Dear Meg,
By now I have listened to the first two episodes of Illie´s novel
1913. It´s very much to take in, so I will try listening to it again. The reading is very well produced, and I like the quiet musical illustrations in the background, thus giving us the atmosphere of the time.
What a dynamic and exciting time, the 1910s. So many interesting things happened both in the arts and in the sciences. For instance, in 1913, Stravinski´s T
he Rites of Spring was played for the first time, and we know that cultural "war" that caused. It is eerie listening to this novel as we know only too well what happened the very year after and during the following four years. So much of what the novel discusses was smashed to pieces before the
decade was over.
As I did the
English Poetry of the First World War course some terms ago, I don´t know what titles now are included in the "Further Reading" sections of every Unit. But wouldn´t Florian Illies´s novel
1913: The Year Before the Storm deserve to be mentioned there?
Looking forward to listening to the remaining episodes.
Best wishes
Elsa