The Assault Summary and Reviews

The Assault
by Harry Mulisch

The Assault
List Price: $15.00
Our Price: $6.49
You Save: $8.51 (57%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.76 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


or

Book Summary Information

Author: Harry Mulisch
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); Dutch (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1986-03-12
ISBN: 0394744209
Number of pages: 192
Publisher: Pantheon
Product features:
  • ISBN13: 9780394744209
  • Condition: New
  • Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

Book Reviews of The Assault

Book Review: "The Assault"...a WW II masterpiece by Harry Mulisch
Summary: 5 Stars

"The Assault" is a work of fiction by Harry Mulisch. This soft cover book is 186 pages in length.

Foreword:
I came across this book as a result of my stumbling across an obituary in one of our local papers. It took up about 1/3 of a page and mentioned that the author was renowned for his WW II story "The Assault". Previously I'd never heard of Harry Mulisch or this tale. However, because of the high praise mentioned for the book in the obit. plus the fact that I've always had an interest in events concerning WW II, I decided to get this book...a very rewarding decision.

*SPOILER*

It's Holland, January 1945...remembered as the 'winter of starvation' for reasons most of us can guess, but little appreciate. As the war is winding down in the still occupied town of Haarlem, a hated Nazi collaborator has been shot and killed on the street one freezing winter night. This occurs in front of a collection of four houses, containing four families. Anton Steenjwijk, then a 12 year old boy, is about to have is life irrevocably changed in the following minutes. Mistaken information, deliberate misdirection and a Gestapo that really doesn't care if the gets the murderer, just so long as it appears someone is made to pay...all these factors have a part to play in Anton's confusion (at the time and for years to come) regarding this unforgettable night.

His story continues through to 1981, and despite his every attempt to suppress his memory of this night of horror, a series of chance meetings, sporadically spread over the years with other people involved in that infamous few moments, bring him to finally and painfully understand the peculiar circumstances that occurred that fateful evening.

*END SPOILER*

Well written (nothing seems to be lost in translation to English), intriguing and almost impossible to put down. The story is so poignant, so emotionally traumatizing, when seen through Anton's eyes, it's almost impossible not to empathize with him, even though he spends most of his adult years trying to simply forget.

Conclusion:
A short story about some of the horrific events of WW II. Not really graphic, but told in a manner that inspires awe and admiration towards the gifted author and the people about whom he writes. 5 Stars.

Ray Nicholson

P.S.
Those of us who have never experienced a hostile occupation, especially of the scale that occurred in WW II and the abuse that accompanied it, can never really appreciated what memories the survivors must have. I've looked after War Vets, and every once in a while you'd see a guy sitting by himself, quietly crying...you'd never interfere, you knew why...memories!

Historical Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Historical Books
Pirate Latitudes: A Novel ImagePirate Latitudes: A Novel
by Michael Crichton
Harper; Published: 2009-11-24; Roughcut; Book
Best price: $2.50
Price in other shops: $27.99
The Master Butchers Singing Club: A Novel ImageThe Master Butchers Singing Club: A Novel
by Louise Erdrich
Harper Perennial; Published: 2004-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.83
Price in other shops: $13.95
The Last Witchfinder: A Novel ImageThe Last Witchfinder: A Novel
by James Morrow
William Morrow; Published: 2006-03-14; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.00
Price in other shops: $25.95
Zorro ImageZorro
by Isabel Allende
HarperAudio; Published: 2005-05-03; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $3.15
Price in other shops: $39.95
The Hot Kid: A Novel ImageThe Hot Kid: A Novel
by Elmore Leonard
William Morrow; Published: 2005-05-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.89
Price in other shops: $25.95
The Last Kingdom (The Saxon Chronicles Series #1) ImageThe Last Kingdom (The Saxon Chronicles Series #1)
Mass Market Paperback; Book
Bones of the Hills (Conqueror, Book 3) ImageBones of the Hills (Conqueror, Book 3)
by Conn Iggulden
Harper Collins Canada; Published: 2008; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $44.70
March ImageMarch
by Geraldine Brooks
Penguin Books; Published: 2006; Paperback; Book
Emperor (Emperor 1) ImageEmperor (Emperor 1)
by Conn Iggulden
Harpercollins Pb; Published: 2003-06-07; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.80
Girl With a Pearl Earring ImageGirl With a Pearl Earring
by Tracy Chevalier
Harper Collins Audio; Published: 2002-06-17; Audio Cassette; Book
Best price: $86.82
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
The Fall ImageThe Fall
by Albert Camus
Vintage; Published: 1991-05-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.90
Price in other shops: $13.95
Why the French Don't Like Headscarves: Islam, the State, and Public Space ImageWhy the French Don't Like Headscarves: Islam, the State, and Public Space
by John R. Bowen
Princeton University Press; Published: 2008-08-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.98
Price in other shops: $22.95
Fifth Business (Penguin Classics) ImageFifth Business (Penguin Classics)
by Robertson Davies
Penguin Classics; Published: 2001-01-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.00
Price in other shops: $15.00
Woman at Point Zero: Second Edition ImageWoman at Point Zero: Second Edition
by Nawal El Saadawi
Zed Books; Published: 2007-08-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.00
Price in other shops: $14.95
Chronicle of a Death Foretold ImageChronicle of a Death Foretold
by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Vintage; Published: 2003-10-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.45
Price in other shops: $13.95
A Doll's House (Dover Thrift Editions) ImageA Doll's House (Dover Thrift Editions)
by Henrik Ibsen
Dover Publications; Published: 1992-02-21; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops: $1.50
The Norton Anthology of Western Literature, Volume 2 ImageThe Norton Anthology of Western Literature, Volume 2
W. W. Norton & Company; Published: 2005-06-17; Paperback; Book
Best price: $48.14
Pedro Paramo ImagePedro Paramo
by Juan Rulfo
Grove Press; Published: 1994-03-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.36
Price in other shops: $14.00
Belfast Diary: War as a Way of Life ImageBelfast Diary: War as a Way of Life
by John Conroy
Beacon Press; Published: 1995-06-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.28
Price in other shops: $20.00
The Discovery of Heaven ImageThe Discovery of Heaven
by Harry Mulisch
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 1997-11-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.76
Price in other shops: $20.00