The Book: The Savior, by Eugene Drucker
The Story: WWII is wrapping up and Gottfried Keller, a young German violinist, is kind of in a crappy situation. He was exempted from service in the war, so instead he’s been given the job of playing violin for all the wounded soldiers. They pretty much hate him and let him know at every turn.
One morning, an SS officer picks him up and takes him to a labor camp. He meets with one of the higher-ups who tells him that now instead of playing for wounded German soldiers, he will be playing for Jews that have been chosen for a “special” experiment to see how being exposed to culture will help get them back in shape to re-join society. Kellar is totally freaked out that he is there because he had a lot of Jewish friends before the war and was in a serious relationship with Jewish girl who made it out before the war started. He knows he has to play by the Nazi’s rules or he could be in just as bad shape as the people he’s playing for.
While Kellar knew that the situation in the labor camps was tough, he never imagined that it would be this bad and he starts dreaming up ways that he could help these people out, before it’s too late.
What I Thought: I cannot say how impressive I thought that this book was. I knew going into it that this was the author’s first novel and that he’s actually a violinist, not a writer. Maybe that is why I was so impressed by the level of writing and character development that happened here. Props to Eugene Drucker and I hope that he’s working on another book. I’ll read it.
I am also always intrigued by books that take place over a very small period of time. The whole story here happens in four days and that’s laid out right off the bat, that he’s to play for these prisoners for four days and then he’s out. It kind of gives the whole book this urgent feel and I know that’s why I pushed through it so fast. It is a small book (maybe 250 pages or so?) and I just devoured it. I had to know what happened at the end.
This is one of those books that makes you get into the character’s shoes. I wanted to shake Kellar around a few times, but I know that he just did what he thought he had to do to get through this time. I know that, in the end, that was the excuse of a lot of Germans, but I just wonder how I would respond in similar circumstances.
Conclusion: I will tell you that while this book has high points, it really is a downer. If you are a person that is easily grossed out or if you like cheery little books, this one is not for you. It’s not really heart-warming or positive.