Nina SiegalReseñas

I was surprised by how few diarists’ entries are included. There were of the most famous ones though those were mentioned. From well over 1,000 options: 3 Jewish, 2 Dutch Nazis, 1 a member of the resistance, 1 young adult with no political affiliation, and a very few mentions of other diaries/diarists. I ended up liking and appreciating those selected.

It was interesting (and sometimes horrifying) reading the different perspectives of the same time periods & events.

The reading got a bit tedious at times for me. It might be because even though I keep reading non-fiction I’ve been more in the mood for fiction. Most of it was not at all boring. At times it read like a thriller. The information presented was fascinating and there was a lot about Holland and its Jews during WWII which was previously unknown to me in spite of my having reading hundreds of Holocaust books.

The diary excerpts are put in sections that are in chronological order: Part I: Occupation, May 1940-May 1941; Part II: Persecution and Deportation, April 1942-February 1944; Part III: Toward Liberation, May 1944-May 1945; Part IV: The War in Memory, May 1945-May 2022.

At the start of each section some general history information for that time period is given. I found these parts at least as interesting as the entries from the diaries. In addition to this general current event of the time information included is some of author’s and others’ biographical information and general happenings of that time period and more currently.

This is a superb book. It’s an important book. My only real criticism is its repetitiveness. I also wish there had been even more: more diary writers. It was heartbreaking to read about the lost diaries, the lost stories of people, and I felt greedy to read more knowing that there were thousands more available. The book is already long but perhaps a list of all the known Dutch diaries could have been included. I would have loved that.

The author is the daughter and granddaughter of Holocaust survivors but they were not from the Netherlands. The author and her daughter do live in the Netherlands.

My favorite diarist might be Philip Mechanicus. His portions are really well written. He had been a professional journalist, and I loved how he kept working at Westerbork to report what was going on there. Heartbreaking.

It was disturbing to read about NSB people writing about their relatively posh and normal daily lives when other people are writing about their stressful (to say the very least) daily lives.

The sections at the end that covered a new Memorial and current antisemitism are excellent.

I greatly appreciated the many photos. There is a center section with color photos and each section starts with one black & white photo. The color photo section includes photos of many of the diaries, their outsides and their insides too. In one case illustrations the diary writer made are shown on the pages.

I needed many breaks from this book. I think it’s an exceptionally good book but it was emotionally difficult to read. It felt as though it took me even longer to read than it did.

4-1/2 stars. This is a 5 star book all the way but a half star off for the repetitiveness (even though maybe it wouldn’t have been easy to avoid and even though there wasn’t really that much of it) and because at times I found it hard to read.

Excerpt from a longer article:

Timely Take-aways for Life-long Learners

Lesser-known Stories from the World War II Era
Several new books explore the lesser-known stories of prisoners, survivors, resistance fighters, scientists, and other amazing individuals of the World War II era.

...

The Diary Keepers
Nina Siegal, 2023, Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins Themes: History, War & Conflict, World War II, Holocaust
Based on more than two thousand Dutch diaries, Siegal shares the untold story of ordinary citizens during World War II revealing struggles often overlooked.
Take-aways: Use the new perspectives and first-person accounts to help students better understand the complexities of World War II and the Holocaust in the Netherlands.

...

Whether helping educators keep up-to-date in their subject-areas, promoting student reading in the content-areas, or simply encouraging nonfiction leisure reading, teacher librarians need to be aware of the best new titles across the curriculum and how to activate life-long learning. - Annette Lamb

A riveting look at the story of World War II and the Holocaust through the diaries of Dutch citizens, firsthand accounts of ordinary people living through extraordinary times.

The idea for this book seems so farfetched but then I found out it is based on a read Dutch tradition of dropping off blindfolded teens and preteens in the forest at night and letting them find their way to camp. An easy choice to turn into a thriller. Some minor plot issues but an enjoyable read.

I found this to be a quick read and mostly enjoyable, but it felt like a YA book. I think it would go over really well with teens, but was a bit less relatable for an adult. Overall though I liked the premise of the story and felt like I learned a bit about a tradition I had never heard of before. :)

It was this descriptor that had me wanting to read Nina Siegal's latest novel - You'll Thank Me For This.
From Mullholland Books: "A pulse-pounding psychological thriller based on the popular Dutch tradition of blindfolding and dropping teens and preteens in the middle of a forest - and what happens when it goes horribly wrong."

