The Invisible Bridge - Discussion 4

Wow, if ever a book made you feel, this is it.  And how many feelings.  Rage, anger, disgust, disbelief, dread, to name a few.

I had my reservations with many slow spots and a few too many descriptions (that's where they could have cut it down, Kelly!) but the story, was fabulous.  Wow.

If you haven't read it; do it.

Things that stood out..

When the General stood up for Andras.  That General is the guy I would want to be able to say I was if I had been in that situation.  What a HORRIBLE comment made by the Major.  Sickening.  I cannot understand feeling that a whole group/race of people is below you.  (Unless of course they are U of M fans and then I get that.) Kidding...maybe.  ;)

I just don't understand how Klara would have felt it was safe or that no one would notice she came back? That just didn't seem believable to me at all.  Or how safe and secure they felt until it was too late.  How accepting they were of a lifetime of cruelties because they were Jewish.  I really must have lost the memo on why being Jewish is so bad.  (Are they U of M fans???) Kidding again..  I would have been trying to hightail my tushy out of there, but then again I do understand all that garbage about family and what not, but I kind of think I would look at it as, a I NEED TO SAVE MYSELF moment cuz I am selfish like that.

1. What details in the descriptions of Banhida (pp. 356–63, pp. 392–99), Turka (pp. 486–503), and the transport trains (pp. 558–66) most chillingly capture the cruelty perpetrated by the Nazis? In addition to physical abuse and deprivation, what are the psychological effects of the camps’ rules and the laws imposed on civilian populations?

2. Why does Klara refuse to leave Budapest and go to Palestine (p. 510)? Is her decision the result of her own set of circumstances, or does it reflect the attitudes of other Jews in Hungary and other countries under Nazi control?

3. The narrative tracks the political and military upheavals engulfing Europe as they occur. What do these intermittent reports demonstrate about the failure of both governments and ordinary people to grasp the true objectives of the Nazi regime? How does the author create and sustain a sense of suspense and portending disaster, even for readers familiar with the ultimate course of the war?

4. Andras’s encounters with Mrs. Hász (p. 6) and with Zoltan Novak (pp. 19–20) are the first of many coincidences that determine the future paths of various characters. What other events in the novel are the result of chance or luck? How do the twists and turns of fortune help to create a sense of the extraordinary time in which the novel is set?

5. What did you know about Hungary’s role in World War II before reading The Invisible Bridge? Did the book present information about the United States and its Allies that surprised you? Did it affect your views on Zionism and the Jewish emigration to Palestine? Did it deepen your understanding of the causes and the course of the war? What does the epilogue convey about the postwar period and the links among past, present, and future?

6. “In the end, what astonished him the most was not the vastness of it all—that was impossible to take in, the hundreds of thousands dead from Hungary alone, and the millions from all over Europe—but the excruciating smallness, the pinpoint of which every life was balanced” (p. 558). Does The Invisible Bridge succeed in capturing both the “vastness of it all” and the “excruciating smallness” of war and its impact on individual lives?

Any overall thoughts you'd care to share? A favorite character?

Once again, thank you for participating and making 2011 a lovely reading year!! Can't wait to see what we read in 2012!

The Invisible Bridge - Discussion 3

Hi, everyone! It's Amber from A little pink in the Cornfields, and I’m filling in for Emily today to discuss the third section of The Invisible Bridge.

I have a small confession. When I first agreed to write a guest post for Emily earlier this month, I had no doubt that I would be able to read this book and be ready to discuss the third section. Then the first week rolled by… and I didn’t get any reading done. Then the second week… and by the beginning of this week, I panicked a little. I didn’t want to not be able to follow through with this commitment!

 Luckily, classes ended last week and all I had to do this week was substitute teach two days. The students were watching a movie, so I had lots of time to read! I’m so glad I did, because I began to really get into the book!

 If it wasn’t for that commitment I don’t think I would have read this far in the book. The first part read a little slow for me, and typically when that happens I tend to put the book down and move on to something else. Halfway through The Invisible Bridge I found myself getting extremely attached to Andras and Klara, and their extraordinary relationship, as well as all of the other people in their lives, so I’m glad I didn’t give up on them.

I’m kind of wishing I hadn’t read the reviews of this book on Goodreads, because I’m constantly bracing myself for something that is going to make me cry. So far, I haven’t cried, but I have come close. I’m almost done with the third section and should start the fourth and final section today!

 1. Despite the grim circumstances, Andras and Mendel produce satirical newspapers in the labor camps. What do the excerpts from The Snow Goose (p. 331), The Biting Fly (pp. 360–61), and The Crooked Rail (p. 437) show about the strategies that helped laborers preserve their humanity and their sanity? What other survival techniques do Andras and his fellow laborers develop?

 These newspapers they wrote and illustrated showed that despite the dire situation they were in, they could still find humor in everyday life and knew this was important for their own mental health. I think other survival techniques the laborers developed were writing letters home and looking forward to letters from home. I think after awhile they learned that they would need to keep quiet and work hard if they wanted to be left alone from the generals in charge.

2. General Martón in Bánhida (pp. 399–402), Captain Erdó, and the famous General Vilmos Nagy in Turka all display kindness and compassion. Miklós Klein engages in the tremendously dangerous work of arranging emigrations for fellow Jews (pp. 422–23). What motivates each of them to act as they do?

I think people like Klein were very intuitive and realistic about what is happening and what could happen while others around them were trying to be optimistic. I was really surprised during the part General Marton discharged Andras. I was really preparing myself for something bad to happen and was cringing before I needed to. I’m very happy to see that things turned out well for Andras and he was able to go home two weeks early.

