Journal Entry 1 by Fleebo from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Tuesday, September 29, 2009

"High on a Czechoslovak hill, the Landauer House shines as a marvel of steel, glass and onyx. Built specially for newlyweds Viktor and Liesel Landauer, a Jew married to a gentile, it is one of the wonders of modernist architecture. But the radiant honesty and idealism of 1930 that the house seems to engender quickly tarnishes as the storm clouds of World War Two gather. Eventually, as Nazi troops enter the country, the family, accompanied by Viktor’s lover Kata and her child Marika, must flee.

Yet the family’s exile does not signify the end of this spectacular building. It slips from hand to hand, from Czech to Nazi to Soviet and finally back to the Czechoslovak state, the crystalline perfection of the Glass Room always exerting a gravitational pull on those who know it. It becomes a laboratory, a shelter from the storm of war, and a place where the broken and the ruined find some kind of comfort, until with the collapse of Communism, the Landauers are finally drawn back to where their story began."

The house is based on a real World Heritage Site, Villa Tugendhat.

This book is not due for paperback release until next year. I am holding off buying it until after the Man Booker Prize 2009 winner is announced, because if this book wins then its paperback release is sure to be immediate. If it doesn't, then I'll bite the bullet and buy the hardcover. 

Journal Entry 2 by Fleebo from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Tuesday, September 29, 2009

A bookring for the Man Booker Challenge 2009.

goodthinkingmax
miss-jo
tqd
FreePages
livrecache
star-light
jubby
Sujie
Fleebo 

Journal Entry 3 by Fleebo from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Hardcover purchased... the winner was "Wolf Hall".
I am not much looking forward to reading this book. The symbolic house gives me the irrits already - I like my stories to be about characters, not about a place with wisps passing through it. Note to self: I must give this book a chance. 

Journal Entry 4 by Fleebo from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Friday, January 08, 2010

I admit it: I made completely wrong assumptions about this book, and ended up enjoying it quite a lot. The focus remains firmly fixed upon the Landauers and their friends, and they are interesting characters. I like Kata in particular - intelligent but uneducated. Hana is over the top: too far beyond my experience to be believable to me, although that probably says more about me than about the author's creation.
One thing was made very clear to me: I know precious little about Eastern European history, during WWII or any other period. 

Journal Entry 5 by goodthinkingmax from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Thursday, February 18, 2010

Received from Fleebo at the Sydney Bookcrossers' meetup last week. Sorry I forgot to journal it when I received it. I have three of the Booker rings at the moment but should be able to read them all soon. 

Journal Entry 6 by goodthinkingmax from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Wednesday, March 24, 2010

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. I am interested in this period of history and there was such a soothing and gentle rhythm to the writing and I became very immersed in the interesting characters, particularly the women, as well as the Czech setting and the architecture. Even though I knew the war was imminent, I was still very moved by the tragedies faced and felt the confusion and devastation of the women as they were confronted by an unknown future. The use of the Glass Room as the pivot for all events, revelations and character relationships worked for me and supported the haunting nature of the book. I liked the ending. Not too trite but satisfying. I will seek out some other books by Simon Mawer.
 

Journal Entry 7 by miss-jo from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Thursday, May 20, 2010

Received with thanks. After a slow start with Booker books this year I've now had a deluge so it may take me a bit to get to this one. 

Journal Entry 8 by miss-jo at Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Tuesday, July 06, 2010

This was another Booker book that I appreciated most for the teaching element. I knew a little about Czechoslovakian history during and immediately after WWII, but not much. And making history personal is always such a good way to help me to understand it.

I even liked the way the glass room was used as the thread to join the stories together (and spent about 2 hours online last night, looking at the pictures and wandering through wikipedia links. I should have done that first coz now I need to reread a few descriptions).

On the other hand, I didn't really find the characters very appealing and I struggled to make it through the last few chapters. Overall, I would summarise the book as interesting, but not immediately appealing (which is also my reaction to the house itself).

Thank you fleebo for sharing this. I'll pm sujie today, but since I sent Wolf Hall to her yesterday she may not be ready for another.

Eta that sujie has asked to be dropped down the list. I'll try tqd.
Edited again to add that tqd has already sourced this one from somewhere else. I'm pm-ing jubby about another book so I'll see if she's keen.
Edited again to say that I'm still looking for a taker. I'll update once I know where it's going.
16 Aug - FreePages wants it! I'll send it along next time I get near a post box. 

Journal Entry 9 by FreePages at Canberra, Australian Capital Territory Australia on Wednesday, September 01, 2010

Journal Entry 10 by FreePages at Canberra, Australian Capital Territory Australia on Wednesday, September 08, 2010

Journal Entry 11 by livrecache at Hobart, Tasmania Australia on Friday, October 15, 2010

Sorry, I forgot to journal this when I got it.

I must admit I wasn't predisposed to like this book (like Fleebo, I tend to like books to be about people, not places), and I was very pleasantly surprised when I found that I did. The writing was so elegant. But it was a steep learning curve for me. I know precious little about the history of that part of the world too, but it's whetted my appetite to know more. Thanks for sharing, Fleebo – I must contact you about this year's Booker list!

I'll pm star-light, and see whether she's ready for it.