This is one of those great books that keep you up reading into the wee hours, while that little voice in your head keeps telling you that you will regret it in the morning. But you won’t regret any minute of this book no matter when you read it.
In this book, Benioff tells the story of Lev (Benioff’s grandfather) and Kolya, an unlikely pair who are set upon a mission by a Russian colonel to find a dozen eggs in a city where none can be found — in Leningrad during its siege in the second World War. The characters are beautifully developed; as they divulge their talents and passions to each other, they become more and more human and endearing to the reader as well. The reader feels their hunger and the cold along with them and endures the horrors of their journey as they do. But the reader also laughs along with their jokes and their sarcasm as they themselves see the insanity and inhumanity of their quest.
The reader even grows as they do, being enriched by the beautiful language and quotable wisdom on every page of this story.
Definitely one of the best books I’ve read so far!
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