3. The Holocaust and other murderous confrontations between ethnic groups can challenge the belief in God. "(Andras) believed in God, yes, the God of his fathers, the one to whom he'd prayed ... but that God, the One, was not One who intervened in the way they needed someone to intervene just then. He had designed the cosmos and thrown its doors open to man, and man had moved in ... The world was their place now" (p. 432). What is your reaction to Andras's point of view? Have you read or heard explanations of why terrible events come to pass that more closely reflect your personal beliefs?

I think it would be very hard to be in Andras’ shoes and not feel this way, to not question your belief in God and his existence. I think his reaction is very human and should be expected. As for why I think terrible things happen, well, my explanation is pretty religious. I don’t tend to get very religious on the Internet, but it is my answer. There’s evil in the world simply because of the fall of Adam and Eve. It is very difficult to say what you would think or feel in a situation like this, it is very unfathomable and hard to comprehend. I would like to say that I would keep my faith, but I don’t know if that is true.

4. In Budapest, the Lévi and Hász families sustain themselves with small pleasures, daily tasks at home and, in the case of the men, working at the few jobs still available to Jews (pp. 352–55, pp. 366–77, pp. 405–10). Are they driven by practical or emotional needs, or both? Does the attempt to maintain ordinary life represent hope and courage, or a tragic failure to recognize the ever-encroaching danger? What impact do the deprivations and degradations imposed by the Germans have on the relationship between the families? Which characters are the least able or willing to accept the threats to their homeland and their culture?

I think both families are trying to stay as optimistic as possible and enjoy the little they have left. I think in the back of their mind they know it is going to get a lot worse, but are unsure what to do about it – if anything at all! I think the attempt to maintain ordinary life is a natural defense mechanism and survival tactic. I think they knew that more danger was approaching, but how could they leave? I thought many times during these parts that if I were in their shoes, I would just leave! Go to America or somewhere far away from Europe – but, it’s not that simple. I think the depravations and degradations are absolutely driving an even wider wedge between two families that were already very different and split down the middle in terms of class and privilege.

5. What are you thoughts from section three?

During this section the book really began to pick up for me. I wanted to know what was going to happen to the Levi and Hasz families – as painful as that might be. I also began to really question my choice in reading another book about the Holocaust this year. I have read so many, and although I enjoy learning more about WWII, it is heavy and hard to read at times.

Thank you so much Amber! Next week we will finish up on The Invisible Bridge.

Our book for January is going to be State of Wonder by Ann Patchett and I do not have it in my posession yet, but will tell you that we are going to discuss the first half on January 13th and the second half/whole book on January 27th.  Will let you know more exact details when the book is in front of me! ;)

Discussion 2 - The Invisible Bridge & January Suggestions!

Happy Friday!

What a friend Andras has in Polaner.  I hope that we all have that one friend out there that no matter what, stands by you, will take care of you when you are sick and just be there.  Also, Andras role as a go between with Paul and Elisabet shows a maturity that not many 22 year olds have these days.  I always think that people in their 20s in the 30s-40s were far 'older, wise and mature' than those in their 20s now.

Oh, and I'm still not caught up but I am getting close! ;) Busy week with conferences, observations, meetings and life! Ahhh...

1. In what ways does Andras’s infatuation with Klara, as well as his hesitations about pursuing her, follow an age-old romantic pattern?

2. Do Klara’s revelations (pp. 214–34) change your opinion of her and the way she has behaved?

3. In Budapest, the Lévi and Hász families sustain themselves with small pleasures, daily tasks at home and, in the case of the men, working at the few jobs still available to Jews. Are they driven by practical or emotional needs, or both? Does the attempt to maintain ordinary life represent hope and courage, or a tragic failure to recognize the ever-encroaching danger?

4. Is Andras's belief that “they wouldn’t deport me…Not for serving the ideals of France” (p. 102), as well as the reactions of Professor Vago and Andras’s father to the German invasion of Czechoslovakia (p. 266) naïve, or do they represent widespread opinions and assumptions?

5. What are your thoughts?

And what would you like to read as a group in January?  You can leave your suggestions in the comments in this thread.  I will put up a poll Monday and you can vote through Thursday when I will announce the January read! Thanks for participating!

And look next week for a wonderful guest post by Amber, who shall give this book a far better discussion thread than I!

The Invisible Bridge - Discussion 1

Hola!

I have to admit, that I far from being done with this first section.  Whoops, I apologize.  I was going to finish it up Thursday night, but the migraine from hell entered my life and I thought I was going to die/or had the flu.  It was bad.

Sooooooo...

1. What are your thoughts over the the book so far?
2. What does the opening chapter establish about the cultural and social milieu of prewar Budapest?
3. What do Andras’s reactions to Hasz household reveal about the status of Jews within the larger society?
4. Why do Andras and his friends at the Ecole Speciale tolerate the undercurrent of anti-Semitism at the school even after the verbal attack on Eli Polaner (pp. 39–40) and the spate of vandalism against Jewish students (p. 94)?

Please share any other thoughts or questions you have yourself!

Next week we will cover chapters 15-25!

The Invisible Bridge Discussion Schedule!

Hey all, sorry it took me longer to get the schedule up for the December Group Read, The Invisible Bridge.  We won't start discussing until Dec. 9th.

Here is our schedule...

Discussion 1 - Chapters 1-14 - December 9th
Discussion 2 - Chapters 15-25 December 16th
Discussion 3 - Chapters 26-33 December 23rd
Discussion 4 - Chapters 34- Epilogue December 30th

If you would be interested in doing a guest post for one of these, let me know! Thanks and happy reading!