Well, it's a real thing! What a great premise to weave a story into.

Siegal tells this story from two points of view in alternating chapters - that of twelve year old Karin and her mother Grace. I liked Karin - she has all the attributes you want in a plucky young protagonist - a thinker and ready to act. She's twelve, but I did find her to be a young twelve - a bit too trusting. Initially I thought Grace was okay - she and Karin are part of a new blended family. But as I read further, my opinion changed. She's got rose colored glasses on and seems determined to not take them off. If it happens once, it will happen again.

The plot starts off good. There's some conflict within the dropping group, but what could have been some Lord of the Flies territory ended quickly. I found the forest scenes of Karin's journey just too farfetched for me. The wolf scene. C'mon. Really? The 'scary' people in the forest. The plot was pretty predictable after a certain point as well. The final why is a bit of a stretch, but still plausible.

I found the writing a bit stilted and choppy. I thought perhaps it was a translation thing, but no, it was written in English. The other thing I checked was what target audience was - adult or YA. It was adult. I found Karin's chapters to be quite juvenile (because she is juvenile, I know), but they just didn't grab me. I wanted 'pulse-pounding', but it never hit that mark for me. Just okay for this reader.

A single day in Amsterdam, 1632. The Surgeons’ Guild has commissioned a young artist named Rembrandt to paint Dr. Nicolaes Tulp as he performs a medical dissection. In the swirl of anticipation and intrigue surrounding the event, we meet an extraordinary constellation of men and women whose lives hinge, in some way, on Dr. Tulp’s anatomy lesson. There is Aris the Kid, the condemned coat thief whose body is to be used for the dissection; Flora, his pregnant lover; Jan Fetchet, the curio dealer who acquires corpses for the doctor’s work; the great René Descartes, who will attend the dissection in his quest to understand where the human soul resides; and the Dutch master himself, who feels a shade uneasy about this assignment.
As the story builds to its dramatic conclusion, circumstances conspire to produce a famous painting—and an immortal painter. Vividly rendered, masterfully written, The Anatomy Lesson is a story of mind and body, death and love—and redemptive power of art.

Remarkable. Really interesting perspectives. Niuce!

This story is inspired by the painting, The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicholaes Tulp, by Rembrandt. Alternating voices take us through a single day in Amsterdam. We hear from a condemned thief who is scheduled for a public hanging, his betrothed who comes to Amsterdam to save him, Jan Fetchet who procures corpses for Dr. Tulp's lessons, Rene Descartes who will attend the dissection is search of the soul, and Rembrandt himself. It took me a bit to get into the rhythm of the book on audio, but I ended up fascinated by the threads of this story.½

This is a marvelously ambitious book, one in which Siegal has successfully taken us through the events of the day Rembrandt painted The Anatomy Lesson. Delving into the lives of each of the major players that took part in that momentous event, we get a taste of life in that time, the difficult choices, the hardships faced, the arbitrary meting out of punishment, life in prison. I loved the way the lives were woven in and out of one another's paths so that we see the connections, we have empathy for each sad role the players are drawn into. If you know the painting, the book brings another depth to the appreciation. If you do not know the painting, you will want to look it up and appreciate the lessons taught in this fine portrayal by Nina Siegal. I will definately look for other books by her!

Somehow I enjoyed the idea of this book more than the actual reading of it. Intermingled stories of 6 people on a single day in Amsterdam in 1632, all intimately concerned with the public dissection of a criminal, simply doesnt gell. It remains basically 6 different stories, none of them strong enough to carry the narrative. While it is beautifully written, with an economy of prose and a real feeling for the world of 17th century bourgeois Amsterdam, unfortunately, its a plot in search of a story. I dont regret reading it, but I doubt it will stick in my memory for long.½

