Fall of Giants

Summary (from the publisher): Ken Follett’s magnificent new historical epic begins, as five interrelated families move through the momentous dramas of the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and the struggle for women’s suffrage.

A thirteen-year-old Welsh boy enters a man’s world in the mining pits.…An American law student rejected in love finds a surprising new career in Woodrow Wilson’s White House.… A housekeeper for the aristocratic Fitzherberts takes a fateful step above her station, while Lady Maud Fitzherbert herself crosses deep into forbidden territory when she falls in love with a German spy.…And two orphaned Russian brothers embark on radically different paths when their plan to emigrate to America falls afoul of war, conscription, and revolution.

From the dirt and danger of a coal mine to the glittering chandeliers of a palace, from the corridors of power to the bedrooms of the mighty, Fall of Giants takes us into the inextricably entangled fates of five families—and into a century that we thought we knew, but that now will never seem the same again.

 

Review: I won a copy of this book as a giveaway on Goodreads.

 

This book is grand in scope, so its difficult to summarize. However, it focuses on five interrelated families during the first World War. Conveniently, the main characters including British, Welsh, Russian, American, and German citizens, so the reader is able to see multiple perspectives of the impact of the war.

 

This novel reeled me in from the opening page. The novel begins in 1911; it's Billy Williams' 13th birthday, and his first day to work in the pit as a miner. Billy isn't quite sure what to expect and is terrified to be dropped so far underground into the darkness. As he is lowered in the cage into the depths of the mine, "Billy knew that it went into free fall, then braked in time for a soft landing; but no theoretical foreknowledge could have prepared him for the sensation of dropping unhindered into the bowels of the earth. His feet left the floor. He screamed in terror" (16).

 

Just as in his previous novels, Follett does an excellent job of creating characters that the reader can sympathize with, and whose struggles and stories urge the reader on through hundreds of pages of reading. Additionally, he does an excellent job of constructing fairly complicated character tree. For example, Billy's sister works in Earl Fitzherbert's house as a housemaid. The Earl's wife is a Russian princess, who witnessed the hanging of the father of the two main Russian characters in this novel. Furthermore, Follett chose well in giving the reader a perspective in so many characters. No country is portrayed as the enemy, instead the complexity of the war and the ruling parties are explored.

 

That being said, Follett has very blatant themes. His most heroic characters are those that are championing worker's rights, women's rights, and the downfall of tyrannous governments. His most villainous character is arguably that of Earl Fitzherbert, who is portrayed as an indulged aristocrat who, because of his social rank, is allowed to lead hundreds of men to their death on the battlefield. This heavy emphasis on major societal themes is evident early on, when young Billy is increasingly aware of the political and financial reasons behind the lack of security measures being followed in the mines, leading to the death of many miners. While this is helpful for historical context and for broad social understanding of the period, it's a bit heavy handed at times.

 

In Fall of Giants, Follett has tackled an international storyline with dozens of characters spanning thirteen years in history. Although he has taken liberties with historical events and individuals by including his own fictional characters, this is an enjoyable historical read with characters that bring this period of our history vividly to life.

 

Stars: 4