The Sojourn Explained

The Sojourn is a 2011 debut novel by Andrew Krivak which was shortlisted for the National Book Award for Fiction.[1] [2] [3] The novel is a Family Saga which deals with American emigrant to Austria-Hungary, Jozef Vinich who gets dragged into World War I. Multiple reviewers compared the novel favourably to A Farewell to Arms.[4]

Reception

Reception of the novel was overwhelmingly positive. NPR reviewer Alan Cheuse called the novel "splendid", marking surprise that such a short novel can do such a good job examining the experience of the war. The Christian Science Monitor, similarly gave praise to the novel's simple language and compelling story telling, which effectively challenges the glorification of war, creating an "anti-war novel with all the heat of a just-fired artillery gun". Kirkus review noted that the novel is late to the World War I in literature genre, it's "an assured, meditative novel that turns on a forgotten theater in a largely forgotten war."[5]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Andrew Krivak, The Sojourn - 2011 National Book Award Fiction Finalist, The National Book Foundation. www.nationalbook.org. 2016-05-19.
  2. News: Book Review: 'The Sojourn'. NPR.org. 2016-05-19.
  3. News: Andrew Krivak's 'The Sojourn,' reviewed by Michael Dirda. Dirda. Michael. 2011-10-31. The Washington Post. en-US. 0190-8286. 2016-05-19.
  4. News: The Sojourn. Abrams. David. 2011-05-30. Christian Science Monitor. 0882-7729. 2016-05-19.
  5. Web site: THE SOJOURN by Andrew Krivak Kirkus Reviews. Kirkus Reviews. en-us. 2016-05-19.