Fascinating look at Rembrandt's first masterwork, "Anatomy lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp". We see the work through subjects of the painting and others connected with it. Each is called by a body part in each chapter about them. We have Rembrandt [The Eyes}, Dr. Tulp, president of the Surgeon's Guild [The Hands], Adriaen {the Body], Flora, his pregnant sweetheart {The Heart] Fletchet, who got the corpse for Rembrandt {The Mouth], Descartes, the philosopher and scientist {The Mind} and a modern-day conservator, Pia. Characters were well-rounded; each was given a personality and a backstory. The culminating event is the dissection. Rembrandt ruminates on how he plans to paint his picture and why. He wants it to be more than just a commission. Flora tries to save her lover from the gallows but is unsuccessful; however, in a sense, Adriaen does live--and still does, today. The idea for the novel was original and creative; we got a wonderful picture of Holland of that period--17th century. I felt the last section was weak and the author floundered to end her novel. The rest of it buoyed it up though and I recommend it.½

This book had a lot going for it in terms of what I like to read: it's an historical, it's set in the early modern period, it revolves around a painting, and it's told by multiple narrators. Despite all that, for the most part, it failed to engage me. Like Tracy Chevalier and others, Siegal has focused on a famous painting, Rembrandt's "The Anatomy Lesson," and created a backstory involving the painter, the anatomist, and the corpse. Each of these is given a voice, as are other narrators she imagines involved in the surrounding events: the dead man's lover, the doctor's wife, the philosopher René Descartes, and the supplier of all things strange (including corpses). To add a contemporary note, there's a modern-day art conservator.

I found the lives of the ordinary people fairly interesting: how the dead man, who had been executed, came to a life of crime, and how his pregnant lover came to Amsterdam in hopes of saving him--or at least bringing his body home for burial after the anatomy lesson. The description of how Rembrandt prepared for the task of painting the anatomy lesson was also intriguing--but I found it a bit of a stretch that he and the dead man just happened to have been friends. But the last third of the book was just plain dull. Aside from learning that the dead man's organs were passed around among the spectators, I was not interested in the details of the anatomy itself, which seemed to drag on and on. Nor was I much engaged with the various musings of Descartes on morality and the soul, or the conservator's examination of the painting.

Siegal's writing is capable, but nothing extraordinary. I was, in fact, a little surprised to read in her acknowledgments how much support she had gotten to write this book (two MacDowell Colony fellowships, a Guggenheim, etc.). Perhaps the award committee, like me, were intrigued by the idea behind this book; but sadly, I can only say that it was a hair above mediocre.½

The Anatomy Lesson by Nina Siegel is one of those cases where I totally overrated my interest in a subject. Art history is interesting to me, and so I thought this novel about the circumstances of Rembrandt’s creation of the painting “The Anatomy Lesson” would be great, plus it’s read by a full cast, which is my favorite thing. The performances are indeed quite good, but the focus on the science of the times definitely surpassed my personal interests, but I didn’t realize that for sure until I was about halfway through, so I wanted to push on through to the other side.

Read the full review at A Reader of Fictions.

This slender novel -- just 288 pages -- is a rich, emotional look at love, ambition, the human soul, the creative impulse, the last immortality of art. And yet, despite the lofty themes, it's a wholly accessible, can't-put-it-down read-able novel with a handful of unforgettable characters and one devastating day.

Inspired by Rembrandt's massive painting, The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp, the novel takes place during the day of Dr. Tulp's anatomy lesson.  The narrative shifts between seven voices and point of view, but rather than distract and dilute the tension and the story, this serves to provide a dense, captivating experience.

We meet Adriaen 'Aris the Kid' Adriaenszoon, a criminal who, after his hanging, will be used for the anatomy lesson; Dr. Nicolaes Tulp, an ambitious Dutch doctor who conducts the lesson; Flora, the pregnant country girl who hopes to prevent her lover's execution; Jan, a curio collector who also moonlights as an acquirer of medical cadavers; René Descartes, who will attend the dissection in the course of his quest to understand where the human soul resides; and the twenty-six-year-old Dutch master painter himself, who feels a shade uneasy about this assignment. And in the twenty-first century, there is Pia, a contemporary art historian who is examining the painting.

Each voice is so clear, their arc so well delineated, that the myriad of characters doesn't muddy the plot nor lose the reader.  In fact, the story is made more rich by the variety of viewpoints.  I was unfamiliar with this painting and the circumstances surrounding it, but Siegal articulates the technical aspects of the painting's design and layout as well as the (likely fictional) events leading up to it in such an engrossing way, I couldn't put this book down for anything but work.  (It also makes me yearn for more novels about specific works of art!)

