Ordinary Heroes
by Scott Turow
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Book Summary Information
Author: Scott TurowEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-10-01
ISBN: 0446617482
Number of pages: 512
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Book Reviews of Ordinary Heroes
Book Review: A Reluctant War Hero Story
Summary: 4 Stars
Scott Turow has written often about lawyers. Many of his books tend to be darker and more melancholy than the typical lawyer as crusading hero fare. Turow has explored themes of dysfunctional families, disgrace and failed relationships. Thus, it is not surprising that when Turow writes about "The Greatest Generation," his work is colored with greys of ambiguity, mystery and latent shame.
Ordinary Heroes is the story of a newspaperman struggling to unravel the enigma of his father's past. Stewart Dubinsky had always known his father, David Dubin, as a quiet insurance company lawyer who rarely spoke of his military service. However, in going through his father's papers, he learns of a wartime court martial at odds with his father's later career as a respected attorney. Investigating deeper against the wishes of his family (and employing deception to do so), he learns of his father's mission to arrest a rogue OSS agent. As Lt. Dubin seeks to investigate and then arrest Maj. Robert Martin, he is led to both admire and feel used by his prey. His ultimate decision to allow Martin to escape leads to his own court martial and conviction, which were later rescinded.
This story works extremely well because of the multi-layered dimensions of the story. On the surface, there is a son trying to understand his father. Below that is the story of the story of a young Jewish lawyer who is so transformed by his wartime experience that he is willing to risk everything. Woven even further below the surface is a love story which becomes apparent only in retrospect. Although Ordinary Heroes takes place against a backdrop of the savagery of war, it is primarily a human story. Like Stewart Dubinsky, the reader wants to know what happened. However, the greater challenge is to understand why the characters acted the way they did.
Turow's novel also conveys a strong feeling of historical accuracy. In a note on sources at the end of the book, Turow notes that some of the narrative was based on his own father's experiences as a doctor during World War II and acknowledges some plot devices taken from actual events. The result is to give a gritty and unromantic view of a war zone much as it must have been encountered by the actual participants.
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