Blame Hitler (Transaction Large Print Books) [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Julian Rathbone (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1999 | Series: Transaction Large Print Books

Thomas hates his job, he drinks too much, and he realizes that from boyhood he has been driven to be better than his father. Thomas dreams of the man who became a stranger the day he joined up - and who was there to blame but Hitler? The novel entwines domestic life with history at the sharp end.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Kirkus Reviews

A vaguely loopy novel about the aging English son of a WWII veteran and his efforts to make peace with his age, his dad's ghost, and his fascination with military history. Thomas Somers, vacationing in France with his wife Katherine and their children, is disturbed to recall that in a few days he will have lived longer than his father, who died at 59. He attempts to stuff the troublesome fact away, but one trouble follows after another. His body already fat and balding (with a small penis inherited, he supposes, from Dad), Thomas begins to bleed from his bowel. His wife and children make changes in their plans that do not include Wellington's Spanish battlefields, but Thomas is so crestfallen that Katherine sends him to Spain alone, with hopes for his restoration. Rathbone, throughout, inserts descriptions of moments from Thomas' past, including hellish school years, parents who are smilingly hostile and loveless, and memories of the war years. Shunted aside by proper society, Thomas has a lifelong sense of personal inadequacyand his upcoming birthday seems merely a reminder of the injustice that his father, after all, was the better man. In Spain, Thomas tromps a beloved battlefield, continues to bleed, and has a cathartic dream/fantasy/alcoholic vision of fighting with Wellington, all while recalling his father's tragic heroism during the war. In saving his troops, Thomas recalls, his father had to allow one man to die, and the guilt broke his spirit forever. There is some oblique notion that, in dreamfighting bravely with Wellington in 1813, Thomas is redeemed in 1994 and deserves to live. Relieved, he returns to his family, though the questions of his bleeding and swollen penis remain unresolved. British writer Rathbone (Accidents Will Happen, 1997; etc.) gives spirited, informed frolic to a boy's fantasies of war, but Thomas' personal crises fall short of engaging. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 250 pages
• Publisher: Isis Large Print Books (January 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0753155826
• ISBN-13: 978-0753155820
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Living with aging, March 21, 2002

By 

phil wilkinson (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blame Hitler (Hardcover)

The summary description of "Blame Hitler" covers the basics of the story well, without actually identifying the aspects that engage the reader making Thomas' bleeding bowel a topic of minor interest. Minor, because there is more going on in this story, between the characters, both within the current time and through flashbacks. Thomas is aging and while not doing too badly physically, mentally he is not coping all that well with the engaging qualities of the symptoms of aging: arthritis and other aches and pains, odd feelings, and the panorama of one's past in general. This is the core of the story and how Thomas eventually reconciles his current existence with both his past, his parents past and maybe his view of Wellington's place in history for that matter, is what sustains the reader to the end. I didn't think the author maintained the momentum at an even pace to the end, which became vague in the last 10 or 20 pages, but that is a personal criticism. That part portrays Thomas' crisis and maybe I missed the point, it just struck me as a little overdone. On the other hand, I wasn't dissatisfied with the resolution in the last 2 or 3 page. The writing is pleasant to read, the descriptions of France are attractive, and some of the incidents are very believable, even vivid. While not a compelling book, it is a long way short of being disappointing. Great for a plane trip and certainly won't be discouraging on a holiday. Give it a go.