerking Thought-Provoking

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Most relevant

What does Jilly Bond bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

A narrator has the power to make or break a story, Jilly Bond is one of the best narrators I have come across

Beautifully written and well narrated

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Many years ago I visited the memorial cemetery for the victims of the September 1941 to January 1944 siege of Leningrad and was deeply moved by the immense numbers who died, but this book shows what it must have been like for individuals.

The narrative starts slowly as we get to know the main characters and care about what happens to them. A picture is painted of their normal life, which makes their subsequent suffering and courage all the more poignant as they struggle day-by-day during the siege to keep alive. It's a vivid portrayal of the horrors of war for civilians

It may sound like a dismal listen but it is also uplifting for, although this is fiction, there must be thousands of untold stories from that time of the heroic efforts and bravery of ordinary people.

The narrator is excellent.

Harrowing and deeply moving

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You'll actually sense the cold, as starvation and desperation take centre stage in the lives of the beseiged citizens of Leningrad. Tragic history beautifully told.

Vivid portrait of a suffering city & its people

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This is a civilian's view of war, and makes a great change of pace from the combatants' story. The sacrifices and privations of young and old as they stretch every last calorie to make it last. Helen Dunmore shows how the Russian people coped under siege, the lengths to which they had to go to stay alive, particularly the children. The freezing winters that made life for the attackers difficult also made it as difficult for those defending. Just to stay alive was heroic.
Jilly Bond does a good job narrating, sharing the voices of men, women and children under duress.
This isn't a happy story, but a heroic one. No-one faces gunfire or is even in uniform, but the struggle is no less severe for that. Well worth a listen. I recommend this book, all the more as it's not written by a Russian or a survivor of the siege themselves.

Existential heroics from civilians.

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Helen Dunmore was a master writer. this novel made me cry and made me think as well as held me in the grip of its story. As with The Betrayal which follows this (although I listened to that first) this novel tells a story that is important people know and do not forget.

A must listen

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