{"schema_version":"bf_book_companion_v1","release_id":"20261010T034321Z-reviewed-full-unique-works","book":{"amazon_purchase_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/0399588760?tag=bookfrontie00-20","asin":"0399588760","authors":["Svetlana Alexievich"],"book_id":"9780399588761","canonical_url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/last-witnesses-9780399588761","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780399588761.jpg?v=e1c613b3962d4cff","description":"“A masterpiece” ( The Guardian ) from the Nobel Prize–winning writer, an oral history of children’s experiences in World War II across Russia NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST For more than three decades, Svetlana Alexievich has been the memory and conscience of the twentieth century. When the Swedish Academy awarded her the Nobel Prize, it cited her for inventing “a new kind of literary genre,” describing her work as “a history of emotions . . . a history of the soul.” Bringing together dozens of voices in her distinctive style, Last Witnesses is Alexievich’s collection of the memories of those who were children during World War II. They had sometimes been soldiers as well as witnesses, and their generation grew up with the trauma of the war deeply embedded—a trauma that would change the course of the Russian nation. Collectively, this symphony of children’s stories, filled with the everyday details of life in combat, reveals an altogether unprecedented view of the war. Alexievich gives voice to those whose memories have been lost in the official narratives, uncovering a powerful, hidden history from the personal and private experiences of individuals. Translated by the renowned Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, Last Witnesses is a powerful and poignant account of the central conflict of the twentieth century, a kaleidoscopic portrait of the human side of war. Praise for Last Witnesses “There is a special sort of clear-eyed humility to [Alexievich’s] reporting.” — The Guardian “A bracing reminder of the enduring power of the written word to testify to pain like no other medium. . . . Children survive, they grow up, and they do not forget. They are the first and last witnesses.” — The New Republic “A profound triumph.” —The Big Issue “[Alexievich] excavates and briefly gives prominence to demolished lives and eradicated communities. . . . It is impossible not to turn the page, impossible not to wonder whom we next might meet, impossible not to think differently about children caught in conflict.” — The Washington Post","forthcoming":false,"isbn13":"9780399588761","publication_date":"20200616","publisher":"Random House Publishing Group","slug":"last-witnesses","subtitle":"An Oral History of the Children of World War II","title":"Last Witnesses"},"discovery":{"categories":{"all":[{"bisac_code":"HIS010010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Eastern European History","score":0.707,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"YAN025130","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Wars & Military History for Teens","score":0.7014,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"JNF025090","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Holocaust for Kids","score":0.6994,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"hint":[{"bisac_code":"HIS010010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Eastern European History","score":0.707,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"YAN025130","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Wars & Military History for Teens","score":0.7014,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"JNF025090","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Holocaust for Kids","score":0.6994,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"publisher":[{"bisac_code":"BIO038000","confidence_band":"high","label":"Survival Stories","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"HIS027100","confidence_band":"high","label":"World War II History","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"HIS032000","confidence_band":"high","label":"Russian History","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"}]},"genres":[{"label":"Eastern European History","score":0.707,"slug":"eastern-european-history"},{"label":"Wars & Military History for Teens","score":0.7014,"slug":"wars-military-history-for-teens"},{"label":"Holocaust for Kids","score":0.6994,"slug":"holocaust-for-kids"}],"reader_fit":["Good for readers interested in personal accounts of children’s experiences in World War II","Readers drawn to oral histories and the human consequences of war"],"related_lists":[],"series":null,"similar_books":[{"authors":["Svetlana Alexievich","Richard Pevear","Larissa Volokhonsky"],"book_id":"9780399588747","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780399588747.jpg?v=969560c58522ffb0","score":0.7446,"title":"The Unwomanly Face of War","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780399588747"},{"authors":["M. 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Hyslop","Winston Groom"],"book_id":"9781426218880","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781426218880.jpg?v=bee6135b970adb23","score":0.6447,"title":"Eyewitness to World War II","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781426218880"},{"authors":["Esther Hautzig"],"book_id":"9780064405775","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780064405775.jpg?v=4d22d3d5fd43ec96","score":0.6385,"title":"The Endless Steppe","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780064405775"}],"topics":[{"evidence_refs":["keyword:history teacher gifts"],"label":"History","score":0.4536,"slug":"history"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:world war ii gifts"],"label":"World","score":0.0848,"slug":"world"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:social history"],"label":"Social","score":0.0723,"slug":"social"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:history teacher gifts"],"label":"Teacher","score":0.0338,"slug":"teacher"}],"what_you_get":["Themes: Children in wartime, War trauma and memory, Hidden personal histories.","Themes: History, Social, Teacher.","Reading lane: Eastern European History and Wars & Military History for Teens."]},"llm_signals":{"confidence":0.91,"pacing":"unknown","reader_fit":["Readers interested in personal accounts of children’s experiences in World War II","Readers drawn to oral histories and the human consequences of war"],"themes":["Children in wartime","War trauma and memory","Hidden personal histories"],"tropes":[]},"source_presence":{"amazon":true,"book_detail":true,"goodreads":true,"llm_signals":true,"similarity_seed":true},"stats":{"amazon_ratings_count":0,"goodreads_ratings_count":9872,"goodreads_reviews_count":1482,"quality_score":0.9551}}