Highly recommended -- a really fantastic debut.  For those who like novels about art, or historical novels that feature more ordinary people, this is a must read.  Fans of lightly literary works will want to pick this up, too.  You can read an excerpt at the publisher's website.

Nina Siegel's The Anatomy Lesson is one of those wonderful novels that's as solid in its realization as it is in its conception. The novel tells the back back story of Rembrandt's The Anatomy Lesson, that wonderful work commissioned by the Amsterdam Guild of Surgeons in 1632. The surgeons and city functionaries are pictured gathered round a corpse, as one of their group explains the anatomy of the forearm. The light in the picture falls downward, illuminating the corpse, while placing the other figures in shadow, making death look like life and life like death.

The novel is written in an array of first-person voices, with occasional third person framing, all of whom are identified in ways suitable to the dissection process. We have "The Body," Adriaen Adriaenszoon, the thief whose execution will provide the corpse for the dissection; "The Hands," Dr. Nicolaes Tulp, who conducts the autopsy; "The Heart," Adriaen's lover Flora, pregnant with his child, who hopes to win his acquittal or, failing that, to claim his remains for burial; "The Mouth," Jan Fetchet, dealer in curiosities and all manner of goods, who also serves as preparator for the Surgeon's Guild, claiming and cleaning the bodies of the executed who will become the focus of dissections; "The Mind," René Descartes, who like Dr. Tulp dreams of finding the location of the soul within the body; and "The Eyes," Rembrandt himself, with connections to every other character in the book from thief to surgeon. We also get occasional excepts from the journal of a conservator working on the painting in the present day.

I can claim no expertise on 17th Century Amsterdam or the practice of science within the city, but it seems clear that the author has done her research carefully. The details of the city, its judicial processes, the dissection, the artistic process, and the later work by the conservator all ring true and are presented in sufficient detail that the reader engages in a kind of historical and professional learning while being carried along on the tide of the narrative.

This is a book that engages the reader on many levels simultaneously, eliciting consideration of scientific ethics, of the physical versus the spiritual self, of politics and self-promotion, of they ways in which lives unroll along clear but unlikely paths. Whether your greatest interest lies in historical fiction, the history of medicine, or the history of art, this novel will offer you a rich, rewarding read.

I am going to just come out and say this: I'm not an art connoisseur. I can't stand for hours staring at a painting, inspecting the textures and colors and brush technique. Give me a concert hall and a beautiful concerto to listen to or even just a plain piano recital and I will be happy. My art is printed sheet music and I use my ears (and my fingers) to coax it out once the rough learning with the pages has been done. Still, there are times every now and then that I pass by a painting or am introduced to some famous work of art and I wonder at the story behind it. I've never understood the fascination with a certain famous woman's smile, but I do understand some of the dreaminess of Degas and can admire the lifelike figures and shading of Rembrandt. The Anatomy Lesson takes a look at the first painting that Rembrandt signed just that, a single word, as his signature. It's a famous painting of men with a corpse cast into the light and the inner workings of the arm displayed for all to see.

Read the rest of this review at The Lost Entwife on Jan 5, 2014.

This is a light, humorous mystery that revolves around Valerie Vane, a former society columnist for a prestigious New York paper, who, after “an incident,” has been demoted to writing obituaries. After a mysterious phone call alerting her to what might be a murder rather than a suicide of a previously renowned graffiti artist she slowly and somewhat reluctantly begins to get involved in uncovering this possible crime. As Valerie discovers more evidence and becomes personally involved with her prime source she reveals how she started out as a small town hick from a hippie commune with the unlikely name of Starburst Rhapsody Miller, and evolved into New York’s top lifestyle reporter with the city’s most coveted byline, only to lose it all in a whirlwind of excess. While the story is a bit heavy on the details of graffiti art and terms there’s a nice noir-like feel to the story, which is not surprising since Valerie’s favorite movies are those black and white noir classics with tough dames taking on the city in their tight skirts and stilettos. Valerie does that with her sense of humor firmly in place too.½