WAR CRIMES FOR THE HOME

Listening to this novel is like hearing a solo theatrical performance. Feisty, bitchy, and amusing, octogenarian Gloria relives her life during WWII. Some memories she remembers as easily as she does jokes, but others must be dragged from her. Gloria lets us know that she feels lots of people do bad things during wartime, and it's best that we not rake up the past. Juanita McMahon brings the colorful, yet exasperating, Gloria to life, with her Cockney accent, shifting moods, and freely expressed prejudices. Gloria's voice sounds different when she's old in her nursing home as compared to when she's young during the war. McMahon's is a captivating performance even though at times the listener wants to shake Gloria and tell her to get in touch with reality. This is an ambitious work, which gives us a very personal view of the past. D.L.G.
(c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB/ MAR 04]